2014 in paleontology
Plants
Cnidarians
Newly described cnidarians
Arthropods
Bryozoans
Newly described bryozoans
Brachiopods
Molluscs
Echinoderms
Conodonts
Newly described conodonts
Fishes
Amphibians
Basalmost tetrapods
Temnospondyls
Research
- Specimens of Micromelerpeton crederni with abnormalities in their limbs interpreted as a result of limb regeneration are described by Fröbisch, Bickelmann and Witzmann.
- Redescription of Mahavisaurus dentatus and Lyrosaurus australis and a study on the phylogenetic relationships of the rhytidosteids is published by Maganuco, Pasini & Auditore.
New taxa
Chroniosuchians
Lissamphibians
Research
- The humerus bone of a large calyptocephalellid anuran, apparently one of the largest fossil anurans known to date, is described by Otero et al. from the Eocene of Chile.
New taxa
Ichthyopterygians
Research
- Anatomy, taxonomy and phylogenetic relationships of Cretaceous ophthalmosaurids Simbirskiasaurus birjukovi and Pervushovisaurus bannovkensis are reevaluated by Fischer et al..
New taxa
Sauropterygians
| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
Aristonectes quiriquinensis | Sp. nov | Valid | Otero et al. | Late Cretaceous | Quiriquina Formation | A plesiosaur, a species of Aristonectes. | ||
Cymatosaurus erikae | Sp. nov | Valid | Maisch | Middle Triassic | Röt Formation | A species of Cymatosaurus. | ||
Majiashanosaurus | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Jiang et al. | Early Triassic | Nanlinghu Formation | A basal member of Eosauropterygia. The type species is Majiashanosaurus discocoracoidis. | ||
Nothosaurus zhangi | Sp. nov | Valid | Liu et al. | Middle Triassic | Guanling Formation | A nothosaur, a species of Nothosaurus. | ||
Odoiporosaurus | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Renesto, Binelli & Hagdorn | Middle Triassic | Besano Formation | A pachypleurosaur. The type species is Odoiporosaurus teruzzii. | ||
Pararcus | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Klein & Scheyer | Middle Triassic | Vossenveld Formation | A placodont. The type species is Pararcus diepenbroeki. | ||
Pliosaurus patagonicus | Sp. nov | Valid | Gasparini & O'Gorman | Late Jurassic | Vaca Muerta Formation | A species of Pliosaurus. |
Lepidosaurs
Newly named rhynchocephalians
Newly named lizards
Newly named snakes
Turtles
Research
- Redescription of the rediscovered holotype of the Jurassic turtle Plesiochelys etalloni is published by Anquetin, Deschamps & Claude.
Newly named turtles
| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
Alienochelys | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | de Lapparent de Broin et al. | Late Cretaceous | Oulad Abdoun Basin | A sea turtle, a member of Dermochelyoidae. The type species is Alienochelys selloumi. | ||
Allaeochelys libyca | Sp. nov | Valid | Havlik, Joyce & Böhme | Miocene | A relative of the pig-nosed turtle, a species of the genus Allaeochelys. | |||
Ashleychelys | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Weems & Sanders | Oligocene | A pancheloniid sea turtle. The type species is Ashleychelys palmeri. | |||
Atolchelys | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Romano et al. | Early Cretaceous | Morro do Chaves Formation | A bothremydid pleurodiran. The type species is Atolchelys lepida. | ||
Brodiechelys royoi | Sp. nov | Valid | Pérez-García, Gasulla & Ortega | Early Aptian | Arcillas de Morella Formation | A xinjiangchelyid, a species of Brodiechelys. | ||
Cheirogaster bacharidisi | Sp. nov | Valid | Vlachos, Tsoukala & Corsini | Pliocene | Gonia Formation | A tortoise, originally described as a species belonging to the genus Cheirogaster. Subsequently, transferred by Pérez-García & Vlachos to the genus Titanochelon. | ||
Eodortoka | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Pérez-García, Gasulla & Ortega | Early Cretaceous | Arcillas de Morella Formation | A dortokid, a member of the clade Pan-Pleurodira. The type species is Eodortoka morellana. | ||
Gobiapalone | Gen. et comb. et sp. nov | Valid | Danilov et al. | Late Cretaceous | Barun Goyot Formation Bayan Shireh Formation Nemegt Formation | A trionychine trionychid. The type species is "Amyda" orlovi Khosatzky ; genus also contains new species Gobiapalone breviplastra. The genus Gobiapalone was considered to be a junior synonym of the genus Kuhnemys by Georgalis & Joyce, though the authors maintained G. orlovi and G. breviplastra as distinct species within the latter genus. | ||
Hylaeochelys kappa | Sp. nov | Valid | Pérez-García & Ortega | Late Jurassic | Freixial Formation | A basal member of Eucryptodira, a species of Hylaeochelys. | ||
Judithemys kranzi | Sp. nov | Valid | Weems | Paleocene | Aquia Formation | A member of group "Macrobaenidae", a species of Judithemys. | ||
Nemegtemys | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Danilov et al. | Late Cretaceous | Nemegt Formation | A cyclanorbine trionychid. The type species is Nemegtemys conflata. | ||
Osonachelus | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | de Lapparent de Broin et al. | Eocene | Vic-Manlleu Marls Formation | A cheloniid sea turtle. The type species is Osonachelus decorata. | ||
Procolpochelys charlestonensis | Sp. nov | Valid | Weems & Sanders | Oligocene | A pancheloniid sea turtle; a species of Procolpochelys. | |||
Riodevemys | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Pérez-García, Royo-Torres & Cobos | Late Jurassic | A pleurosternid paracryptodiran. The type species is Riodevemys inumbragigas. | |||
Tacuarembemys | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Perea et al. | Late Jurassic or earliest Cretaceous | Tacuarembó Formation | A turtle of uncertain phylogenetic placement. The type species is Tacuarembemys kusterae. | ||
Titanochelon | Gen. et comb. nov | Valid | Pérez-García & Vlachos | Early Miocene to early Pleistocene | ? | A tortoise; a new genus for "Testudo" bolivari Hernández-Pacheco. Genus also contains "Testudo" eurysternum Gervais, "Testudo" ginsburgi de Broin, "Testudo" vitodurana Biedermann, "Cheirogaster" steinbacheri Karl, "Testudo" leberonensis Depéret, "Testudo" schafferi Szalai, "Testudo" perpiniana Depéret and "Cheirogaster" bacharidisi Vlachos et al.. Genus might also contain "Testudo" gymnesicus Bate. | ||
‘Trionyx’ baynshirensis | Sp. nov | Valid | Danilov et al. | Late Cretaceous | Bayan Shireh Formation | A trionychine trionychid, a species of Trionyx sensu lato. | ||
‘Trionyx’ dissolutus | Sp. nov | Valid | Vitek & Danilov | Late Cretaceous | A trionychid, a species of Trionyx sensu lato. | |||
‘Trionyx’ gilbentuensis | Sp. nov | Valid | Danilov et al. | Late Cretaceous | Nemegt Formation | A trionychine trionychid, a species of Trionyx sensu lato. | ||
‘Trionyx’ gobiensis | Sp. nov | Valid | Danilov et al. | Late Cretaceous | Nemegt Formation | A trionychine trionychid, a species of Trionyx sensu lato. | ||
‘Trionyx’ shiluutulensis | Sp. nov | Valid | Danilov et al. | Late Cretaceous | A trionychine trionychid, a species of Trionyx sensu lato. |
Archosauromorphs
Basal archosauromorphs
Research
- A redescription of Tasmaniosaurus triassicus is published by Ezcurra.
- A revision of anatomy and phylogenetic relationships of the archosauriform Dorosuchus neoetus is published by Sookias et al..
- A revision of putative euparkeriids from the Triassic of China is published by Sookias et al..
New taxa
Pseudosuchians
Research
- A study of anatomy and phylogenetic relationships of Gracilisuchus stipanicicorum, Turfanosuchus dabanensis and Yonghesuchus sangbiensis is published by Butler et al..
- A study on the impact of sea level variations and sea surface temperatures on the evolution of marine crocodylomorphs is published by Martin et al..
- A study of jaw mechanism and dental function in heterodont crocodyliforms is published by Ősi.
- A study on the types of serration in the teeth of members of the genus Machimosaurus is published by Young et al..
- The atoposaurid crocodyliform genus Alligatorellus is revised by Tennant and Mannion.
New taxa
Non-avian dinosaurs
Research
- A study on the patterns of body size evolution in dinosaurs is published by Benson et al..
- A study of size changes and rates of anatomical innovation in the theropod lineage ancestral to birds is published by Lee et al..
- A study of evolution of body size and forelimb length in birds and nov-avian coelurosaurian theropods is published by Puttick, Thomas and Benton.
- A phylogenetic analysis of bird and non-avian coelurosaurian theropod relationships and a study of rates of morphological evolution and changes in morphological disparity across the dinosaur-bird transition is published by Brusatte et al..
- A description of abelisaurid teeth from the Late Jurassic Lourinhã Formation of Portugal and a phylogenetic analysis of theropod relationships based on dental characters is published by Hendrickx and Mateus.
- A study of theropod diversity in the Cretaceous of Tunisia is published by Fanti et al..
- A juvenile specimen of Megaraptor namunhuaiquii is described by Porfiri et al..
- A study of European fossil record of Ornithomimosauria is published by Allain et al..
- A study on the morphological variability and function of manual claws in theropod dinosaurs, especially in therizinosaurs, is published by Lautenschlager.
- A study of flight ability in some non-avian paravian theropods is published by Sorkin.
- "Saurornitholestes" robustus, initially thought to be a dromaeosaurid, is reinterpreted as a troodontid by Evans et al..
- A well-preserved specimen of Microraptor zhaoianus is described by Pei et al..
- A study of anatomy and phylogenetic relationships of Antetonitrus ingenipes is published by McPhee et al..
- A study on the differences in skull anatomy of Diplodocus and Camarasaurus, and on their implications for inferring possible niche partitioning between Late Jurassic sauropod taxa known from the Morrison Formation, is published by Button, Rayfield & Barrett.
- Fragmentary partial skeleton of a small sauropod belonging to the genus Haplocanthosaurus collected from the Rocky Mountains of central Colorado is described by Foster & Wedel.
- The purported size of the holotype vertebra of Amphicoelias fragillimus is reevaluated by Woodruff and Foster.
- A study of phylogenetic relationships of Lourinhasaurus alenquerensis is published by Mocho, Royo-Torres and Ortega.
- A study of anatomy and phylogenetic relationships of Aragosaurus ischiaticus is published by Royo-Torres et al..
- A study of titanosaur osteoderms from the Upper Cretaceous Lo Hueco site in Cuenca, Spain is published by Vidal, Ortega and Sanz.
- A study of species richness of South American titanosaur assemblages during the Late Cretaceous is published by Vieira et al..
- A study of the effect of intervertebral cartilage on neck posture of sauropod dinosaurs is published by Taylor.
- A study of the dentition of Manidens condorensis is published by Becerra et al..
- A study of the postcranial anatomy of Heterodontosaurus tucki is published by Galton.
- A study of the impact of osteoderm placement on the centre of mass of stegosaurs is published by Mallison.
- A study of Early Cretaceous Spanish iguanodont ornithopod diversity and a description of new remains referrable to Delapparentia is published by Gasca, Canudo and Moreno-Azanza.
- A specimen of Edmontosaurus regalis with remains of a soft-tissue cranial crest is described by Bell et al..
- A juvenile specimen of Edmontosaurus annectens is described by Prieto-Márquez.
- An assemblage of Psittacosaurus juveniles associated with a larger specimen from the Lujiatun beds of the Yixian Formation in Liaoning, China is described by Hedrick et al..
- An aggregation of four juveniles of Protoceratops andrewsi from the Tugrikin Shire locality of the Djadokhta Formation in Central Gobi region, Mongolia and two associated subadults of the same species from the same locality are described by Hone et al..
- A study of ontogenetic changes in the craniofacial skeleton of Centrosaurus apertus is published by Frederickson and Tumarkin-Deratzian.
- A new specimen attributable to Arrhinoceratops brachyops is described by Mallon et al..
- A study on the evolution of species belonging to the genus Triceratops, as indicated by their morphological variation and stratigraphic data from the Hell Creek Formation, is published by Scannella et al..
- A new specimen of Spinosaurus is described by Ibrahim et al., with a controversial reconstruction of Spinosaurus as a quadrupedal semi-aquatic genus.
- Two new specimens of the previous enigma Deinocheirus are described and analysed by Lee et al..
- A tiny theropod was found in the South Korea.
New taxa
Birds
Research
- A study on the antiquity of birds is published by Lee et al..
- A new specimen of Archaeopteryx is described by Foth, Tischlinger and Rauhut.
- Zhongornis haoae, initially thought to be a bird, is argued to be a non-avian maniraptoran by O'Connor and Sullivan.
- A study of ecological disparity in Early Cretaceous birds is published by Mitchell and Makovicky.
- A subadult specimen of Zhouornis hani is described by Zhang et al..
- New specimen of Hongshanornis longicresta, providing new information on the anatomy, trophic ecology and aerodynamics of this species is described from the Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation by Chiappe et al..
- A study of the species status of the moa from the genus Euryapteryx is published by Huynen and Lambert.
- A study of growth in the moa from the genus Euryapteryx is published by Huynen et al..
- A study of tbx5 gene of the moa from the genus Dinornis is published by Huynen et al..
- New samples of Miocene ratite eggs are described from Namibia by Pickford, who names new ootaxa Tsondabornis psammoides, Tsondabornis minor and Namornis elimensis.
- Fossil remains of a relative of the hoatzin, possibly a species belonging to the genus Namibiavis, from the middle Miocene of Kenya, are described by Mayr.
- A specimen of Pumiliornis tessellatus with preserved stomach contents including pollen grains is described by Mayr and Wilde.
- A Late Pleistocene specimen of griffon vulture with exceptionally well preserved fossilized soft tissues is described from the Alban Hills volcanic region, Italy by Iurino et al..
New taxa
Pterosaurs
Research
- A study of pneumaticity of pterosaur wing bones is published by Martin and Palmer.
- A complete and fully articulated juvenile specimen of Scaphognathus crassirostris is described by Bennett.
- Partial 3D egg of Pterodaustro guinazui is described by Grellet-Tinner et al..
- Cearadactylus atrox is redescribed by Vila Nova et al..
- The taxonomy and distribution of the family Azhdarchidae is reviewed by Averianov.
- A reevaluation of the fossil material attributed to Bakonydraco galaczi, indicating that the fossils actually represent at least two pterosaur taxa, is published by Prondvai, Bodor and Ősi.
- A study of medullary bone-like tissue in the mandibular symphyses of Bakonydraco galaczi is published by Prondvai and Stein.
New taxa
| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
Aerodactylus | Gen. et comb. nov | Valid | Vidovic & Martill | Late Jurassic | Solnhofen Limestone | A member of Pterodactyloidea related to Gladocephaloideus, Cycnorhamphus, Ardeadactylus and Aurorazhdarcho; a new genus for "Pterodactylus" scolopaciceps Meyer. | ||
Boreopterus giganticus | Sp. nov | Valid | Jiang et al. | Early Cretaceous | A species of Boreopterus. | |||
Caiuajara | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Manzig et al. | Late Cretaceous | Bauru Basin, Caiuá Group, Goio-Erê Formation | A tapejarid. The type species is Caiuajara dobruskii. | ||
Hamipterus | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Wang et al. | Early Cretaceous | Tugulu Group | A member of Pteranodontoidea of uncertain phylogenetic placement. The type species is Hamipterus tianshanensis. | ||
Ikrandraco | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Wang et al. | Early Cretaceous | Jiufotang Formation | A non-anhanguerian pteranodontoid. The type species is Ikrandraco avatar. | ||
Kryptodrakon | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Andres, Clark & Xu | Middle-Late Jurassic boundary | An early member of Pterodactyloidea. The type species is Kryptodrakon progenitor. | |||
Maaradactylus | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Bantim et al. | Early Cretaceous | Romualdo Formation | A member of Anhangueridae. The type species is Maaradactylus kellneri. |
Other reptiles
| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
Abyssomedon | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Macdougall & Reisz | Early Permian | Garber Formation | A nyctiphruretid parareptile. The type species is Abyssomedon williamsi. | ||
Atopodentatus | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Cheng et al. | Middle Triassic | Guanling Formation | A marine reptile, probably a relative of sauropterygians. The type species is Atopodentatus unicus. | ||
Delorhynchus cifellii | Sp. nov | Valid | Reisz, Macdougall & Modesto | Early Permian | Garber Formation | A parareptile relative of lanthanosuchoids, a species of Delorhynchus. | ||
Eohupehsuchus | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Chen et al. | Early Triassic | Jialingjiang Formation | A hupehsuchian. The type species is Eohupehsuchus brevicollis. | ||
Horaffia | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Klein & Hagdorn | Middle Triassic | Erfurt Formation | A marine diapsid reptile of uncertain phylogenetic placement. The type species is Horaffia kugleri. | ||
Largocephalosaurus qianensis | Sp. nov | Valid | Li et al. | Triassic | Guanling Formation | A member of Saurosphargidae, a species of Largocephalosaurus. | ||
Parahupehsuchus | Gen. et sp. nov | Valid | Chen et al. | Early Triassic | Jialingjiang Formation | A hupehsuchian. The type species is Parahupehsuchus longus. |
Synapsids
Non-mammalian synapsids
Research
- A study on the diel activity patterns of non-mammalian synapsids is published by Angielczyk & Schmitz.
- The presence of plicidentine is reported in the maxillary and dentary teeth of Ianthodon, Sphenacodon, Secodontosaurus and Dimetrodon by Brink, LeBlanc & Reisz.
- A study of the anatomy of nasal cavity of Brasilitherium riograndensis is published by Ruf et al..
- A study of the anatomy of the therocephalian Simorhinella baini and a taxonomic re-evaluation of the family Lycosuchidae is published by Abdala et al..
New taxa