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sharp-clawed runner · Doubtful name
Heptasteornis
Say it like this: “hep-tas-tee-OR-nis”
Heptasteornis andrewsi
Heptasteornis ate meat and walked on two legs. It lived in the Late Cretaceous. Bones have been found in Romania.
- When
- Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) · roughly 72.2 to 66 million years ago
- Named in
- 1975 · Harrison, C. J. O.; Walker, C. A.
- Hip height
- Not established
- Length
- Not established
- Weight
- Not established
- Found in
- Romania · Sânpetru
- Food and walking
- Carnivore · Two legs
- Kind
- sharp-clawed runner · Theropod
- Family branch
- Alvarezsauridae
The story in short
In 1975, C. J. O. Harrison and C. A. Walker published the name Heptasteornis.
It lived in the Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian), roughly 72.2 to 66 million years ago. Finds come from Romania, including the Sânpetru Formation. It was a carnivore and walked on two legs.
The fossils of Heptasteornis are too incomplete for a responsible length, hip height, or weight, so those fields are left blank on purpose.
On the family tree it sits in Alvarezsauridae, among the theropod dinosaurs.
Close relatives
Achillesaurus
Achillesaurus manazzonei
Late Cretaceous (Santonian) · roughly 85.7 to 83.6 million years ago
Albertonykus
Albertonykus borealis
Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) · roughly 72.2 to 66 million years ago
Alvarezsaurus
Alvarezsaurus calvoi
Late Cretaceous (Santonian) · roughly 85.7 to 83.6 million years ago