1877 in paleontology
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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 1877.
Arthropods
Newly named crustaceans
| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Sp nov |
jr synonym |
Moved to the genus Tealliocaris in 1908[3] |
||||||
Newly named insects
| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Type locality | Country | Notes | Images |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Anthomyia burgessi[4] |
Sp nov |
Quesnel |
An anthomyiid fly. |
 (1890 illustration) | ||||
|
Anthomyia inanimata[4] |
Sp nov |
Quesnel |
An anthomyiid fly. |
 (1890 illustration) | ||||
|
Sp nov |
Quesnel |
A myrmicine ant, possibly nomen dubium.[7] |
 (1890 illustration) | |||||
|
Boletina sepulta[4] |
Sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
A fungus gnat. |
 (1890 illustration) | |||
|
Brachypeza abita[4] |
Sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
 (1890 illustration) | ||||
|
Brachypeza procera[4] |
Sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
 (1890 illustration) | ||||
|
Calyptites[4] |
Gen et sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
An ant of uncertain placement. |
 (1890 illustration) | |||
|
Formica arcana[4] |
Sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
A formicine ant |
 (1890 illustration) | |||
|
Hypoclinea obliterata[4] |
Sp nov |
jr synonym |
Quesnel |
A dolichoderine ant |
 (1890 illustration) | |||
|
Heteromyza senilis[4] |
Sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
 (1890 illustration) | ||||
|
Lachnus petrorum[4] |
Sp nov |
jr synonym |
Quesnel |
An aphidomorph of uncertain placement |
 (1890 illustration) | |||
|
Liometopum pingue[6] |
Sp nov |
valid |
An ant species, moved to Eoformica pingue in 1930 |
 | ||||
|
Lithortalis[4] |
Gen et sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
A picture-winged fly. |
 (1890 illustration) | |||
|
Lonchaea senescens[4] |
Sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
A lauxaniid fly. |
 (1890 illustration) | |||
|
Palloptera morticina[4] |
Sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
 (1890 illustration) | ||||
|
Pimpla decessa[4] |
Sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
A pimpline ichneumon parasitic wasp |
 (1890 illustration) | |||
|
Pimpla saxea[4] |
Sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
A pimpline ichneumon parasitic wasp |
 (1890 illustration) | |||
|
Pimpla senecta[4] |
Sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
A pimpline ichneumon parasitic wasp |
 (1890 illustration) | |||
|
Prometopia depilis[4] |
Sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
 (1890 illustration) | ||||
|
Sciomyza revelata[4] |
Sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
A marsh fly. |
 (1890 illustration) | |||
|
Trichonta dawsoni[4] |
Sp nov |
valid |
Quesnel |
 (1890 illustration) | ||||
Fish
| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
gen et sp nov. |
Valid |
One of two stingrays from the Green River Formation. The type species is H. radians. |
 | |||||
Non-dinosaurian reptiles
| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Junior synonym |
Late Triassic |
An indeterminate pseudosuchian whose name was preoccupied by MacLeay (1819), later renamed Dasygnathoides by Kuhn (1961). The type species is D. longidens. | ||||||
|
Late Triassic |
Dubious genus of misidentified phytosaur. | |||||||
|
Dubious genus of misidentified phytosaur. | ||||||||
Dinosaurs
Laelaps trihedrodon, Cope criticizes Dryptosaurus
O. W. Lucas collected the first remains of what would later in the year be named Laelaps trihedrodon from Quarry I of the Saurian Hill at Garden Park, Colorado.[12] Edward Drinker Cope would describe the material later in the year in a short paper titled "On a carnivorous dinosaurian from the Dakota beds of Colorado."[13] The "Dakota beds" he references are actually Morrison Formation strata.[12] Cope claims to have a skeleton of unspecified completeness on which to establish the new species, but only describes a partial dentary which has 5 successional teeth, 2 functional teeth, and one tooth missing from its socket.[13] All of the preceding material has since been lost to science with the exception of 5 broken, partial tooth crowns.[14] From the now missing dentary, Cope infers that the creature is a carnivore and compares its dentition to that belonging to other members of his infamous genus "Laelaps", L. aquilunguis and L. incrassatus.[13] Cope concludes the paper with a pointed criticism of his rival O. C. Marsh's attempt to rename Laelaps as the genus Dryptosaurus because the generic name Laelaps has been used in entomology.[15] Cope claims that since the mite genus Laelaps was a synonym that the name was not truly preoccupied and Marsh's erection of Dryptosaurus has therefore created a new, redundant synonym of Laelaps the dinosaur.[15] However, subsequent researchers have supported Marsh's new name.
Apatosaurus
- Apatosaurus specimen found with preserved gastroliths.[16]
New genera
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Synapsids
Non-mammalian
| Name | Status | Authors | Age | Location | Notes | Images |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Synonym of Clepsydrops |
||||||
| Clepsydrops limbatus | Cope |
