Paleontology or palaeontology is the study of prehistoric life formsonEarth through the examination of plant and animal fossils.[1] This includes the study of body fossils, tracks (ichnites), burrows, cast-off parts, fossilised feces (coprolites), palynomorphs and chemical residues. Because humans have encountered fossils for millennia, paleontology has a long history both before and after becoming formalized as a science. This article records significant discoveries and events related to paleontology that occurred or were published in the year 1985.
Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
gen et sp nov |
He & Pei |
Henan province |
synonym of Pojetaia runnegari |
|||||
Ord, Supfam, fam, gen et sp nov |
valid |
MacKinnon |
one of four accepted Cambrian bivalves |
Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sp nov |
valid |
Adolichoderine ant |
![]() | |||||
Sp nov |
valid |
Adolichoderine ant |
||||||
gen et sp. nov |
valid |
Acastniid butterfly-moth, monotypic |
Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Gen et sp nov |
Valid |
Ubaghs & Robison |
Asolutan. |
|||||
Gen et sp nov |
Valid |
Ubaghs & Robison |
Aneocrinoid. |
Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Type locality | Location | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sp nov |
jr synonym |
Duffin |
Ahybodont, moved to Reesodus wirksworthensisin2013[8] |
Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Gen et sp nov |
Valid |
Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Gen et sp |
Valid |
Campos & Kellner |
Apterodactyloid belonging to Anhangueridae. |
![]() | ||||
Gen et sp nov |
Jurcsák & Kessler |
Early Cretaceous |
Bauxite mine |
An informal name applied to Palaeocursornis. An azhdarchoid pterosaur.[12] |
Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list.[13]
Name | Status | Authors | Location | Notes | Images | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Abelisaurus[14] | Valid taxon |
|
A short-handed Flesh-eating Dinosaur. | ![]() | ||
"Aliwalia"[15] |
Junior subjective synonym of Eucnemosaurus. |
|||||
Blikanasaurus[16] | Valid taxon |
|
||||
Camelotia[17] | Valid taxon | A British Melanorosaur. | ![]() | |||
Carnotaurus[18] | Valid taxon | AnAbelisaurid. The Horned Cheetah of the Cretaceous. | ![]() | |||
"Dachungosaurus"[19] |
|
|||||
"Dystylosaurus"[20] |
Junior synonym of Supersaurus. |
|||||
Gasosaurus[21] | Valid taxon | ![]() | ||||
"Mifunesaurus" |
|
|||||
"Moshisaurus" |
|
|||||
"Oshanosaurus"[19] |
|
|||||
"Sanchusaurus" |
|
|||||
Supersaurus[20] | Valid taxon | ![]() | ||||
"Ultrasaurus"[20] |
Preoccupied by Kim H. M., 1983 and renamed Ultrasauros. |
|||||
"Xuanhuasaurus"[19] |
|
Later renamed Xuanhuaceratopsin2006 |
Name | Status | Novelty | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
|||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
|||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
AnAnatidae, transferred to the genus Aythya by Nikita V. Zelenkov [25] |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
AnAnatidae. |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
AnAnatidae. |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
|||||||
Valid |
Gen et Sp. nov. |
|
AnEnantiornithes, Avisauridae Brett-Surman & Paul, 1985 this is the type species of the new genus. |
|||||
Valid |
Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. |
AnAnatidae. |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
AnAnatidae, Nikita V. Zelenkov, 2012 transferred the species to his genus Protomelanitta Zelenkov, 2011.[29] |
||||||
Valid |
Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. |
AnAnatidae, this is the type species of the new genus. |
||||||
Valid |
Gen et Sp nov. |
ACathartidae, this is the type species of the new genus. |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
Robert F. Baird |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
AColiidae. |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
ACorvidae. |
||||||
Valid |
Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. |
APhasianidae, this is the type species of the new genus. |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
|
AnArdeidae. |
|||||
Valid |
Nom. nov. |
ATinamidae, new name for the preoccupied Tinamisornis intermedius Dabbene et Lillo, 1913 = Eudromia elegans intermedia (Dabbene et Lillo, 1913). |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
|||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
MN 12 |
AGruidae. |
|||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
AnAccipitridae. |
||||||
Valid |
Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. |
APhaethontidae, this is the type species of the new genus. |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
|||||||
Not Valid |
Sp. nov. |
APhasianidae, not a Lophura, the holotype is not diagnostic to genus.[citation needed] |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
Cayman Brac cave deposits |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
AnOceanitidae. |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
Sharga |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
Robert F. Baird |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
Storrs L. Olson |
||||||
Valid |
Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. |
AGruiformes, Phorusrhacidae Ameghino, 1889, Psilopterinae Mathilde Dolgopol de Sáez, 1927, this is the type species of the new genus. |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
ATodidae. |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
ATodidae. |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
Latest Clarendonian |
||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
|||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
|||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
|||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
|||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
Hyargas-Nuur 2:
MN 13; |
||||||
Valid ? |
Sp. nov. |
Colin J. O. Harrison |
|
APseudontornithidae, possibly a synonymym of Pseudodontornis longidentata[citation needed] |
||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
Storrs L. Olson |
Quaternary, probably Holocene |
Cave deposits |
ACaprimulgidae, may still be living. |
|||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
|||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
|||||||
Valid |
Sp. nov. |
AnAnatidae. |
||||||
Valid |
Gen et Sp nov. |
APasseriformes, family Incertae Sedis, this is the type species of the new genus. |
Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Gen et sp nov |
Valid |
Zhang |