# 1982 in paleontology

Paleontology or palaeontology is the study of prehistoric life forms on Earth through the examination of plant and animal fossils. 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 1982.

## Plants
### Pteridophytes

| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
| Osmunda wehrii | Sp nov | Valid | Miller jr | Middle Miocene | Roza-Priest Rapids Basalts contact, Columbia River Basalt Group. | USA Washington | A fern | |

### Angiosperms

| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes |
| Alangium oregonensis | Sp nov | valid | Scott & Wheeler | Middle Eocene | Clarno Formation | USA Oregon | An Alangium wood species |
| Betula clarnoensis | Sp nov | valid | Scott & Wheeler | Middle Eocene | Clarno Formation | USA Oregon | A Betula wood species |
| Cercidiphyllum alalongum | Sp nov | valid | Scott & Wheeler | Middle Eocene | Clarno Formation | USA Oregon | A Cercidiphyllum wood species |
| Fagaceoxylon | Gen et sp nov | valid | Scott & Wheeler | Middle Eocene | Clarno Formation | USA Oregon | A Fagaceae wood genus. Type species F. ostryopsoides |
| Liriodendroxylon multiporosum | Sp nov | valid | Scott & Wheeler | Middle Eocene | Clarno Formation | USA Oregon | A Magnoliaceae wood species |
| Magnolia angulata | Sp nov | valid | Scott & Wheeler | Middle Eocene | Clarno Formation | USA Oregon | A Magnolia wood species |
| Magnolia longiradiata | Sp nov | valid | Scott & Wheeler | Middle Eocene | Clarno Formation | USA Oregon | A Magnolia wood species |
| Quercinium crystallifera | Sp nov | valid | Scott & Wheeler | Middle Eocene | Clarno Formation | USA Oregon | A Fagaceae wood species |
| Ulminium scalariforme | Sp nov | valid | Scott & Wheeler | Middle Eocene | Clarno Formation | USA Oregon | A Lauraceae wood species |
| Trochodendron beckii | Comb nov | valid | (Hergert & Phinney) Scott & Wheeler | Middle Eocene | Clarno Formation | USA Oregon | A Trochodendron wood species. New comb of Trochodendroxylon beckii Hergert & Phinney 1954 |

## Fish
### Ray-finned fish

| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
| "Amia" hesperia | Sp nov | Valid | Wilson | Early Eocene | Allenby Formation | Canada British Columbia | A bowfin | Amia hesperia scale |

## Archosauromorphs
### Newly named dinosaurs

Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list.
| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
| Arstanosaurus | gen et sp nov | Nomen dubium. | Suslov Shilin | Upper Cretaceous | Bostobinskaya Formation | Kazakhstan | | Arstanosaurus |
| Dandakosaurus | gen et sp nov | Nomen dubium. | Yadagiri | Early Jurassic | Kota Formation | India | |
| Goyocephale | gen et sp nov | Valid | Perle, Maryańska, & Osmólska | Late Cretaceous | Unnamed unit | Mongolia | | Goyocephale |
| Huayangosaurus | gen et sp nov | Valid taxon | Dong, Tang, & Zhou | Middle Jurassic | Lower Shaximiao Formation | China | | Huayangosaurus |
| Hulsanpes | gen et sp nov | Valid taxon | Osmólska | Late Cretaceous | Barun Goyot Formation | Mongolia | | |
| Pectinodon | gen et sp nov | Valid | Carpenter | Late Cretaceous | Lance Formation | USA | A troodontid. | |
| Tawasaurus | gen et sp nov | Valid taxon | Yang | Early Jurassic | | China | | |
| "Vectensia" | gen et sp nov | Nomen nudum | Delair | Early Cretaceous | | | Referred to Polacanthus. |

### Birds
#### Some remarks on newly named birds

* Hulsanpes perlei Osmolska, 1982 was described as a Troodontidae, it is sometimes seen as an Avialae because of having a ginglymoid metatarsal II.

#### Newly named birds

| Name | Status | Novelty | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes |
| Alectoris peii | Valid | Sp. nov. | Hou Lianhai | Early Pleistocene | Zhoukoudian | China | A Phasianidae. |
| Ambiortus dementjevi | Valid | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Evgeny N. Kurochkin | Early Cretaceous | Neocomian, Unduruhinskaya Formatie | Mongolia | An Enantiornithes Walker, 1981, Ambiortiformes Kurochkin, 1982. Ambiortidae Kurochkin, 1982, this is the type species of the new genus. |
| Anhinga hadarensis | Valid | Sp. nov. | Pierce Brodkorb Cécile Mourer-Chauviré | Late Pliocene-Early Pleistocene | Hadar Formation, ± 3 My BP | Ethiopia | An Anhingidae. |
| Athene cretensis | Valid | Sp. nov. | Peter D. M. Weesie | Late Pleistocene | Crete, MQ 2C | Greece | A Strigidae. |
| Bantamyx georgicus | Valid | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Evgeny N. Kurochkin | Late Miocene | Khirgis Nur Formation, Khirgis Nur 2 | Mongolia | A Phasianidae, this is the type species of the new genus. |
| Caspiodontornis kobystanicus | Valid | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Sevil M. Aslanova Nikolay I. Burchak-Abramovich | Middle Oligocene | Maykopian Formation | Soviet Union:  Azerbaijan | An Odontopterygiformes Howard, 1957, family Incertae Sedis, this is the type species of the new genus. |
| Cepphus olsoni | Valid | Sp. nov. | Hildegarde Howard | Late Miocene | San Mateo Formation, San Luis Rey River Local Fauna | USA  California | An Alcidae. |
| Ciconia lucida | Valid | Sp. nov. | Evgeny N. Kurochkin | Middle Pliocene | Large Lakes Basin | Mongolia | A Ciconiidae. |
| Columba congi | Valid | Sp. nov. | Hou Lianhai | Pleistocene | Zhoukoudian | China | A Columbidae. |
| Crossoptilon jiai | Valid | Sp. nov. | Hou Lianhai | Pleistocene | Zhoukoudian | China | A Phasianidae. |
| Ephippiorhynchus pakistanensis | Valid | Sp. nov. | Colin J. O. Harrison Cyril A. Walker | Late Miocene | Upper Dokh Pathan Formation, Siwalik Series | Pakistan | A Ciconiidae. |
| Falco chowi | Valid | Sp. nov. | Hou Lianhai | Pleistocene | Zhoukoudian | China | A Falconidae. |
| Gavia egeriana | Valid | Sp. nov. | Petr Švec | Early Miocene | MN 4b | Czechoslovakia | A Gaviidae. |
| Lophura wayrei | Valid | Sp. nov. | Colin J. O. Harrison Cyril A. Walker | Late Miocene | Upper Nagri Formation, Chinji Formation, Siwalik Series | Pakistan | A Phasianidae. |
| Minggangia changgouensis | Valid | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Hou Lianhai | Late Eocene | Linzhuangqun | China | A Threskiornithidae, placed in Aves Incerta Sedis by Olson, 1982, this is the type species of the new genus. |
| Miobaptus walteri | Valid | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Petr Švec | Early Miocene | MN 4b | Czechoslovakia | A Podicipedidae, this is the type species of the new genus, Mlíkovský, 2000 transferred the species to the genus Podiceps. |
| Ornimegalonyx acevedoi | Valid | Sp. nov. | Oscar Arredondo | Late Pleistocene | Cave deposits | Cuba | A Strigidae, probably a synonym of Ornimegalonyx oteroi Arredondo, 1958. |
| Ornimegalonyx gigas | Valid | Sp. nov. | Oscar Arredondo | Late Pleistocene | Cave deposits | Cuba | A Strigidae, probably a synonym of Ornimegalonyx oteroi Arredondo, 1958. |
| Ornimegalonyx minor | Valid | Sp. nov. | Oscar Arredondo | Late Pleistocene | Cave deposits | Cuba | A Strigidae, probably a synonym of Ornimegalonyx oteroi Arredondo, 1958. |
| Palaeopsittacus georgei | Valid | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Colin J. O. Harrison | Early Eocene | London Clay MP 8 | UK:  England | Described as a Psittacidae, transferred by Mourer-Chauviré in 1992 to the Quercypsittidae, placed in Aves Incertae Sedis by Mayr et Daniels 1998, Mayr 2009 thought it might be a Fluvioviridavidae G. Mayr, 2005, this is the type species of the new genus. |
| Paludiavis richae | Valid | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Colin J. O. Harrison Cyril A. Walker | Late Miocene | Siwalik Series | Pakistan | A possible Balaenicipitidae, this is the type species of the new genus. |
| Parvulivenator watteli | Valid | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Colin J. O. Harrison | Early Eocene | London Clay MP 8 | UK:  England | Described as a Falconidae, but Mlíkovský 2002 placed it in Aves Incertae Sedis, this is the type species of the new genus. |
| Physornis brasiliensis | Valid | Sp. nov. | Herculano M. F. de Alvarenga | Late Oligocene or Early Miocene | Upper Deseadean, Tremembé Formation | Brazil | A Gruiformes, Phorusrhacidae Ameghino, 1889, Brontornitinae Moreno et Mercerat, 1891, in 1993 Alvarenga mede it the type species of his new genus Paraphysornis. |
| Pleotis liui | Valid | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Hou Lianhai | Pleistocene | Zhoukoudian | China | An Otididae, this is the type species of the new genus. |
| Porphyrio parvus | Valid | Sp. nov. | Colin J. O. Harrison Cyril A. Walker | Late Miocene | Upper Nagri Formatie, Siwalik Series | Pakistan | A Rallidae. |
| Tachornis uranoceles | Valid | Sp. nov. | Storrs L. Olson | Pleistocene | Cave deposits | Puerto Rico | An Apodidae. |
| Uria paleohesperis | Valid | Sp. nov. | Hildegarde Howard | Late Miocene | San Mateo Formation San Luis Rey River Local Fauna | USA  California | An Alcidae. |
| Urmiornis cracrafti | Valid | Sp. nov. | Colin J. O. Harrison Cyril A. Walker | Late Miocene | Near Kadirpur | Pakistan | A Gruiformes, Ergilornithidae Kozlova, 1960. According to Karhu, 1997 not an Ergilornithidae. Olson, 1985 and Kurochkin, 1985 place the species in the genus Amphipelargus Lydekker, 1891. |

## Plesiosaurs
### New taxa

| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
| Bathyspondylus | gen et sp nov | Valid | Delair | Kimmeridgian | | England | | |

## Pterosaurs
### New taxa

| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
| Huanhepterus | gen et sp nov | Valid | Dong | Late Jurassic | Huachihuanhe Formation | China | |

## Pseudosuchia
### General pseudosuchian research

* Ralph Molnar publishes a revision of the genus Pallimnarchus, comparing it to various Australasian crocodilians and diagnosing it based on proportional differences.

### New taxa

| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
| Dianchungosaurus | gen et sp nov | valid | Yang Z. J. | Sinemurian | Lufeng Formation | China | First described as a dinosaur | |
| Trialestes | gen et sp nov | Valid | Bonaparte | Late Triassic | Ischigualasto Formation | Argentina | Sphenosuchian | |