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 1959.

List of years in paleontology (table)
In science
1956
1957
1958
1959
1960
1961
1962
+...

Arthropods

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Newly named insects

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Name Novelty Status Authors Age Unit Location Notes Images

Penthetria? fryi[2]

Sp nov

valid

Rice

Ypresian

Driftwood Shales

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly

 
Penthetria (?) fryi

Penthetria whipsawensis[2]

Sp nov

valid

Rice

Ypresian

Allenby Formation

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly

 
Penthetria whipsawensis

Plecia angustipennis[2]

Comb nov

valid

(Handlirsch)

Ypresian

"Horsefly Shales"

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly
Moved from Penthetria angustipennis (1910)[3]

 
Plecia angustipennis

Plecia avus[2]

Comb nov

valid

(Handlirsch)

Ypresian

Allenby Formation

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly
Moved from Penthetria avus (1910)[3]

 
Plecia avus

Plecia cairnesi[2]

Sp nov

valid

Rice

Ypresian

Driftwood Shales

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly

 
Plecia cairnesi

Plecia canadensis[2]

Comb nov

valid

(Handlirsch)

Ypresian

Allenby Formation

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly
Moved from Penthetria canadensis (1910)[3]

 
Plecia canadensis

Plecia curtula[2]

Comb and syn nov

valid

(Handlirsch)

Ypresian

"Horsefly Shales"

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly
Moved from Penthetria curtula (1910)[3]
Senior synonym of Penthetria avunculus (1910)[2]

 
Plecia curtula

Plecia dilatata[2]

Comb nov

valid

(Handlirsch)

Ypresian

"Horsefly Shales"

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly
Moved from Penthetria dilatata (1910)[3]

 
Plecia dilatata

Plecia elatior[2]

Comb nov

valid

(Handlirsch)

Ypresian

Allenby Formation

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly
Moved from Penthetria elatior (1910)[3]

 
Plecia elatior

Plecia intermedia[2]

Comb nov

jr synonym

(Scudder)

Priabonian

Florissant Formation

  United States
  Colorado

A bibionid fly
Moved from Mycetophaetus intermedius (1892)[4]
Moved to Penthetria intermedia (1999)[5]

Plecia kelownaensis[2]

Sp nov

valid

Rice

Ypresian

Coldwater Beds

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly

 
Plecia kelownaensis

Plecia minutula[2]

Sp nov

valid

Rice

Ypresian

Allenby Formation

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly

 
Plecia minutula

Plecia nana[2]

Comb nov

valid

(Handlirsch)

Ypresian

Allenby Formation

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly
Moved from Penthetria nana (1910)[3]

 
Plecia nana

Plecia pictipennis[2]

Comb and syn nov

valid

(Handlirsch)

Ypresian

Allenby Formation

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly
Moved from Penthetria pictipennis (1910)[3]
Senior synonym of Penthetria lambei, Pe. ovalis, & Pe. separanda (1910)[2]

 
Plecia pictipennis

Plecia platyptera[2]

Comb nov

valid

(Handlirsch)

Ypresian

"Horsefly Shales"

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly
Moved from Penthetria platyptera (1910)[3]

 
Plecia platyptera

Plecia pulchra[2]

Comb nov

valid

(Handlirsch)

Ypresian

Allenby Formation

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly
Moved from Penthetria pulchra (1910)[3]

 
Plecia pulchra

Plecia pulla[2]

Comb and syn nov

valid

(Handlirsch)

Ypresian

Allenby Formation

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly
Moved from Penthetria pulla (1910)[3]
Senior synonym of Penthetria brevipes (1910)[2]

 
Plecia pulla

Plecia reducta[2]

Comb nov

valid

(Handlirsch)

Ypresian

"Horsefly Shales"

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly
Moved from Penthetria reducta (1910)[3]

 
Plecia reducta

Plecia transitoria[2]

Comb and syn nov

valid

(Handlirsch)

Ypresian

"Horsefly Shales"

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly
Moved from Penthetria transitoria (1910)[3]
Senior synonym of Penthetria falcatula & Pe. fragmentum (1910)[2]

 
Plecia transitoria

Plecia tulameenensis[2]

Sp nov

valid

Rice

Ypresian

Allenby Formation

  Canada
  British Columbia

A bibionid fly

 
Plecia tulameenensis

Conodonts

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German paleontologist Klaus J. Müller (1923-2010) described the conodont family Westergaardodinidae.[6]

Name Novelty Status Authors Age Unit Location Notes Images

Dollymae[7]

valid

Hass

Carboniferous

Type species D. sagittula

Furnishina[6]

Gen et sp nov.

valid

Müller

Cambrian

Type species F. furnishi

Hertzina[6]

valid

Müller

Cambrian

Type species H. bisulcata

Westergaardodina[6]

Gen et sp nov

valid

Müller

Cambrian

Type species W. bicuspidata

Archosauromorphs

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Incertae sedis

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Name Status Authors Age Unit Location Notes Images

Palaeosauriscus[8]

Junior synonym

  • Kuhn

Late Triassic

Junior synonym of Palaeosaurus.

Newly named pseudosuchians

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Name Status Authors Age Unit Location Notes Images

Clarencea[9]

Junior synonym

  • Brink

Early Jurassic (Hettangian-Sinemurian)

Newly named dinosaurs

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Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list.[10]

Name Status Authors Age Unit Location Notes Images
Chialingosaurus[11] Valid taxon.

Late Jurassic (Bathonian-Callovian)

A stegosaur.

 
Chialingosaurus

Pachysauriscus[8]

Disputed

  • Kuhn

Late Triassic (Norian)

Possible junior synonym of Plateosaurus.

Plesiosaurs

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Newly named Plesiosaurs

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Name Status Authors Age Unit Location Notes

Stretosaurus

Nomen dubium

Tarlo

Late Jurassic (Kimmeridgian)

A dubious pliosaurid belonging to Thalassophonea.

Birds

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Newly named birds

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Name Novelty Status Authors Age Unit Location Notes Images

Anthropodyptes [12]

Gen. et Sp. nov.

valid

Simpson

Middle Miocene, Balcombian Stage

  Australia

A Spheniscidae, type species A. gilli

Bathoceleus [13]

Gen. nov. et Sp. nov.

valid

Brodkorb

Pleistocene-Late Holocene

Banana Hole, New Providence Island

  Bahamas

A Picidae, type species B. hyphalus.

Burhinus nanus [13]

Sp. nov.

valid

Brodkorb

Pleistocene-Late Holocene

Banana Hole, New Providence Island

  Bahamas

A Burhinidae.

Caracara creightoni [13]

Sp. nov.

valid

Brodkorb

Pleistocene

Banana Hole, New Providence Island

  Bahamas

A Falconidae.

Colinus suilium [14]

Sp. nov.

valid

Brodkorb

Middle Pleistocene

Reddics beds, Arredondo clay

  USA  Florida

An Odontophoridae.

Cremaster tytthus [14]

Gen. et Sp. nov.

valid

Brodkorb

Middle Pleistocene

Arredondo clay

  USA  Florida

An Icteridae, type species C. tytthus.

Henocitta [15]

Gen. et Sp. nov.

valid

Holman

Pleistocene

Arredondo clay

  USA  Florida

A Corvidae, type species H. brodkorbi.

Falco readei [14]

Sp. nov.

synonym

Brodkorb

Pleistocene

Arredondo clay

  USA  Florida

A Falconidae, moved to Milvago readei.

Pliogyps [16]

Gen. et Sp. nov.

valid

Tordoff

Pliocene

Rexroad Formation

  USA   Kansas

A Cathartidae, type species P. fisheri

Coltonia recurvirostra [17]

Sp. nov.

synonym

Hardy

Early Eocene

Colton Formation

  USA  Utah

A Presbyornithidae, moved to Presbyornis recurvirostrus.

Pterosaurs

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New taxa

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Name Status Authors Age Unit Location Notes

Titanopteryx

Preoccupied

Arambourg

Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian)

Phosphate deposits

Later renamed Arambourgiana Nesov, Kanznyshkina, and Cherepanov, 1987

References

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  1. ^ Gini-Newman, Garfield; Graham, Elizabeth (2001). Echoes from the past: world history to the 16th century. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson Ltd. ISBN 9780070887398. OCLC 46769716.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x Rice, H. M. A (1959). "Fossil Bibionidae (Diptera) from British Columbia". Geological Survey of Canada Bulletin. 55: 1–36.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Handlirsch, A. (1910). "Canadian fossil Insects. 5. Insects from the Tertiary lake deposits of the southern interior of British Columbia, collected by Mr. Lawrence M. Lambe". Contributions to Canadian Palaeontology. 2 (3): 93–129.
  4. ^ Scudder, S. H. (1892). "Some Insects of special interest from Florissant, Colorado and other points in the Tertiaries of Colorado and Utah". Bulletin of the United States Geological Survey. 93: 1–25.
  5. ^ Fitzgerald, S. J. (1999). "A new species of Plecia from the Green River Formation and new combinations of fossil Bibionidae (Diptera)". Great Basin Naturalist. 59: 182–187. doi:10.5962/bhl.part.15821.
  6. ^ a b c d Kambrische conodonten. KJ Müller, Zeitschrift der deutschen geologischen Gesellschaft, 1959, volume 111, pages 434-485 (URL[permanent dead link] at Schweizerbart Science Publishers, Stuttgart, Germany
  7. ^ Conodonts from the Chappel limestone of Texas. Wilbert H. Hass, 1959
  8. ^ a b Kuhn, O. 1959. Ein neuer Microsaurier aus dem deutschen Rotliegenden. N. Jb. Geol. Palaeontol. Mh. 1959: pp. 424-426;
  9. ^ Brink, A.S. 1959. A new small thecodont from the Red Beds of the Stormberg series. Palaeontologia Africana 6: pp. 109–115.
  10. ^ Olshevsky, George. "Dinogeorge's Dinosaur Genera List". Archived from the original on 2011-07-15. Retrieved 2008-08-07.
  11. ^ Young C.-C. 1959. On a new Stegosauria from Szechuan, China. Vertebrata PalAsiatica 3: pp. 1-8.
  12. ^ Simpson, George Gaylord (1959). "A New Fossil Penguin from Australia". Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria. 71 (4699): 113–119. Bibcode:1959Natur.184S1612.. doi:10.1038/1841612c0. S2CID 41339269.
  13. ^ a b c Pierce Brodkorb (1959). "Pleistocene Birds from New Providence Island, Bahamas". Bulletin of the Florida State Museum, Biological Sciences. 4 (11): 349–371.
  14. ^ a b c Pierce Brodkorb (1959). "The Pleistocene Avifauna of Arredondo, Florida". Bulletin of the Florida State Museum, Biological Sciences. 4 (9): 269–291.
  15. ^ J. Alan Holman (1959). "Birds and Mammals from the Pleistocene of Williston, Florida". Bulletin of the Florida State Museum, Biological Sciences. 5: 1–24.
  16. ^ Harrison B. Tordoff (1959). "A Condor from the Upper Pliocene of Kansas". Condor. 61 (5): 338–343. doi:10.2307/1365126. JSTOR 1365126.
  17. ^ John William Hardy (1959). "A Previously Undescribed Recurvirostrid from the Eocene of Utah". Auk. 76 (9): 106–108. doi:10.2307/4081861. JSTOR 4081861.