Vescornis

small (feeble) bird

• vescus · Latin · small, thin, feeble
• ornis · Greek · bird

Vescornis combines the Latin "vescus" (small or feeble) with the Greek "ornis" (bird). It refers to the small size of this early enantiornithine bird. The type species, V. hebeiensis, is named for Hebei Province, China, where it was found.

Named by

Zhang, Ericson and Zhou

Year named

2004

Period

Early Cretaceous

Found in

Huajiying Formation, Hebei Province, China

An enantiornithine bird, a group of Mesozoic birds. Birds are avian dinosaurs, so it counts as a dinosaur in the modern sense. I am not certain of the exact geologic stage or the exact wording of the etymology in the original paper.