Barornis

Barornis is an extinct genus of early bird from the Late Cretaceous period. Fossils attributed to Barornis were discovered in the Maastrichtian-age deposits of the Lance Formation in Wyoming, USA. The genus was first described by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1872 based on limited fossil material, primarily a tarsometatarsus (a bone in the lower leg). Marsh initially placed Barornis within his new order Odontornithes, which encompassed several extinct toothed birds.

Subsequent research has led to considerable debate regarding the exact taxonomic placement of Barornis. Some paleontologists consider it a valid, albeit poorly understood, genus. Others have suggested that the remains are too fragmentary to definitively assign to a unique genus and may represent a juvenile or aberrant specimen of another known Late Cretaceous bird, such as those belonging to the extinct families Pelagornithidae or Pseudotooth birds. The limited fossil evidence makes a precise reconstruction of Barornis' appearance and lifestyle challenging. Its relationship to modern bird groups remains uncertain due to the scarcity of diagnostic features in the fossil remains.