| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| +... | |||
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 1997.
| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sp nov  | valid  | Call & Dilcher  | Species of Eucommia .  | |||||
Sp nov  | valid  | Call & Dilcher  | Species of  Eucommia .  | |||||
| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Gen et sp nov  | Valid  | Hibbett, Grimaldi, & Donoghue  | A tricholomataceous fungi  | |||||
Gen et sp nov  | Valid  | Hibbett, Grimaldi, & Donoghue  | A mycenaceous fungi  | |||||
| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sp. nov  | Valid  | Grimaldi, Agosti, & Carpenter  | An ant of uncertain subfamily placement.  | |||||
Comb nov  | valid  | (Nel, Arillo, & Martínez-Delclòs)  | An Aeshnid dragonfly.  | |||||
Gen et sp. nov  | Valid  | Grimaldi, Agosti, & Carpenter  | Turonian  | New Jersey amber  | A stem group ant, type species B. clavata  | |||
Comb nov  | valid  | (Mayr, 1868)  | Middle Eocene  | Baltic amber  | Fossil Dolichoderine ant,  | |||
Gen et comb nov  | jr synonym  | Martins-Neto  | A Kalligrammatid lacewing, new genus for Panfilovia adamsi  | |||||
Subfam nov  | jr synonym  | Martins-Neto  | lacewing subfamily, syn of Kalligrammatidae  | |||||
| Currently Valid Plesiosaur Genera Named in 1997 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Status | Authors | Location | Images | 
| Augustasaurus | Valid taxon | 
 Rieppel Bucher  | ||
| Libonectes | Valid taxon | 
  | ||
| Maresaurus | Valid taxon | 
  | ||
| Name | Novelty | Status | Authors | Age | Type locality | Country | Notes | Images | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sp. nov  | Willis  | Late Oligocene  | White Hunter Site of the Riversleigh WHA  | A mekosuchine crocodilian. Although named as a species of Baru, later research considers it to be a distinct genus.  | ||||
| Baru wickeni [10] | Sp. nov | Valid | Willis | Late Oligocene | White Hunter Site of the Riversleigh WHA | A mekosuchine crocodilian. It was established based on new material from the Riversleigh as well as material previously assigned to Baru darrowi . | ||
Sp. nov  | Valid | Willis | Late Oligocene | White Hunter Site of the Riversleigh WHA | A mekosuchine crocodilian. The first species of Mekosuchus to have been named from continental Australia.  | |||
Sp. nov  | Valid | Willis & Molnar | Late Pleistocene | Terrace Site of the Riversleigh WHA | A mekosuchine crocodilian and species of Pallimnarchus, described as having been more gracile than Pallimnarchus pollens. The species is valid, but now placed in the genus Paludirex .  | |||
Sp. nov  | Valid | Willis | Late Oligocene | White Hunter Site of the Riversleigh WHA | A mekosuchine crocodilian. It was a smaller species of the genus Quinkana.  | |||
| Currently Valid Pterosaur Genera Named in 1997 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Status | Authors | Location | Images | 
| Eosipterus | Valid taxon | 
  | ||
Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list. [15]
| Name | Status | Authors | Location | Notes | Images | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Archaeoceratops [16] | Valid taxon | 
  | ||||
| Gojirasaurus [17] | Valid taxon | |||||
| Hudiesaurus [18] | Valid taxon | |||||
| Protarchaeopteryx [19] | Valid taxon | 
  | 
  | |||
| Rinchenia [20] | Valid taxon | |||||
| Siluosaurus [21] | Nomen dubium . | |||||
| Unenlagia [22] | Valid taxon | 
  | 
  | |||
| Name | Status | Novelty | Authors | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sp. nov.  | Valid  | An Aramidae.  | ||||||
Sp. nov.  | Valid  | Middle Pleistocene  | A Strigidae.  | |||||
Sp. nov.  | Valid  | A member of Enantiornithes Walker, 1981. Originally described as a species of Cathayornis ; [25] subsequently made the type species of a separate genus Houornis. [26]  | ||||||
Gen. nov. et Sp. nov.  | Valid  | Late Pliocene  | A Phasianidae.  | |||||
Sp. nov.  | Valid ?  | Lower Yixian Formation  | A Confuciusornithidae Hou, Zhou, Gu et Zhang, 1995, possibly a synonym of Confuciusornis sanctus L. H. Hou, Zhou, Gu et Zhang, 1995.  | |||||
Sp. nov.  | Valid ?  | Lower Yixian Formation  | A Confuciusornithidae Hou, Zhou, Gu et Zhang, 1995, possibly a synonym of Confuciusornis sanctus L. H. Hou, Zhou, Gu et Zhang, 1995.  | |||||
Gen. nov et Sp. nov.  | Valid  | An Enantiornithes Walker, 1981, Cuspirostrisornithidae Hou, 1997, this is the type species of the new genus.  | ||||||
Gen. nov. et Sp. nov.  | Valid  | Late Paleocene  | Described in the Cuculidae, transferred to the Gracilitarsidae Mayr, 2001 by Mayr.  | |||||
Sp. nov.  | Valid  | A Galbulidae.  | ||||||
Sp. nov.  | Valid  | Late Pliocene  | MN 15-16  | |||||
Gen. nov et Sp. nov.  | Valid  | Valanginian, Jiufotang Formation  | An Enantiornithes Walker, 1981, Cuspirostrisornithidae Hou, 1997, this is the type species of the new genus.  | |||||
Gen. nov et Sp. nov.  | Valid  | An Enantiornithes Walker, 1981, Liaoningornithiformes L. H. Hou, 1997, Liaoningornithidae Hou, 1997, this is the type species of the new genus.  | ||||||
Gen. nov et Sp. nov.  | Valid  | An Enantiornithes Walker, 1981, Cuspirostrisornithidae Hou, 1997, this is the type species of the new genus.  | ||||||
Gen. nov. et Sp. nov.  | Valid  | An Hesperornithiformes Fürbringer, 1888, Baptornithidae American Ornithologists’ Union, 1910, this is the type of the new genus.  | ||||||
Gen. nov. et Sp. nov.  | Valid  | An Hesperornithiformes Fürbringer, 1888, Baptornithidae American Ornithologists’ Union, 1910.  | ||||||
Gen. nov. et Sp. nov.  | Valid  | A Rallidae.  | ||||||
Sp. nov.  | Valid  | Late Pleistocene  | Cave Deposits  | A Psittacidae.  | ||||
Gen. nov et Sp. nov.  | Valid  | Middle Oligocene  | MP 23-24  | A Gruiformes, Parvigruidae G. Mayr, 2005.  | ||||
Gen. nov et Sp. nov.  | Valid  | An Ornithuromorphae Chiappe, Ji, Ji et Norell, 1999, Songlingornithidae Hou, 1997, this is the type species of the new genus.  | ||||||
Sp. nov.  | Valid  | A Charadriidae.  | ||||||
Sp. nov.  | Valid  | Early Miocene  | Lower Tarkhanian-Burdigalian?  | An Eogruidae Wetmore, 1934, perhaps should be transferred to the genus Amphipelargus Lydekker, 1891.  | ||||
| Name | Status | Authors | Discovery year | Age | Unit | Location | Notes | Images | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Valid  | 
  | 1997  | ||||||
Valid  | 
  | 1997  | An astrapotherian, a species of Xenastrapotherium  | |||||
Valid  | 
  | 1997  | An astrapotherian, a species of Xenastrapotherium  |