Changes: Hesperornis

Revision as of 19:20, 7 September 2020

“	A familiar sight on the coast of the Cretaceous.	”
– Sea Monsters: To Hell... and Back?

Hesperornis was a flightless bird from the Cretaceous. Due to its design, it was cumbersome on land but was a fabulous swimmer.

Physical appearance and biology

Hesperornis was a large, flightless bird. It had small legs and its toes were flat and clawless. Its wings were tiny.

Hesperornis had a long, stalk-like neck. It had a long head and its beak was lined with needle-sharp teeth.

In Sea Monsters, Hesperornis had black feathers, a red head and legs and a golden beak.

Behaviour and traits

Hesperornis was a large flightless seabird. It lived in large colonies that would spend most of their time basking on the sea shore. In these groups, they were extremely vociferous. On the shore, they were at risk of attack by dinosaurs like Tyrannosaurus rex.

Due to the fact that its legs were positioned too far down its body, almost along the tail, and its wings were too small to provide counterbalance Hesperornis couldn't fly and couldn't move efficiently on land or even stand upright, but rather crawled around, like modern loons and grebes do. However, just like the modern loons and grebes, once under water, Hesperornis was agile and maneuverable. It could accelerate and make sharp turns, perfect for underwater hunting. Unfortunately, during the Cretaceous, the seas were far more dangerous than the land.

Hesperornis were preyed upon by mosasaurs, carnivorous fish like Xiphactinus and sharks.

In Sea Monsters

To Hell... and Back?

Nigel Marven arrived in the centre of a Hesperornis colony in the Cretaceous. He observed the birds basking on the shore of the sea. He watched as a pair fought and as some of them dived into the water. There, the seabirds chased a shoal of fish.

Nigel, on his speedboat, spotted a blood patch in the water. Using a periscope, we watched as some Hesperornis were attacked and killed by a group of predators including Halisaurus, Xiphactinus and sharks.

Image gallery

Main article: Hesperornis/Gallery

Behind the scenes

Hesperornis also appeared in Primeval in Episode 1.3.^[1]

List of appearances

Notes and references

↑ Anomaly Research Centre - Hesperornis

[1] Anomaly Research Centre - Hesperornis

[1]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Infobox creature||image = [[File:HesperornisInfobox.jpg|270px]]
-{{Dinoseries|SM}}{{Infobox_Creature
+|name = Hesperornis
-|image = [[File:HesperornisPromo.jpg|300px]]
+|att = Short legs; tiny wings; long, stalk-like neck; beak lined with sharp teeth; vociferous; cumbersome on land; great swimmer
-|Scientific name = ''Hesperornis regalis''
+|diet = [[Fish]]; other animals
-|Time period = Late [[Cretaceous]] period
+|range = [[North America]]
-|Primary diet = Carnivore
+|time = [[Cretaceous]] <br> 80 to 65mya
-|Appearances = ''[[Sea Monsters]]'' <small>(''[[Sea Monsters, Episode 3]]'')</small>
+|appearances = ''[[Sea Monsters]]'': [[To Hell... and Back?]]}}
-|Name meaning = Western Bird}}
+{{Quote|A familiar sight on the coast of the [[Cretaceous]].|''[[Sea Monsters]]'': [[To Hell... and Back?]]}}
+'''''Hesperornis''''' was a flightless [[Birds|bird]] from the [[Cretaceous]]. Due to its design, it was cumbersome on land but was a fabulous swimmer.
+==Physical appearance and biology==
+''Hesperornis'' was a large, flightless bird. It had small legs and its toes were flat and clawless. Its wings were tiny.
+''Hesperornis'' had a long, stalk-like neck. It had a long head and its beak was lined with needle-sharp teeth.
-'''''Hesperornis''''' was a prehistoric bird featured in Impossible pictures.
+In ''Sea Monsters'', ''Hesperornis ''had black feathers, a red head and legs and a golden beak.
-It couldn't fly like other [[Birds|birds]] do, instead it swam as the modern penguins do. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">A species of Cretaceous birds that are over six feet long and look similar to penguins. They were so vociferous, it was deafening being in the middle of a colony. They’re flightless, like penguins, but they were far from as cute. Inside their dagger-like bills, they’ve actually got teeth. But just to hold their own, ''Hesperornis ''had to be tough. They were around a time where there were truly awe-inspiring predators. ''Hesperornis ''spent most of their lives in water. They’re amazingly adapted for diving, with specially heavy bones to help them stay submerged. </span>
+==Behaviour and traits==
-<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">But few ''Hesperornis ''lived to a ripe old age, because where they’re from, there were so many ways to get eaten: t</span>hey were common prey for many other sea creatures as featured by the third episode of '''Sea Monsters'''. In its turn, ''Hesperornis'' feed on fish and squid that it caught with its toothy beak.
-==In the series==
-===''[[Sea Monsters]]''===
-''[[Sea Monsters, Episode 3]]''
+''Hesperornis'' was a large flightless seabird. It lived in large colonies that would spend most of their time basking on the sea shore. In these groups, they were extremely vociferous. On the shore, they were at risk of attack by [[dinosaur]]s like ''[[Tyrannosaurus rex]]''.
-When [[Nigel Marven]] arrived on the shores of the Cretaceous ocean, he encountered a colony of ''Hesperornis''. The show depicted them clumsy on land, similar to modern loons, but very agile underwater - just not agile enough to avoid sharks, ''[[Xiphactinus]]'', and smaller [[Mosasaurs|mosasaurs]].
+Due to the fact that its legs were positioned too far down its body, almost along the tail, and its wings were too small to provide counterbalance ''Hesperornis'' couldn't fly and couldn't move efficiently on land or even stand upright, but rather crawled around, like modern loons and grebes do. However, just like the modern loons and grebes, once under water, ''Hesperornis ''was agile and maneuverable. It could accelerate and make sharp turns, perfect for underwater hunting. Unfortunately, during the [[Cretaceous]], the seas were far more dangerous than the land.
-{{Birds}}
-{{Sea Monsters Creatures}}
+''Hesperornis'' were preyed upon by [[mosasaur]]s, carnivorous [[fish]] like ''[[Xiphactinus]]'' and [[shark]]s.
-[[Category:Sea Monsters Animals]]
+==In ''[[Sea Monsters]]''==
+===[[To Hell... and Back?]]===
+[[Nigel Marven]] arrived in the centre of a ''Hesperornis'' colony in the Cretaceous. He observed the birds basking on the shore of the sea. He watched as a pair fought and as some of them dived into the water. There, the seabirds chased a shoal of fish.
+Nigel, on his speedboat, spotted a blood patch in the water. Using a periscope, we watched as some ''Hesperornis'' were attacked and killed by a group of predators including ''[[Halisaurus]]'', ''Xiphactinus'' and sharks.
+==Image gallery==
+{{Gallery}}
+==Behind the scenes==
+''Hesperornis ''also appeared in ''Primeval'' in Episode 1.3.<ref>[http://primeval.wikia.com/wiki/Hesperornis Anomaly Research Centre - Hesperornis]</ref>
+===List of appearances===
+*''[[Sea Monsters]]''
+**103. [[To Hell... and Back?]]
+*''[[Sea Monsters: Prehistoric Predators of the Deep]]''
+*''[[The Complete Guide to Prehistoric Life]]''
+===Notes and references===
+{{reflist}}
+[[Category:Creatures]]
+[[Category:Creatures in Sea Monsters]]
+[[Category:Creatures in To Hell... and Back?]]
+[[Category:Creatures from the Cretaceous]]
+[[Category:Prehistoric creatures]]
+[[Category:Creatures from North America]]
+[[Category:Animals]]
 [[Category:Birds]]
-[[Category:Walking with Wikia]]
+[[Category:Carnivorous creatures]]
-[[Category:Marine animals]]
+[[Category:Terrestrial creatures]]
-[[Category:Carnivores]]
+[[Category:Aquatic creatures]]
-[[Category:Cretaceous Animals]]
+[[Category:Killers]]
-[[Category:Coelurosaurs]]
+[[Category:Animals from Kansas]]
-[[Category:Animals from North America]]
 [[Category:Mesozoic animals]]
-[[Category:Dinosaurs]]
+[[Category:Vertebrates]]
+[[Category:Cretaceous Animals]]
+[[Category:Social animals]]