1973 in paleontology

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1970 1971 1972 -1973- 1974 1975 1976
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   In science: 1970 1971 1972 -1973- 1974 1975 1976     
Art . Archaeology . Architecture . Literature . Music . Philosophy . Science +...

Paleontology, palaeontology or palæontology (from Greek: paleo, "ancient"; ontos, "being"; and logos, "knowledge") 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 mankind has 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 1973.

Arthropods

Insects

Name Novelty Status Authors Age Unit Location Notes Images

Epiborkhausenites[2]

Gen et sp. nov

valid

  • Skalski

Bartonian

Baltic amber

 Lithuania

monotypic; An Oecophoridae moth

Archosauromorphs

Newly named crurotarsins

Name Novelty Status Authors Age Unit Location Notes Images

Lisboasaurus[3]

valid

Seiffert

Middle Jurassic

Guimarota lignite

 Portugal

Crocodylomorph

Newly named dinosaurs

Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list.[4]

Name Novelty Status Authors Age Unit Location Notes Images

Alocodon[5]

Gen et sp nov

Valid

Thulborn

Middle Jurassic

Guimarota lignite

 Portugal

Ornithischian of uncertain placement

Efraasia[6]

gen nov

Valid

Galton

Middle Norian

Löwenstein Formation

 Germany

basal sauropodomorph

Kelmayisaurus[7]

gen et sp nov

Valid

Zhiming

Early Cretaceous

Lianmugin Formation

 China

carcharodontosaurid

Phaedrolosaurus[7]

gen et sp nov

nomen dubium

Zhiming

Early Cretaceous

Lianmugin Formation

 China

described from a single tooth

Phyllodon[5]

Gen et sp nov

Valid

Thulborn

Middle Jurassic

Guimarota lignite

 Portugal

possible Hypsilophodontid

Shantungosaurus[8]

gen et sp nov

Valid

Hu

Late Cretaceous

 China

largest known ornithischian

Trimucrodon[5]

Gen et sp nov

nomen dubium

Thulborn

Middle Jurassic

Guimarota lignite

 Portugal

Ornithischian of uncertain placement

Tugulusaurus[7]

gen et sp nov

Valid

Zhiming

Early Cretaceous

Tugulu Group

 China

coelurosaurian

Wuerhosaurus[7]

gen et sp nov

Valid

Zhiming

Early Cretaceous

Tugulu Group

 China

one of the last stegosaurians

Newly named birds

Name Novelty Status Authors Age Unit Location Notes Images

Atlantisia elpenor [9]

Sp. nov.

valid

Storrs L. Olson

Late Holocene-Subrecent

 Ascension Island

A Rallidae, transferred to the new genus Mundia by Bourne, Ashmole et Simmons, 2003,[10] it is the type species of the new genus.

Garganoaetus freudenthali [11]

Gen. nov. et Sp. nov.

valid

Peter Ballmann

Early Pliocene

MN 14-15

 Italy

An Accipitridae.

Garganoaetus murivorus [11]

Sp. nov.

valid

Peter Ballmann

Early Pliocene

MN 14-15

 Italy

An Accipitridae.

Gypaetus osseticus [12]

Sp. Nov.

Nomen Nudum

Nikolay I. Burchak-Abramovich

Middle Pleistocene

 USSR:

 Georgia

An Accipitridae.

Ichthyophaga australis [13]

Sp. nov.

valid

Collin J. O. Harrison

Cyril A. Walker

Subrecent

Chatham Island

 New Zealand

An Accipitridae, transferred to the genus Haliaeetus.

Idiornis gaillardi [14]

Sp. nov.

valid

Joel Cracraft

Eocene or Oligocene

Phosphorites du Quercy

 France

A Gruiformes, Idiornithidae Brodkorb, 1965, transferred to the genus Dynamopterus Milne-Edwards, 1892 by Cécile Mourer-Chauviré, 2013.[15]

Lophopsittacus bensoni [16]

Sp. nov.

valid

David T. Holyoak

Subrecent

Mauritius

 Mauritius

A Psittacidae, transferred ro the genus Psittacula"" by Julian P. Hume, 2007.[17]

Palaeoaramides minutus [14]

Sp. nov.

valid

Joel Cracraft

Middle Miocene

Grive-St.-Alban

 France

A Rallidae.

Palaeorallus brodkorbi [14]

Sp. nov.

valid

Joel Cracraft

Early Eocene

Wasatch Formation

 USA:

 Wyoming

A Rallidae.

?Palaeospheniscus huxleyorum [18]

Sp. nov.

valid

George G. Simpson

Miocene

Ysterplaats

 South Africa

A Spheniscidae, not for sure a member of the genus Palaeospheniscus Moreno et Mercerat, 1891.

Porzana astrictocarpus [9]

Sp. nov.

valid

Storrs L. Olson

Late Holocene-Subrecent

 Saint Helena

A Rallidae.

"Primobucco" kestneri [19]

Sp. nov.

valid

Alan Feduccia

Early Eocene

Wasatchian

Green River Formatie

 USA:

 Wyoming

A ?Galbulae the species doen not belong in Prinobucco, nor in Neanis, the it was transferred to by Feduaccia, 1976,[20] it needs a new genus.

Quercyrallus quercy [14]

Sp. nov.

valid

Joel Cracraft

Eocene or Early Oligocene

Phosphorites du Quercy,

MP 16-28

 France

A Rallidae.

Tyto gigantea [21]

Sp. nov.

valid

Peter Ballmann

Early Pliocene

MN 14-15

 Italy

A Tytonidae.

Tyto robusta [21]

Sp. nov.

valid

Peter Ballmann

Early Pliocene

MN 14-15

 Italy

A Tytonidae.

Wyleyia valdensis [22]

Gen. nov. et Sp. nov.

valid

Colin J. O. Harrison

Cyril A. Walker

Early Cretaceous

Weald Clay

 UK:

 England

An Enantiornithes Walker, 1981, Enantiornithidae Nessov & Borkin, 1983, known from a single humerus, this is the type species of the new genus.

Newly named pterosaurs

Name Novelty Status Authors Age Unit Location Notes Images

Eudimorphodon

gen et sp nov

Valid

Zambelli

Norian

 Italy

Eudimorphodon ranzii

Noripterus[23]

gen et sp nov

Valid

Yang (aka C.-C. Young)

early Cretaceous

Lianmuqin Formation

 China

Noripterus complicidens

References

  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.
  2. Skalski, A.W. (1973). "Studies on the Lepidoptera from fossil resins. Part II. Epiborkhausenites obscurotrimaculatus gen. et sp. nov. (Oecophoridae) and a tineid-moth discovered in the Baltic amber" (PDF). Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 18 (1): 153–160. Archived (PDF) from the original on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 10 August 2011.
  3. Seiffert, J. 1973. Upper Jurassic Lizards from Central Portugal. Contibuicao para o conhecimento da Fauna do Kimeridgiano da Mina de Lignito Guimarota (Leiria, Portugal). Servicox Geologicos de Portugal, Memoria 22 (new series): pp. 7-88.
  4. Olshevsky, George. "Dinogeorge's Dinosaur Genera List". Retrieved 2008-08-07.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 Thulborn, R.A. (1973). "Teeth of ornithischian dinosaurs from the Upper Jurassic of Portugal, with a description of a hypsilophodontid (Phyllodon henkeli gen. et sp. nov.) from the Guimarota Lignite". Memória Serivoços Geológicos de Portugal (Nova Série) 22: 89–134.
  6. Galton, P.M. (1973). "On the anatomy and relationships of Efraasia diagnostica (V. Huene) n. gen., a prosauropod dinosaur (Reptilia: Saurischia) from the Upper Triassic of Germany". Palaontologische Zcitschrift 47: 229–255. doi:10.1007/bf02985709.
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Dong, Z.M. 1973. Dinosaurs from Wuerho. Reports of Paleontological Expedition to Sinkiang (II), Pterosaurian Fauna from Wuerho, Sinkiang. Memories of the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropolgy, Academy of Science 11: pp. 45-52.
  8. Hu, C. 1973. A new hadrosaur from the Cretaceous of Chucheng. Shantung. Acta Geol. Sinica 2: pp. 179-202.
  9. 9.0 9.1 Storrs L. Olson (1973). "Evolution of the Rails of the South Atlantic Islands (Aves: Rallidae)" (PDF). Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology 152: 1–53. doi:10.5479/si.00810282.152.
  10. W. R. P. Bourne, N. P. Ashmole & K. E. L. Simmons (2003). "A New Subfossil Night Heron and a New Genus for the Extinct Rail for Ascension Island, Central Tropical Atlantic Ocean" (PDF). Ardea 91 (1): 45–51.
  11. 11.0 11.1 Peter Ballmann (1973). "Fossile Vögel aus dem Neogen der Halbinsel Gargano (Italien)". Scripta Geologica 17: 1–75.
  12. Nikolay I. Burchak-Abramovich (1973). "?". Report presented to the 5th Sovjet congress on the Quaternay Periode.
  13. Collin J. O. Harrison & Cyril A. Walker (1973). "An Undescribed Extinct Fish-Eagle from the Chatham Islands". Ibis 115 (2): 274–277. doi:10.1111/j.1474-919x.1973.tb02645.x.
  14. 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 Joel Cracraft (1973). "Systematics and Evolution of the Gruiformes (Class, Aves) 3. Phylogeny of the Suborder Grui" (PDF). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 151: 1–127.
  15. Cécile Mourer-Chauviré (2013). "Idiornis Oberholser, 1899 (Aves, Gruiformes, Cariamae, Idiornithidae): a Junior Synonym of Dynamopterus Milne-Edwards, 1892 (Paleogene, Phosphorites du Quercy, France)". Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie, abhandlungen 270 (1): 13–22. doi:10.1127/0077-7749/2013/0355.
  16. David T. Holyoak (1973). "An Undescribed Parrot from Mauritius". Ibis 115 (3): 417–419. doi:10.1111/j.1474-919x.1973.tb01980.x.
  17. Julian P. Hume (1973). "Reappraisal of the Parrots (Aves: Psittacidae) from the Mascarene Islands, with Comments on Their Ecology, Morphology, and Affineties" (PDF). Zootaxa 1513: 1–76.
  18. George G. Simpson (1973). "Tertiary Penguins (Spenisciformes: Spheniscidae) from Ysterplaats, Cape Town, South Africa". South African Journal of Science 69: 342–344.
  19. Alan Feduccia (1973). "A New Eocene Zygodactyl Bird". Journal of Paleontology 47 (3): 501–503.
  20. Alan Feduccia (1976). "Neanis schucherti Restudied: Another Eocene Piciform Bird" (PDF). In Collected Papers in Avian Paleontology Honoring the 90th Birthday of Alexander Wetmore ed.: Storrs. L. Olson; Smithsonian Contributions to Paleobiology 27: 95–99.
  21. 21.0 21.1 Peter Ballmann (1973). "Fossile Vögel aus dem Neogen der Halbinsel Gargano (Italien)" (PDF). Scripta Geologica 17: 1–75.
  22. Colin J. O. Harrison & Cyril A. Walker (1973). "Wyleyia: a New Bird Humerus from the Lower Cretaceous of England." (PDF). Palaeontology 16 (4): 721–728.
  23. Young, Z. (1973). "[Pterosaurs from Wuerho]. Reports of Paleontological Expedition to Sinkiang (II): Pterosaurian Fauna from Wuerho, Sinkiang". Memoirs of the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology Academia Sinica 11: 18–35.