1856 in paleontology

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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 1856.

Insects

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Notes	Images
Osmylus picta^[2]	Sp. nov	Synonym	Hagen	Priabonian	Baltic amber	Europe	A protosmyline Osmylid lance lacewing Moved to "Protosmylus" picta (1913) moved to Osmylidia picta (2021)

Vertebrates

Conodonts

Name	Status	Authors	Age
Acodus^[3]	valid	Heinz Christian Pander
Gnathodus^[3]	valid	Heinz Christian Pander	Early Carboniferous
Prioniodus^[3]	valid	Heinz Christian Pander

Archosauromorphs

Newly named phytosaurs

Name	Status	Authors		Notes
Centemodon^[4]	Nomen dubium	Lea		Dubious genus of phytosaur.

Newly named pseudosuchians

Name	Status	Authors		Location	Notes	Images
Dakosaurus^[5]	Valid taxon.	Quenstedt		Germany	A metriorhynchid thalattosuchian belong to Geosaurinae.	Dakosaurus

Newly named dinosaurs

Name	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Notes
Deinodon^[6]	Nomen dubium	Joseph Leidy	Late Cretaceous (Campanian)	Judith River Formation	United States	Might be a subjective synonym of Gorgosaurus or Daspletosaurus.
Dinosaurus^[7]	Preoccupied.	Rütimeyer	Late Triassic (Rhaetian)	Knollenmergel	Switzerland	Preoccupied by a genus erected by Fischer von Waldheim in 1847. Renamed Gresslyosaurus
Gresslyosaurus^[8]	Disputed.	Rütimeyer	Late Triassic (Rhaetian)	Knollenmergel	Switzerland	Possible subjective synonym of Plateosaurus
Palaeoscincus^[6]	Nomen dubium	Joseph Leidy	Late Cretaceous (Campanian)	Judith River Formation	United States	Possible subjective synonym of Edmontonia or Panoplosaurus.
Thespesius^[6]	Nomen dubium	Joseph Leidy	Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian)	Great Lignite Formation (=Lance Formation)	United States	A dubious hadrosaurid.
Trachodon^[6]	Nomen dubium	Joseph Leidy	Late Cretaceous (Campanian)	Judith River Formation	United States ( Montana)	A dubious hadrosaurid.
Troodon^[6]	Disputed.	Joseph Leidy	Late Cretaceous (Campanian)	Judith River Formation	United States Canada	A potentially dubious troodontid.

References

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