1876 in paleontology

Paleontology or palaeontology is the study of prehistoric life forms on Earth 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 1876.

Dinosaurs

Taxon	Novelty	Status	Author(s)	Age	Unit	Location	Notes
Aublysodon lateralis^[2]	Sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Cope	Campanian	Judith River Formation	Montana	A species of Aublysodon
Chondrosteosaurus gigas	Gen. et sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Owen	Barremian	Wessex Formation	England	A sauropod
Diclonius pentagonus^[2]	Gen. et sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Cope	Campanian	Judith River Formation	Montana	A hadrosaurid
Diclonius calamarius^[2]	Sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Cope	Campanian	Judith River Formation	Montana	A species of Diclonius
Diclonius perangulatus^[2]	Sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Cope	Campanian	Judith River Formation	Montana	A species of Diclonius
Dysganus encaustus^[2]	Gen. et sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Cope	Campanian	Judith River Formation	Montana	A ceratopsid
Dysganus bicarinatus^[2]	Sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Cope	Campanian	Judith River Formation	Montana	A species of Dysganus
Dysganus haydenianus^[2]	Sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Cope	Campanian	Judith River Formation	Montana	A species of Dysganus
Dysganus peiganus^[2]	Sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Cope	Campanian	Judith River Formation	Montana	A species of Dysganus
Laelaps explanatus^[2]	Sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Cope	Campanian	Judith River Formation	Montana	A species of Laelaps
Laelaps falculus^[2]	Sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Cope	Campanian	Judith River Formation	Montana	A species of Laelaps
Laelaps incrassatus^[2]	Sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Cope	Campanian	Judith River Formation	Montana	A species of Laelaps
Macrurosaurus semnus	Gen. et sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Seeley	Albian	Cambridge Greensand	England	A sauropod
Monoclonius crassus^[2]	Gen. et sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Cope	Campanian	Judith River Formation	Montana	A ceratopsid
Paronychodon lacustris^[2]	Gen. et sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Cope	Campanian	Judith River Formation	Montana	A troodontid
Zapsalis abradens	Gen. et sp. nov.	Nomen dubium	Cope	Campanian	Judith River Formation	Montana	A dromaeosaurid

Anapsids

Newly named anapsids

Name	Status	Authors		Location	Notes	Images
Anthodon		Sir Richard Owen		South Africa Tanzania	A pareiasaur.
Pareiasaurus		Sir Richard Owen		South Africa Zambia	A pareiasaur

Plesiosaurs

Newly named plesiosaurs

Name	Status	Authors	Notes
Plesiosaurus longirostris	Valid	Blake	Now referred to Hauffiosaurus.^[3]
Plesiosaurus propinquus	Junior synonym	Blake	A junior synonym of Rhomaleosaurus zetlandicus.^[4]
Uronautes	Valid	Cope

Pterosaurs

New taxa

Name	Status	Authors		Location	Notes	Images
Nyctosaurus	Valid	Marsh		USA ( Kansas)	A Pterosaur with an antenna-like crest .
Pteranodon	Valid	Marsh		USA Kansas England Japan	An Crested Pterosaur, Erroneously known as "Pterodactyl"

Synapsids

Non-mammalian

Name	Status	Authors	Age	Location	Notes
Cistecephalus	Valid	Owen	255 Millions of years ago.	South Africa	Box-Headed animal
Endothiodon	Valid	Owen	257 Millions of years ago.	Brazil India Malawi South Africa Tanzania Zambia
Gorgonops	Valid	Owen	257 Millions of years ago.	Malawi South Africa	A Gorgonopsian.
Scaloposaurus	Valid	Owen	251 Millions of years ago.	South Africa
Tapinocephalus	Valid	Owen	261 Millions of years ago.	South Africa	A Dome-headed Dinocephalian.
Theriognathus	Valid	Owen	255 Millions of years ago.	Tanzania
Titanosuchus	Valid	Owen	261 Millions of years ago.	South Africa	Titanic crocodile.

References

^ Gini-Newman, Garfield; Graham, Elizabeth (2001). Echoes from the past: world history to the 16th century. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson Ltd. ISBN 9780070887398. OCLC 46769716.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m Cope, E.D. (1876). "Descriptions of some vertebrate remains from the Fort Union Beds of Montana". Paleontological Bulletin. 22: 1–14.
^ Roger B. J. Benson, Hilary F. Ketchum, Leslie F. Noè and Marcela Gómez-Pérez (2011). "New information on Hauffiosaurus (Reptilia, Plesiosauria) based on a new species from the Alum Shale Member (Lower Toarcian: Lower Jurassic) of Yorkshire, UK". Palaeontology 54 (3): 547–571. doi:10.1111/j.1475-4983.2011.01044.x.
^ P. Vincent and A. S. Smith. 2009. A redescription of Plesiosaurus propinquus Tate & Blake, 1876 (Reptilia, Plesiosauria), from the Lower Jurassic (Toarcian) of Yorkshire, England. Proceedings of the Yorkshire Geological Society 57(3-4):133-142

[1] Gini-Newman, Garfield; Graham, Elizabeth (2001). Echoes from the past: world history to the 16th century. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson Ltd. ISBN 9780070887398. OCLC 46769716.

[cope1876-2] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m Cope, E.D. (1876). "Descriptions of some vertebrate remains from the Fort Union Beds of Montana". Paleontological Bulletin. 22: 1–14.

[3] Roger B. J. Benson, Hilary F. Ketchum, Leslie F. Noè and Marcela Gómez-Pérez (2011). "New information on Hauffiosaurus (Reptilia, Plesiosauria) based on a new species from the Alum Shale Member (Lower Toarcian: Lower Jurassic) of Yorkshire, UK". Palaeontology 54 (3): 547–571. doi:10.1111/j.1475-4983.2011.01044.x.

[4] P. Vincent and A. S. Smith. 2009. A redescription of Plesiosaurus propinquus Tate & Blake, 1876 (Reptilia, Plesiosauria), from the Lower Jurassic (Toarcian) of Yorkshire, England. Proceedings of the Yorkshire Geological Society 57(3-4):133-142

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