Kizylkumavis

Kyzylkum bird

• Kizylkum · Turkic (Uzbek/Kazakh, via Russian) · Kyzylkum, 'red sand' (the desert in Uzbekistan)
• avis · Latin · bird

The name means "Kyzylkum bird". It refers to the Kyzylkum Desert of Uzbekistan, where the fossils were found. "Kyzylkum" is a Turkic name usually translated as "red sand". It is combined with the Latin word for bird. The type species is Kizylkumavis cretacea.

Named by

Nessov

Year named

1984

Period

Late Cretaceous

Stage

Turonian

Found in

Bissekty Formation, Kyzylkum Desert, Uzbekistan

A very fragmentary early bird (avialan), known from limb bones. Birds are living dinosaurs, so it counts as a dinosaur in the cladistic sense. Its exact position within birds is uncertain, and the poor material means its validity and relationships have been questioned. The spelling "Kizylkumavis" is the original published one. "Kyzylkum" is the more usual transliteration of the desert's name.