# 1983 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 1983.

## Plants
### Conifers

| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
| Pinus driftwoodensis | sp. nov | valid | Stockey | Early Eocene | Driftwood Canyon Provincial Park | Canada British Columbia | A Pine species | |

### Angiosperms

| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
| Ensete oregonense | Sp nov | valid | Manchester & Kress | Middle Eocene | Clarno Formation | USA Oregon | A banana species. | |

## Arthropods
### Crustaceans

| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
| Protastacus | Gen nov | Valid | Albrecht | Early Cretaceous (Berriasian-Hauterivian) | | Germany | An astacidean crayfish. The type species is Astacus politus (1868) Genus also includes P. antiquus. | |

#### Crustacean research

* Albrecht (1983) reappraises the relationships of some fossil crustaceans and erects the family Protastacidae.

### Insects

| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes |
| Mastotermes electromexicus | sp. nov | valid | Krishna & Emerson | Late Oligocene - Early Miocene | Mexican amber | Mexico | first new world species of Mastotermes |
| Polanskiella | Gen et sp nov | jr synonym | Rossi de Garcia | Middle Eocene | Ventana Formation | Argentina | Extinct Myrmeciin ant genus, jr synonym of type species Archimyrmex, sole species A. smekali |
| Armaniidae | Fam. nov | jr synonym | Dlussky | Cenomanian - Turonian | | | Stem-ants, jr synonym of Sphecomyrminae (in part) |

## Fish
### Cartilaginous fish

| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
| Anachronistes | Gen. et. sp. nov | Jr. synonym | Duffin & Ward | Late Carboniferous - Early Permian | Eyam Limestone | United Kingdom | Type species is Anachronistes fordi, genus now deemed a junior synonym of Cooleyella | |

#### Cartilaginous fish research

* Duffin & Ward (1983) erect the family Anachronistidae for their new genus Anachronistes, which would later become a junior synonym of Cooleyella.

## Reptiles
### Archosauromorphs
#### Dinosaurs

Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list.
| Name | Status | Authors | Authors | Image |
| Adasaurus | | Rinchen Barsbold | | Adasaurus mongoliensis |
| "Changtusaurus" | Nomen nudum. | Zhao Xijin | | |
| Chungkingosaurus | Valid taxon | Dong Zhiming Zhou S. | Zhang Y. H. | |
| "Damalasaurus" | Nomen nudum. | Zhao Xijin | |
| Enigmosaurus | Valid taxon | Rinchen Barsbold | Perle | |
| Gongbusaurus | Valid taxon | Dong Zhiming Zhou S. | Zhang Y. H. |
| "Lancanjiangosaurus" | Nomen nudum. | Zhao Xijin | | |
| "Megacervixosaurus" | Nomen nudum. | Zhao Xijin | | |
| "Microdontosaurus" | Nomen nudum. | Zhao Xijin | | |
| "Ngexisaurus" | Nomen nudum. | Zhao Xijin | | |
| Ornatotholus | Possible junior synonym of Stegoceras. | Peter Galton | Hans-Dieter Sues | |
| Quaesitosaurus | Valid taxon | Sergei Kurzanov | Bannikov | |
| Shamosaurus | Valid taxon | Tumanova | | |
| Shunosaurus | Valid taxon | Dong Zhiming, Zhou S. | Zhang Y. H. | |
| Stygimoloch | Valid taxon | Peter Galton | Hans-Dieter Sues | |
| Ultrasaurus | Nomen dubium. | Kim H. M. | | |
| Xiaosaurus | Valid taxon | Dong Zhiming | Tang Z. | |
| Zizhongosaurus | Valid taxon | Dong Zhiming, Zhou S. | Zhang Y. H. | |

##### Birds

| Name | Status | Novelty | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes |
| Capitonides protractus | Valid | Gen et sp nov. | Peter Ballmann | Middle Miocene | MN 6 | Germany | A Lybiidae |
| Diogenornis fragilis | Valid | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Herculano M. F. de Alvarenga | Late Paleocene | Bacia calcária de Itaboraí | Brazil | An Opisthodactylidae |
| Elaphrocnemus brodkorbi | Valid | Sp. nov. | Cécile Mourer-Chauviré | Eocene or Oligocene | Phosphorites du Quercy, MP 16-28 | France | An Idiornithidae transferred to Talantatos brodkorbi in 2002 not followed here. |
| Fluviatilavis | Valid | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Colin J. O. Harrison | Early Eocene | MP 7 | Portugal | Aves incertae sedis pending restudy, this is the type species of the new genus. |
| Horezmavis | Valid | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Lev A. Nessov | Late Albian | Khodzhakul Formation | Soviet Union:  Uzbekistan | An Ornithuromorphae Incertae Sedis, this is the type species of the new genus. |
| Idiornis itardiensis | Valid | Sp. nov. | Mourer-Chauviré | Middle Eocene or Oligocene | Messel pit, Phosphorites du Quercy | Germany France | An Idiornithidae, moved to Dynamopterus itardiensis in 2013. |
| Judinornis nogontsavensis | Valid | Gen. et Sp. nov. | Lev A. Nessov L. J. Borkin | Late Campanian-Early Maastrichtian, | Nemegt Formation | Mongolia | A Hesperornithiformes, Baptornithidae; this is the type species of the new genus. |
| Oblitavis insolitus | Valid | Gen. nov et Sp. nov. | Cécile Mourer-Chauviré | Eocene or Oligocene | Phosphorites du Quercy | France | An Idiornithidae, transferred to the genus Propelargus insolitus in 2002. |
| Oligostrix rupelensis | Valid | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Karlheinz Fischer | Middle Oligocene | | Germany | A Protostrigidae, type species O. rupelensis |
| Tasidyptes | Valid? | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Gerard F. van Tets Sue O'Connor | Holocene, ± 1400-800 BP | Kitchen midden | Australia:  Tasmania | A Spheniscidae, type species T. hunteri. possibly nomen dubium. |
| Tereingaornis moiseleyi | Valid | Gen. nov. et Sp. nov. | Ron J. Scarlett | Waipipian | | New Zealand | A Spheniscidae, this is the type species of the new genus. |

#### Pterosaurs
##### New taxa

| Name | Status | Authors | Authors | Notes |
| Angustinaripterus | Valid | He Xinlu et al. | | |
| Preondactylus | Valid | Wild | | |