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taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; : taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular name and ...
of
fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserve ...
archosaur Archosauria () or archosaurs () is a clade of diapsid sauropsid tetrapods, with birds and crocodilians being the only extant taxon, extant representatives. Although broadly classified as reptiles, which traditionally exclude birds, the cladistics ...
s of every kind described during the year 2020, as well as other significant discoveries and events related to
paleontology Paleontology, also spelled as palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of the life of the past, mainly but not exclusively through the study of fossils. Paleontologists use fossils as a means to classify organisms, measure ge ...
of archosaurs that occurred in 2020.


Pseudosuchians


New pseudosuchian taxa


Pseudosuchian research

* A study on the skeletal anatomy and bone
histology Histology, also known as microscopic anatomy or microanatomy, is the branch of biology that studies the microscopic anatomy of biological tissue (biology), tissues. Histology is the microscopic counterpart to gross anatomy, which looks at large ...
of ''
Gracilisuchus ''Gracilisuchus'' (meaning "slender crocodile") is an extinct genus of tiny pseudosuchian (a group which includes the ancestors of crocodilians) from the Late Triassic of Argentina. It contains a single species, ''G. stipanicicorum'', which is pl ...
stipanicicorum'', based on data from two new specimens, is published by Lecuona, Desojo & Cerda (2020). * Redescription of the anatomy of the postcranial skeleton of ''
Riojasuchus ''Riojasuchus'' is an extinct genus of ornithosuchid archosaur from the Late Triassic (Norian) of Argentina. Ornithosuchidae was a widespread family of facultatively bipedal pseudosuchians (crocodilian-line archosaurs) with adaptations for scav ...
tenuisceps'', and a study on the phylogenetic affinities of
ornithosuchids Ornithosuchidae is an extinct family of pseudosuchian archosaurs (distant relatives of modern crocodilians) from the Triassic period. Ornithosuchids were quadrupedal and facultatively bipedal (e.g. like chimpanzees), meaning that they had the abi ...
, is published by von Baczko, Desojo & Ponce (2020). * Description of a new
erpetosuchid Erpetosuchidae is an extinct family of pseudosuchian archosaurs. Erpetosuchidae was named by D. M. S. Watson in 1917 to include ''Erpetosuchus''. It includes the type species '' Erpetosuchus granti'' from the Late Triassic of Scotland, ''Erpetos ...
specimen from the Upper Triassic
Lossiemouth Sandstone The Lossiemouth Sandstone is a Middle to Late Triassic (Ladinian to Norian) age geological formation. It is exposed on the south side of the Moray Firth near Lossiemouth and near Golspie in Sutherland. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils th ...
(
Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
,
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
) and a review of the anatomy, taxonomy and systematics of other erpetosuchid specimens from the Lossiemouth Sandstone (all previously referred to ''
Erpetosuchus ''Erpetosuchus'' is an extinct genus of pseudosuchian from the Late Triassic. The type species of ''Erpetosuchus'' is ''E. granti''. It was first described by E. T. Newton in 1894 for remains found in northeastern Scotland, including four specim ...
'') is published by Foffa ''et al.'' (2020). * Description of new fossil material of '' Acaenasuchus geoffreyi'' and a study on the phylogenetic relationships of this species is published by Marsh ''et al.'' (2020). * A three-dimensional reconstruction of the armour plates around the tail of ''
Stagonolepis ''Stagonolepis'' is an extinct genus of stagonolepidid aetosaur known from the Late Triassic (Carnian stage) Hassberge Formation of Germany, the Drawno Beds of Poland, and the Lossiemouth Sandstone of Scotland. Supposed fossils from North and ...
robertsoni'' is presented by Keeble & Benton (2020). * Taxonomic revision, anatomical description, and a study on the phylogenetic relationships of the type and referred materials of ''
Prestosuchus ''Prestosuchus'' (meaning "Prestes crocodile") is an extinct genus of pseudosuchian in the group Loricata, which also includes ''Saurosuchus'' and ''Postosuchus''. It has historically been referred to as a "rauisuchian", and was the defining mem ...
'' from the original collections of
Friedrich von Huene Baron Friedrich Richard von Hoyningen-Huene (22 March 1875 – 4 April 1969) was a German nobleman paleontologist who described a large number of dinosaurs, more than anyone else in 20th-century Europe. He studied a range of Permo-Carbonife ...
is published by Desojo, von Baczko & Rauhut (2020), who transfer the species ''
Stagonosuchus ''Stagonosuchus'' is an extinct genus of paracrocodylomorph, possibly a loricatan synonymous with ''Prestosuchus'' or a poposauroid. Fossils have been found from the Late Triassic Manda Formation in Tanzania that are Anisian in age. Description ...
nyassicus'' to the genus ''Prestosuchus''. * A study on the skeletal anatomy and phylogenetic relationships of ''
Heptasuchus ''Heptasuchus'' is an extinct genus of loricatan pseudosuchian known from the Middle Triassic, Middle or Late Triassic upper Chugwater Group of Wyoming, United States. It contains a single species, ''Heptasuchus clarki'', the first formally recog ...
clarki'' is published by Nesbitt, Zawiskie & Dawley (2020). * A review of the
crocodylomorph Crocodylomorpha is a group of pseudosuchian archosaurs that includes the crocodilians and their extinct relatives. They were the only members of Pseudosuchia to survive the end-Triassic extinction. Extinct crocodylomorphs were considerably mor ...
Triassic record in South America is published by Leardi, Yáñez & Pol (2020), who report the occurrence of a large-bodied crocodylomorph in the
Ischigualasto Formation The Ischigualasto Formation is a Late Triassic geological formation in the Ischigualasto-Villa Unión Basin of southwestern La Rioja Province, Argentina, La Rioja Province and northeastern San Juan Province, Argentina, San Juan Province in northw ...
and a putative new non-
crocodyliform Crocodyliformes is a clade of Crurotarsi, crurotarsan archosaurs, the group often traditionally referred to as "crocodilians". They are the first members of Crocodylomorpha to possess many of the features that define later relatives. They are the ...
crocodylomorph taxon from
Los Colorados Formation The Los Colorados Formation is a sedimentary geological formation, rock formation of the Ischigualasto-Villa Unión Basin, found in the provinces of San Juan Province, Argentina, San Juan and La Rioja Province (Argentina), La Rioja in Argentina. ...
(
Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
). * A study on the anatomy of the braincase of '' Almadasuchus figarii'', and on early evolution of cranial pneumaticity in Crocodylomorpha, is published by Leardi, Pol & Clark (2020). * A study on the impact of the habitat on the evolution of body size in Crocodyliformes, based on data from extant and fossil taxa, is published by Gearty & Payne (2020). * New fossil material of crocodylomorphs from the
Birket Qarun Formation The Birket Qarun Formation is an Eocene aged formation in Egypt. It is part of the famous Wadi al Hitan. Notable fossils include the ancient whales ''Basilosaurus'' and ''Dorudon'' as well as sirenians ''Eotheroides'' and ''Eosiren''. It also con ...
in the
Fayum Depression The Faiyum Oasis ( ''Wāḥat al-Fayyum'') is a depression or basin in the desert immediately west of the Nile river, 62 miles south of Cairo, Egypt. The extent of the basin area is estimated at between 1,270 km2 (490 mi2) and 1,700&nb ...
(
Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
), including the first record of a
sebecosuchia Sebecosuchia (meaning "Sobek crocodiles") is an extinct group of mesoeucrocodylian crocodyliforms that includes the families Sebecidae and Baurusuchidae. The group was long thought to have first appeared in the Late Cretaceous with the baurusu ...
n from the late
Eocene The Eocene ( ) is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (Ma). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes ...
of Africa, is described by Stefanic ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the anatomy of the skull and on the phylogenetic relationships of ''
Araripesuchus ''Araripesuchus'' is a genus of extinct crocodyliform that existed during the Cretaceous period of the late Mesozoic era some 125 to 66 million years ago. ''Araripesuchus'' is generally considered to be a notosuchian (belonging to the clade Mes ...
buitreraensis'', based on data from new as well as previously reported specimens, is published by Fernandez Dumont ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on changes in the inner ear vestibular system, involved in sensing balance and equilibrium, throughout the evolutionary history of
thalattosuchia Thalattosuchia is a clade of mostly marine crocodylomorphs from the Early Jurassic to the Early Cretaceous that had a cosmopolitan distribution. They are colloquially referred to as marine crocodiles or sea crocodiles, though they are not member ...
ns is published by Schwab ''et al.'' (2020). * A revision of the genus ''
Steneosaurus ''Steneosaurus'' (from , 'narrow' and , 'lizard') is a dubious genus of teleosaurid crocodyliform from the Middle or Late Jurassic (Callovian or early Oxfordian) of France. The genus has been used as a wastebasket taxon for thalattosuchian ...
'' is published by Johnson, Young & Brusatte (2020), who designate ''S. rostromajor'' as the
type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...
of this genus, consider ''S. rostromajor'' to be a ''
nomen dubium In binomial nomenclature, a ''nomen dubium'' (Latin for "doubtful name", plural ''nomina dubia'') is a scientific name that is of unknown or doubtful application. Zoology In case of a ''nomen dubium,'' it may be impossible to determine whether a ...
'' and propose that the genus ''Steneosaurus'' is undiagnostic. * Description of new fossil material of ''
Teleidosaurus ''Teleidosaurus'' is an extinct genus of carnivorous metriorhynchoid crocodyliform from Middle Jurassic (late Bajocian to early Bathonian stage) deposits of Normandy, France.Wilkinson LE, Young MT, Benton MJ. 2008. A new metriorhynchid crocodilia ...
calvadosii'' from the middle
Bathonian In the geologic timescale the Bathonian is an age (geology), age and stage (stratigraphy), stage of the Middle Jurassic. It lasted from approximately 168.2 ±1.2 annum, Ma to around 165.3 ±1.1 Ma (million years ago). The Bathonian Age succeeds ...
of Ecouché (
Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...
,
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
) and a redescription of the anatomy of this species is published by Hua (2020). * A study on the thermophysiology of metriorhynchids, as indicated by the oxygen isotope composition of the
tooth enamel Tooth enamel is one of the four major Tissue (biology), tissues that make up the tooth in humans and many animals, including some species of fish. It makes up the normally visible part of the tooth, covering the Crown (tooth), crown. The other ...
phosphate, is published by Séon ''et al.'' (2020). * Fossil material of two large-bodied metriorhynchids is reported from lower
Kimmeridgian In the geologic timescale, the Kimmeridgian is an age in the Late Jurassic Epoch and a stage in the Upper Jurassic Series. It spans the time between 154.8 ±0.8 Ma and 149.2 ±0.7 Ma (million years ago). The Kimmeridgian follows the Oxfordian ...
sediments in
Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...
and
Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...
(
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
) by Abel, Sachs & Young (2020), who interpret these fossils as evidence of a new lineage of large-bodied geosaurines from the Kimmeridgian and
Tithonian In the geological timescale, the Tithonian is the latest age (geology), age of the Late Jurassic Epoch and the uppermost stage (stratigraphy), stage of the Upper Jurassic Series. It spans the time between 149.2 ±0.7 annum, Ma and 143.1 ±0.6 (mi ...
of Europe. * Redescription of the
holotype A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...
specimen of ''
Enaliosuchus ''Enaliosuchus'' is a dubious genus of extinct marine crocodyliform within the family Metriorhynchidae that lived during the Valanginian stage of the Early Cretaceous. It is known from fossil remains found in France and Germany and it was first ...
macrospondylus'', a revision of the fossil material assigned to this species, and a review of the current knowledge of metriorhynchid diversity during the Cretaceous is published by Sachs, Young & Hornung (2020). * A study aiming to determine whether
notosuchia Notosuchia is a clade of primarily Gondwanan mesoeucrocodylian Crocodylomorpha, crocodylomorphs that lived during the Jurassic and Cretaceous. Some phylogeny, phylogenies recover Sebecosuchia as a clade within Notosuchia, others as a sister group ...
ns were warm-blooded, based on data from bone
histology Histology, also known as microscopic anatomy or microanatomy, is the branch of biology that studies the microscopic anatomy of biological tissue (biology), tissues. Histology is the microscopic counterpart to gross anatomy, which looks at large ...
, is published by Cubo ''et al.'' (2020), who interpret their findings as indicating that notosuchians were likely to be
ectotherm An ectotherm (), more commonly referred to as a "cold-blooded animal", is an animal in which internal physiological sources of heat, such as blood, are of relatively small or of quite negligible importance in controlling body temperature.Dav ...
s. * A study on the diversity of notosuchians, aiming to determine which factors are potentially distorting the interpretations of the diversity of this group, is published by de Celis ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the anatomy and biomechanics of
baurusuchid Baurusuchidae is a Gondwanan family of mesoeucrocodylians that lived during the Late Cretaceous. It is a group of terrestrial hypercarnivorous crocodilians from South America (Argentina and Brazil) and possibly Pakistan. Baurusuchidae has been, i ...
skulls, evaluating their implications for the knowledge of likely predatory behaviors of baurusuchids, is published by Montefeltro ''et al.'' (2020). * New information on the anatomy of the endocranial cavities of '' Campinasuchus dinizi'' is presented by Fonseca ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the anatomy of the brain and inner ear of ''
Baurusuchus ''Baurusuchus'' is an extinct genus of baurusuchid mesoeucrocodylian, which lived in Brazil from 90 to 83.5 million years ago, in the Late Cretaceous period. It was a terrestrial predator, estimated to reach up to in weight. ''Baurusuchus' ...
'', based on data from reconstructed
endocast An endocast is the internal cast of a hollow object, often referring to the cranial vault in the study of brain development in humans and other organisms. Endocasts can be artificially made for examining the properties of a hollow, inaccessible ...
s, is published by Dumont ''et al.'' (2020). *
Pholidosaurid Pholidosauridae is an extinct Family (biology), family of aquatic neosuchian mesoeucrocodylian crocodylomorphs. Fossils have been found in Europe (Denmark, England, France, Germany, Spain and Sweden), Africa (Algeria, Niger, Mali, Morocco and Tu ...
fossil material, representing the most recent record of this group reported so far, is described from the
Paleocene The Paleocene ( ), or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 mya (unit), million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), ...
(
Danian The Danian is the oldest age or lowest stage of the Paleocene Epoch or Series, of the Paleogene Period or System, and of the Cenozoic Era or Erathem. The beginning of the Danian (and the end of the preceding Maastrichtian) is at the Cretac ...
) of
Ouled Abdoun Basin The Oulad Abdoun Basin (also known as the Ouled Abdoun Basin or Khouribga Basin) is a phosphate sedimentary basin located in Morocco, near the city of Khouribga. It is the largest in Morocco, comprising 44% of Morocco's phosphate reserves, and at ...
(
Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...
) by Jouve & Jalil (2020), who also reinterpret '' Dakotasuchus kingi'', ''
Woodbinesuchus ''Woodbinesuchus'' (meaning "Woodbine Formation crocodile") is an extinct genus of goniopholidid mesoeucrocodylian. Its fossils have been recovered from the Cenomanian-age Upper Cretaceous Woodbine Formation of Texas. Crocodyliformes, Crocodylifo ...
byersmauricei'' and ''
Sabinosuchus ''Sabinosuchus'' (meaning " Sabinas crocodile") is a genus of Mesoeucrocodylian, from the Maastrichtian Escondido Formation of Coahuila, Mexico, with ''Sabinosuchus coahuilensis'' as the type species. First described as a putative dyrosaurid by ...
coahuilensis'' as pholidosaurids, and study the diversity of
tethysuchia Tethysuchia is an extinct clade of neosuchian mesoeucrocodylian crocodylomorphs from the late Middle Jurassic (Bathonian stage) to the Early Eocene (Ypresian stage) of Asia, Europe, North America and South America. It was named by the French pale ...
ns from the
Late Jurassic The Late Jurassic is the third Epoch (geology), epoch of the Jurassic Period, and it spans the geologic time scale, geologic time from 161.5 ± 1.0 to 143.1 ± 0.8 million years ago (Ma), which is preserved in Upper Jurassic stratum, strata.Owen ...
to the early
Paleogene The Paleogene Period ( ; also spelled Palaeogene or Palæogene) is a geologic period and system that spans 43 million years from the end of the Cretaceous Period Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the Neogene Period Ma. It is the fir ...
. * New specimen of ''
Susisuchus ''Susisuchus'' is an extinct genus of neosuchian mesoeucrocodylian crocodyliform from the Early Cretaceous of Brazil. Fossils have been found from the Nova Olinda Member of the Aptian-age Crato Formation in the Araripe and Lima Campos Basins of ...
anatoceps'', displaying a non-
eusuchia Eusuchia is a clade of neosuchian Crocodylomorpha, crocodylomorphs that first appeared in the Early Cretaceous, which includes modern Crocodilia, crocodilians. Along with Dyrosauridae and Sebecosuchia, they were the only crocodyliformes who survi ...
n type
palate The palate () is the roof of the mouth in humans and other mammals. It separates the oral cavity from the nasal cavity. A similar structure is found in crocodilians, but in most other tetrapods, the oral and nasal cavities are not truly sep ...
(i.e.
choana The choanae (: choana), posterior nasal apertures or internal nostrils are two openings found at the back of the nasal passage between the nasal cavity and the pharynx, in humans and other mammals (as well as crocodilians and most skinks). They ...
not entirely bounded by the pterygoids), is described by Montefeltro ''et al.'' (2020), who evaluate the implications of this finding for the knowledge of the anatomy of this taxon and the phylogenetic position of susisuchids. * A study on skull anatomy and phylogenetic relationships of ''
Bernissartia ''Bernissartia'' ('of Bernissart') is an extinct genus of neosuchian crocodyliform that lived in the Early Cretaceous, around 130 million years ago. At only in length, ''Bernissartia'' is one of the smallest crocodyliforms that ever lived. It ...
fagesii'' is published by Martin ''et al.'' (2020). * Reconstruction of the internal cavities of the skull of ''
Agaresuchus ''Agaresuchus'' is an extinct genus of allodaposuchid eusuchian crocodylomorph from the Late Cretaceous (Campanian-Maastrichtian) of Spain. It includes two species, the type species ''A. fontisensis'', and ''A. subjuniperus'', which was original ...
fontisensis'', including the cavities that contained the brain, nerves and blood vessels, is presented by Serrano-Martínez ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the skeletal anatomy and phylogenetic relationships of ''
Eocaiman ''Eocaiman'' is an extinct genus of caiman containing species living from the Early Paleocene to Miocene in what is now Argentina (Salamanca and Sarmiento Formations), Itaboraí Formation of Brazil and Colombia ( Honda Group).
cavernensis'' is published by Godoy ''et al.'' (2020). * A
tibia The tibia (; : tibiae or tibias), also known as the shinbone or shankbone, is the larger, stronger, and anterior (frontal) of the two Leg bones, bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula, behind and to the outsi ...
of the mylodontid sloth ''
Pseudoprepotherium ''Pseudoprepotherium'' is an extinct genus of sloths of the family Mylodontidae. It was widespread across northern South America during the Early to Late Miocene epoch around 21 to 5.3 million years ago. Fossils of the animal have been found in Br ...
'' bearing 46 predation tooth marks is described from the Miocene
Pebas Formation The Pebas Formation is a stratigraphic unit#Lithostratigraphic units, lithostratigraphic unit of Miocene age, found in western Amazon rainforest, Amazonia. The geological formation, formation extends over , including parts of Brazil, Peru, Ecuador ...
(
Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
) by Pujos & Salas-Gismondi (2020), who interpret this finding as evidence of predation of a young or sub-adult ''
Purussaurus ''Purussaurus'' is an extinct genus of giant caiman that lived in South America during the Miocene epoch, from the Friasian to the Huayquerian in the SALMA classification. It is known from skull material found in the Brazilian and Peruvian Am ...
'' on a mylodontid ground sloth. * New fossil material of ''
Mourasuchus ''Mourasuchus'' is an extinct genus of giant, aberrant caiman from the Miocene of South America. Its skull has been described as duck-like, being broad, flat, and very elongate, superficially resembling '' Stomatosuchus'' from the Late Cretace ...
arendsi'' is described from the Miocene
Urumaco Formation The Urumaco Formation is a formation in Venezuela that includes deposits from the Late Miocene. It is the site of several "giant forms": the turtles, crocodiles, sloths and rodents of Urumaco are among the largest of their groups. Location The ...
(
Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...
) by Cidade, Rincón & Solórzano (2020), who evaluate the implications of these fossils for the knowledge of the paleobiology of this species. * A study on the shape and biomechanical properties of the
humeri The humerus (; : humeri) is a long bone in the arm that runs from the shoulder to the elbow. It connects the scapula and the two bones of the lower arm, the radius and ulna, and consists of three sections. The humeral upper extremity consists of ...
of mekosuchines and extant Australian crocodiles, and on their implications for the knowledge of the locomotion of mekosuchines, is published by Stein ''et al.'' (2020). * Redescription of the anatomy and a study on the phylogenetic relationships of '' Crocodylus checchiai'' is published by Delfino ''et al.'' (2020). * Fossil tracks possibly produced by large crocodylomorphs moving bipedally are described from the Lower Cretaceous
Jinju Formation The Jinju Formation (), also known as the Dongmyeong Formation () in some literature is an Early Cretaceous geologic Formation (geology), formation in South Korea.Haman Formation The Haman Formation () is an Early Cretaceous geological formation in South Korea. It has been dated to the Albian, with an estimated maximum depositional age of 105.4 ± 0.4 Ma. The deposit is known for its tracks, including those of dinos ...
(
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
) by Kim ''et al.'' (2020), who name a new ichnotaxon '' Batrachopus grandis''. * A study on the impact of recognition of
cryptic species In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...
of extant crocodylians on interpretations of the crocodyliform fossil record is published by Brochu & Sumrall (2020).


Non-avian dinosaurs


New dinosaur taxa


General non-avian dinosaur research

* A study on the
palynological Palynology is the study of microorganisms and microscopic fragments of mega-organisms that are composed of acid-resistant organic material and occur in sediments, sedimentary rocks, and even some metasedimentary rocks. Palynomorphs are the mic ...
record from the Carnian–Norian transition in the western
Barents Sea The Barents Sea ( , also ; , ; ) is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located off the northern coasts of Norway and Russia and divided between Norwegian and Russian territorial waters.World Wildlife Fund, 2008. It was known earlier among Russi ...
region is published by Klausen, Paterson & Benton (2020), who interpret their findings as indicating that major sea-level changes across the vast delta plains situated in the northern
Pangaea Pangaea or Pangea ( ) was a supercontinent that existed during the late Paleozoic and early Mesozoic eras. It assembled from the earlier continental units of Gondwana, Euramerica and Siberia during the Carboniferous period approximately 335 mi ...
might have triggered terrestrial turnovers during the Carnian–Norian transition and facilitated the gradual rise of the dinosaurs to ecosystem dominance. * A study comparing and testing for correlation between rates of morphological evolution and extinction at the species level in non-avian dinosaurs is published by Crouch (2020). * A study on the
biogeography Biogeography is the study of the species distribution, distribution of species and ecosystems in geography, geographic space and through evolutionary history of life, geological time. Organisms and biological community (ecology), communities o ...
of the Cretaceous
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
n dinosaur fauna is published by Kubo (2020). * A study assessing the accuracy and precision of two major approaches to body mass estimation in non-avian dinosaurs is published by Campione &
Evans Evans or Evan's may refer to: People * Evans (surname) * List of people with surname Evans * Evans Welch, Trinidad and Tobago politician Places United States * Evans Island, an island of Alaska * Evans, Colorado * Evans, Georgia * Evans County ...
(2020). * A study on the relationships between
trabecular bone A trabecula (: trabeculae, from Latin for 'small beam') is a small, often microscopic, tissue element in the form of a small beam, strut or rod that supports or anchors a framework of parts within a body or organ. A trabecula generally has a ...
architecture and its mechanical properties in dinosaurs is published by Aguirre ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on small dinosaur tracks from the Lower Jurassic
Portland Formation The Portland Formation is a geological Formation (geology), formation in Connecticut and Massachusetts in the northeastern United States.Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
), aiming to reconstruct the foot motions of the trackmaker, is published by Falkingham, Turner & Gatesy (2020). * A review of the Late Cretaceous dinosaur tracksites of
Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...
is published by Meyer ''et al.'' (2020), who describe new dinosaur tracksites from the Chuquisaca and Potosi departments, and report parallel trackways of subadult
ankylosaurs Ankylosauria is a group of herbivorous dinosaurs of the clade Ornithischia. It includes the great majority of dinosaurs with Armour (zoology), armor in the form of bony osteoderms, similar to turtles. Ankylosaurs were bulky quadrupeds, with short ...
interpreted as evidence of social behavior amongst these dinosaurs. * A study on the evolutionary history of dinosaur integument, aiming to determine the most likely ancestral integumentary condition in dinosaurs, is published by Campione, Barrett & Evans (2020). * A study aiming to determine dinosaur body temperatures on the basis of data from fossil eggshells, comparing them with paleoenvironmental temperatures, and evaluating their implications for the knowledge of dinosaur thermoregulation, is published by Dawson ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on body temperatures of Late Cretaceous sauropods and theropods from western and central
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
, based on data from fossil eggshells, is published by Laskar ''et al.'' (2020). * Evidence for an originally non-biomineralized, soft-shelled nature of eggs of ''
Mussaurus ''Mussaurus'' (meaning "mouse lizard") is a genus of herbivorous sauropodomorph dinosaur that lived in southern Argentina during the Sinemurian stage of the Early Jurassic. It receives its name from the small size of the skeletons of juvenile and ...
'' and ''
Protoceratops ''Protoceratops'' (; ) is a genus of small protoceratopsid dinosaurs that lived in Asia during the Late Cretaceous, around 75 to 71 million years ago. The genus ''Protoceratops'' includes two species: ''P. andrewsi'' and the larger ''P. hellenik ...
'' is presented by
Norell Norell is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Arne Norell (1917–1971), Swedish furniture designer *Ingeborg Norell (born 1727), the first Finnish female to have received an official decoration *Mark Norell (born 1957), American ...
''et al.'' (2020), who argue that the first dinosaur egg was soft-shelled, and that the calcified, hard-shelled dinosaur egg evolved independently at least three times throughout the Mesozoic era; their interpretation of a soft ''Mussaurus'' eggshell is subsequently contested by Choi ''et al.'' (2022). * A study on the trace elements and isotopic compositions of eggshells of dinosaur eggs from the Cretaceous Zhaoying Formation (
Henan Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Lu ...
,
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
), evaluating their implications for reconstructions of local paleoenvironment, is published by He ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the affinities of putative
gekkota Geckos are small, mostly carnivorous lizards that have a wide distribution, found on every continent except Antarctica. Belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, geckos are found in warm climates. They range from . Geckos are unique among lizards f ...
n eggshells from the Late Cretaceous of Europe is published by Choi ''et al.'' (2020), who interpret the fossil material of '' Pseudogeckoolithus'' as theropod eggshells. * Remains of small theropod eggs, providing new information on the diversity of small dinosaurs in the Hyogo region (
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
), are reported from the Cretaceous (
Albian The Albian is both an age (geology), age of the geologic timescale and a stage (stratigraphy), stage in the stratigraphic column. It is the youngest or uppermost subdivision of the Early Cretaceous, Early/Lower Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch/s ...
) of the Kamitaki Egg Quarry (
Ohyamashimo Formation The Ohyamashimo Formation(大山下層) is an Early Cretaceous (Albian) geologic formation in Japan. It has been dated to the early-mid Albian, between 112.1 ± 0.4 Ma and 106.4 ± 0.4 Ma. Dinosaur remains have been discovered from this formatio ...
) by Tanaka ''et al.'' (2020), who name new
ootaxa Egg fossils are the fossilized remains of eggs laid by ancient animals. As evidence of the physiological processes of an animal, egg fossils are considered a type of trace fossil. Under rare circumstances a fossil egg may preserve the remains of t ...
'' Himeoolithus murakamii'' (the smallest non-avian theropod egg known to date), '' Nipponoolithus ramosus'' and ''
Subtiliolithus ''Subtiliolithus'' is an oogenus of fossil egg from the Nemegt Formation of Mongolia and the Ohyamashimo Formation of Japan. The eggs are notable for a very thin eggshell. It contains three oospecies: ''S. hyogoensis'', ''S. kachchhensis'' and ''S ...
hyogoensis''. * Chapelle, Fernandez & Choiniere (2020) evaluate the possibility of estimating the developmental stage of dinosaur embryos, on the basis of a study of skull ossification sequences in embryos of ''
Massospondylus ''Massospondylus'' ( ) is a genus of sauropodomorph dinosaur from the Early Jurassic of southern Africa. It was described by Sir Richard Owen in 1854 from remains discovered in South Africa, and is thus one of the first dinosaurs to have been ...
carinatus'' and extant
sauria Sauria is the clade of diapsids containing the most recent common ancestor of Archosauria (which includes crocodilians and birds) and Lepidosauria (which includes squamates and the tuatara), and all its descendants. Since most molecular phyl ...
ns. * Fossil remains of a member or a relative of the genus ''
Scelidosaurus ''Scelidosaurus'' (; with the intended meaning of "limb lizard", from Greek / meaning 'rib of beef' and ''sauros''/ meaning 'lizard')Liddell & Scott (1980). Greek-English Lexicon, Abridged Edition. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. is a ge ...
'' and of an indeterminate
neotheropod Theropoda (; from ancient Greek , (''therion'') "wild beast"; , (''pous, podos'') "foot"">wiktionary:ποδός"> (''pous, podos'') "foot" is one of the three major groups (clades) of dinosaurs, alongside Ornithischia and Sauropodomor ...
are described from the Lower Jurassic
Lias Group The Lias Group or Lias is a lithostratigraphic unit (a sequence of rock strata) found in a large area of western Europe, including the British Isles, the North Sea, the Low Countries and the north of Germany. It consists of marine limestones, ...
(
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
) by Simms ''et al.'' (2020), representing the first non-avian dinosaur remains reported from
Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
. * Prasad & Parmar (2020) describe fossil teeth of
ornithischia Ornithischia () is an extinct clade of mainly herbivorous dinosaurs characterized by a pelvic structure superficially similar to that of birds. The name ''Ornithischia'', or "bird-hipped", reflects this similarity and is derived from the Greek ...
n and theropod dinosaurs (including five
morphotype In biology, polymorphism is the occurrence of two or more clearly different morphs or forms, also referred to as alternative ''phenotypes'', in the population of a species. To be classified as such, morphs must occupy the same habitat at the s ...
s of putative
dromaeosaurid Dromaeosauridae () is a family (biology), family of feathered coelurosaurian Theropoda, theropod dinosaurs. They were generally small to medium-sized feathered carnivores that flourished in the Cretaceous period (geology), Period. The name Drom ...
teeth) from the
Middle Jurassic The Middle Jurassic is the second Epoch (geology), epoch of the Jurassic Period (geology), Period. It lasted from about 174.1 to 161.5 million years ago. Fossils of land-dwelling animals, such as dinosaurs, from the Middle Jurassic are relativel ...
Kota Formation The Kota Formation is a geological Formation (geology), formation in India. The age of the Kota Formation is uncertain; it is commonly considered to date to the Early Jurassic, but some studies have suggested it may extend into the Middle Jurassi ...
, providing new information on the Jurassic dinosaur fauna of
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. * Two
sacral vertebra The sacrum (: sacra or sacrums), in human anatomy, is a triangular bone at the base of the spine that forms by the fusing of the sacral vertebrae (S1S5) between ages 18 and 30. The sacrum situates at the upper, back part of the pelvic cavity, ...
e representing the oldest record of fusion of these vertebrae among dinosaurs are described from the Upper Triassic Candelária Sequence (
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
) by Moro ''et al.'' (2020), who also review the occurrence of sacral fusion in dinosaurs and their close relatives. *A study aiming to test whether non-avian dinosaurs were in long-term decline prior to the
Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event The Cretaceous–Paleogene (K–Pg) extinction event, also known as the K–T extinction, was the extinction event, mass extinction of three-quarters of the plant and animal species on Earth approximately 66 million years ago. The event cau ...
is published by Bonsor ''et al.'' (2020); the study is subsequently criticized by Sakamoto, Benton & Venditti (2021). * A study on the causes of extinction of non-avian dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous, evaluating dinosaur habitability in the wake of climatic perturbations caused by various asteroid impact and Deccan volcanism scenarios, is published by Chiarenza ''et al.'' (2020).


Saurischian research

* A study on the skeletal anatomy and phylogenetic relationships of ''
Daemonosaurus ''Daemonosaurus'' is an extinct genus of possible theropod dinosaur from the Late Triassic of New Mexico. The only known fossil is a skull and neck fragments from deposits of the latest Triassic Chinle Formation at Ghost Ranch. ''Daemonosaurus'' ...
chauliodus'' is published by Nesbitt & Sues (2020). * A study on the evolutionary trends and functional relationships between giant body size and hip anatomy in
saurischia Saurischia ( , meaning "reptile-hipped" from the Greek ' () meaning 'lizard' and ' () meaning 'hip joint') is one of the two basic divisions of dinosaurs (the other being Ornithischia), classified by their hip structure. Saurischia and Ornithi ...
ns is published by Tsai ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the metabolism of ''
Coelophysis ''Coelophysis'' ( Traditional English pronunciation of Latin, traditionally; or , as heard more commonly in recent decades) is a genus of coelophysid Theropoda, theropod dinosaur that lived Approximation, approximately 215 to 201.4 million y ...
'' and ''
Plateosaurus ''Plateosaurus'' (probably meaning "broad lizard", often mistranslated as "flat lizard") is a genus of plateosaurid dinosaur that lived during the Late Triassic period, around 214 to 204 million years ago, in what is now Central and Northern Eu ...
'', aiming to determine whether the absence of large sauropodomorph dinosaurs in the tropical to subtropical latitudes during the Late Triassic (e.g. the
Chinle Formation The Chinle Formation is an Upper Triassic continental geological formation of fluvial, lacustrine, and palustrine to eolian deposits spread across the U.S. states of Nevada, Utah, northern Arizona, western New Mexico, and western Colorado. In ...
) was caused by physiological limitations, is published by Lovelace ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on locomotion in non-avian theropods, aiming to determine the selective pressures that influenced evolution of limb length and proportions of limb components in theropods, is published by Dececchi ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the growth strategies of theropod dinosaurs, with a focus on gigantic
tyrannosaurids Tyrannosauridae (or tyrannosaurids, meaning "tyrant lizards") is a family of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaurs that comprises two subfamilies containing up to fifteen genera, including the eponymous ''Tyrannosaurus''. The exact number of genera i ...
and carcharodontosaurids, is published by Cullen ''et al.'' (2020). * The discovery of
sternal plates The sternum (: sternums or sterna) or breastbone is a long flat bone located in the central part of the chest. It connects to the ribs via cartilage and forms the front of the rib cage, thus helping to protect the heart, lungs, and major blood ve ...
of ''
Tawa hallae ''Tawa'' (named after the Hopi word for the Puebloan sun god) is a genus of possible basal theropod dinosaurs from the Late Triassic period. The fossil remains of ''Tawa hallae'', the type and only species were found in the Hayden Quarry of Gh ...
'' from the
Late Triassic The Late Triassic is the third and final epoch (geology), epoch of the Triassic geologic time scale, Period in the geologic time scale, spanning the time between annum, Ma and Ma (million years ago). It is preceded by the Middle Triassic Epoch a ...
of
New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...
and
Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...
, representing the oldest known dinosaur sternal plates described so far, is reported by Bradley ''et al.'' (2020), who note the presence of morphological features similar to sternal traits in
avialans Avialae ("bird wings") is a clade containing the only living dinosaurs, the birds, and their closest relatives. It is usually defined as all theropod dinosaurs more closely related to birds (Aves) than to deinonychosaurs, though alternative defi ...
. * A study on the anatomy and phylogenetic relationships of ''
Dilophosaurus ''Dilophosaurus'' ( ) is a genus of theropod dinosaurs that lived in what is now North America during the Early Jurassic, about 186 million years ago. Three skeletons were discovered in northern Arizona in 1940, and the two best preserv ...
wetherilli'', based on data from the
holotype A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...
, referred, and previously undescribed specimens from the
Kayenta Formation The Kayenta Formation is a geological formation in the Glen Canyon Group that is spread across the Colorado Plateau area of the United States, including northern Arizona, northwest Colorado, Nevada, and Utah. Originally suggested as being Sinemur ...
, is published by Marsh & Rowe (2020). * Redescription of the anatomy, revision of the taxonomy and a study on the phylogenetic relationships of the genus ''
Sarcosaurus ''Sarcosaurus'' () is a genus of basal neotheropod dinosaur, roughly long. It lived in what is now England and maybe Ireland and Scotland during the Hettangian-Sinemurian stages of the Early Jurassic, about 199-196 million years ago. ''Sarcosau ...
'' is published by
Ezcurra Ezcurra is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Alma Ezcurra (born 1986), Spanish politician * Bautista Ezcurra (born 1995), Argentine rugby union player * Encarnación Ezcurra (1795–1838), Argentine political activist * Exequiel ...
''et al.'' (2020). * New fossil material of theropod dinosaurs representing a wide taxonomic range is reported from the
Late Jurassic The Late Jurassic is the third Epoch (geology), epoch of the Jurassic Period, and it spans the geologic time scale, geologic time from 161.5 ± 1.0 to 143.1 ± 0.8 million years ago (Ma), which is preserved in Upper Jurassic stratum, strata.Owen ...
of the Langenberg Quarry (
Lower Saxony Lower Saxony is a States of Germany, German state (') in Northern Germany, northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ' of the Germany, Federal Re ...
,
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
) by Evers & Wings (2020), who interpret these fossils as evidence of the presence of several taxa of theropods in the Late Jurassic archipelago in the area of Central Europe. * Teeth attributed to the genus ''
Ceratosaurus ''Ceratosaurus'' (from Greek 'horn' and 'lizard') is a genus of carnivorous theropod dinosaur that lived in the Late Jurassic period (Kimmeridgian to Tithonian ages). The genus was first described in 1884 by American paleontologist Othni ...
'' are described from the
Late Jurassic The Late Jurassic is the third Epoch (geology), epoch of the Jurassic Period, and it spans the geologic time scale, geologic time from 161.5 ± 1.0 to 143.1 ± 0.8 million years ago (Ma), which is preserved in Upper Jurassic stratum, strata.Owen ...
Tacuarembó Formation The Tacuarembó Formation is a Late Jurassic (Kimmeridgian In the geologic timescale, the Kimmeridgian is an age in the Late Jurassic Epoch and a stage in the Upper Jurassic Series. It spans the time between 154.8 ±0.8 Ma and 149.2 ±0.7 Ma ...
(
Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...
) by Matías ''et al.'', (2020). * A vertebra of an elaphrosaurine theropod is described from the Lower Cretaceous (
Albian The Albian is both an age (geology), age of the geologic timescale and a stage (stratigraphy), stage in the stratigraphic column. It is the youngest or uppermost subdivision of the Early Cretaceous, Early/Lower Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch/s ...
)
Eumeralla Formation The Eumeralla Formation is a geological formation in Victoria, Australia whose strata date back to the Early Cretaceous. It is Aptian to Albian in age. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation, particul ...
(
Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...
, Australia) by Poropat ''et al.'' (2020), representing the first record of Elaphrosaurinae from Australia reported so far. * New theropod fossil material is reported from the
Griman Creek Formation The Griman Creek Formation is a geological formation in northern New South Wales and southern Queensland, Australia whose strata date back to the Albian-Cenomanian stages of the mid-Cretaceous. It is most notable being a major source of opal, ...
by Brougham, Smith & Bell (2020), who interpret it as evidence of the presence of
noasaurids Noasauridae is an extinct family of theropod dinosaurs belonging to the group Ceratosauria. They were closely related to the short-armed abelisaurids, although most noasaurids had much more traditional body types generally similar to other ther ...
in Australia during the Cretaceous. * A study on the bone microstructure and growth dynamics of ''
Vespersaurus ''Vespersaurus'' (meaning "western lizard") is a genus of noasaurid theropod dinosaur from the Cretaceous Rio Paraná Formation in the Paraná Basin, Brazil. The type and only species is ''V. paranaensis'', which would have lived in the giant pre ...
paranaensis'' is published by Souza ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on a row of large foramina on the external surface of the skull of ''
Skorpiovenator ''Skorpiovenator'' ("scorpion hunter") is a genus of abelisaurid theropod dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian to Turonian) Huincul Formation of Argentina. The Monotypic taxon, sole species of ''Skorpiovenator'', ''S. bustingorryi'', was ...
bustingorryi'' is published by Cerroni ''et al.'' (2020), who report evidence indicating that these foramina were linked to an internal canal that ran across the nasal bones, which they interpret as indicative of the presence of blood vessels and nerves, and attempt to determine possible biological significance of this neurovascular system. * A study on the anatomy of the skull of ''
Carnotaurus ''Carnotaurus'' (; ) is a genus of Theropoda, theropod dinosaur that lived in South America during the Late Cretaceous period, probably sometime between 72 and 69 million years ago. The only species is ''Carnotaurus sastrei''. Known from a si ...
sastrei'' is published by Cerroni, Canale &
Novas A nova ( novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. All observed novae involve white d ...
(2020). * Almost complete skeleton of ''
Majungasaurus ''Majungasaurus'' (; ) is a genus of abelisaurid theropod dinosaur that lived in Madagascar from 70 to 66 million years ago, at the end of the Cretaceous Period, making it one of the last-known non-avian dinosaurs that went extinct during th ...
crenatissimus'' preserving evidence of multiple pre-mortem pathologies is described from the Upper Cretaceous
Maevarano Formation The Maevarano Formation is a Late Cretaceous sedimentary formation (geology), rock formation found in the Mahajanga Province of northwestern Madagascar. It is most likely Maastrichtian in age, and records a seasonal, semiarid environment with rive ...
(
Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...
) by Gutherz ''et al.'' (2020), who interpret these pathologies as most likely to be the result of multiple non-fatal events experienced during the life of the individual, rather than a single traumatic incident. * Hornung (2020) interprets the
holotype A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...
specimen of ''"
Ornithocheirus ''Ornithocheirus'' (from Ancient Greek "ὄρνις", meaning bird, and "χεῖρ", meaning hand) is a pterosaur genus known from fragmentary fossil remains uncovered from sediments in the United Kingdom and possibly Morocco. Several species ha ...
" hilsensis'' as a partial
phalanx The phalanx (: phalanxes or phalanges) was a rectangular mass military formation, usually composed entirely of heavy infantry armed with spears, pikes, sarissas, or similar polearms tightly packed together. The term is particularly used t ...
of a large-sized theropod, making it one of the earliest dinosaur discoveries in
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
and one of the few records of large-sized theropods near the
Valanginian In the geologic timescale, the Valanginian is an age or stage of the Early or Lower Cretaceous. It spans between 137.05 ± 0.2 Ma and 132.6 ± 0.2 Ma (million years ago). The Valanginian Stage succeeds the Berriasian Stage of the Lower Cretac ...
/
Hauterivian The Hauterivian is, in the geologic timescale, an age in the Early Cretaceous Epoch or a stage in the Lower Cretaceous Series. It spans the time between 132.6 ± 2 Ma and 125.77 (million years ago). The Hauterivian is preceded by the Valangi ...
boundary of Central Europe. * Pereira ''et al.'' (2020) describe theropod fossil material from the
Albian The Albian is both an age (geology), age of the geologic timescale and a stage (stratigraphy), stage in the stratigraphic column. It is the youngest or uppermost subdivision of the Early Cretaceous, Early/Lower Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch/s ...
-
Cenomanian The Cenomanian is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy's (ICS) geological timescale, the oldest or earliest age (geology), age of the Late Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or the lowest stage (stratigraphy), stage of the Upper Cretace ...
Açu Formation The Açu Formation is an Early Cretaceous (Albian) geologic geologic formation, formation of the Potiguar Basin in Ceará, northeastern Brazil. The formation comprises coarse-grained sandstones deposited in a fluvial, fluvio-river delta, deltaic ...
(
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
), and evaluate the diversity of theropods from this formation. * Fragmentary
maxilla In vertebrates, the maxilla (: maxillae ) is the upper fixed (not fixed in Neopterygii) bone of the jaw formed from the fusion of two maxillary bones. In humans, the upper jaw includes the hard palate in the front of the mouth. The two maxil ...
of a member of the genus ''
Torvosaurus ''Torvosaurus'' () is a genus of large Megalosaurinae, megalosaurine Theropoda, theropod dinosaur that lived approximately 165 to 148 million years ago during the Callovian to Tithonian ages of the late Middle Jurassic, Middle and Late Jurassi ...
'' is described from the Middle Jurassic (
Callovian In the geologic timescale, the Callovian is an age and stage in the Middle Jurassic, lasting between 165.3 ± 1.1 Ma (million years ago) and 161.5 ± 1.0 Ma. It is the last stage of the Middle Jurassic, following the Bathonian and preceding the ...
) Ornatenton Formation (
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
) by Rauhut ''et al.'' (2020), representing the first occurrence of this genus from Germany and the oldest record of ''Torvosaurus'' reported so far. * A study on the formation time and replacement rates of
spinosaurid Spinosauridae (or spinosaurids) is a clade or Family (taxonomy), family of tetanuran theropod dinosaurs comprising ten to seventeen known genera. Spinosaurid fossils have been recovered worldwide, including Africa, Europe, South America, and Asia. ...
teeth from the
Kem Kem Group The Kem Kem Group (commonly known as the Kem Kem beds) is a geological group (stratigraphy), group in the Kem Kem region of eastern Morocco, whose strata date back to the Cenomanian stage of the Late Cretaceous. Its strata are subdivided into two ...
(
Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...
), comparing them to those of other archosaurs and evaluating their palaeoecological implications, is published by Heckeberg & Rauhut (2020). * A study on the anatomy of the braincase of ''
Irritator ''Irritator'' is a genus of Spinosauridae, spinosaurid dinosaur that lived in what is now Brazil during the Albian Geological stage, stage of the Early Cretaceous Geological period, Period, about 113 to 110 million years ago. It is known from ...
challengeri'', and on its implications for the knowledge of the
neuroanatomy Neuroanatomy is the study of the structure and organization of the nervous system. In contrast to animals with radial symmetry, whose nervous system consists of a distributed network of cells, animals with bilateral symmetry have segregated, defi ...
and ecology of this dinosaur, is published by Schade, Rauhut & Evers (2020). * A study on the anatomy of the tail of ''
Spinosaurus ''Spinosaurus'' (; ) is a genus of large spinosaurid theropod dinosaurs that lived in what now is North Africa during the Cenomanian faunal stage, stage of the Late Cretaceous Period (geology), period, about 100 to 94 annum, million year ...
aegyptiacus'' is published by Ibrahim ''et al.'' (2020), who present evidence of tall neural spines and elongate
chevrons Chevron (often relating to V-shaped patterns) may refer to: Science and technology * Chevron (aerospace), sawtooth patterns on some jet engines * Chevron (anatomy), a bone * '' Eulithis testata'', a moth * Chevron (geology), a fold in rock la ...
forming a large, flexible fin-like organ, interpreted by the authors as evidence of adaptation to tail-propelled aquatic locomotion. * A study on the taxonomic status of spinosaurs from the
Kem Kem Group The Kem Kem Group (commonly known as the Kem Kem beds) is a geological group (stratigraphy), group in the Kem Kem region of eastern Morocco, whose strata date back to the Cenomanian stage of the Late Cretaceous. Its strata are subdivided into two ...
(
Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...
) is published by Smyth, Ibrahim & Martill (2020), who consider ''Oxalaia quilombensis'', ''Spinosaurus maroccanus,'' and ''
Sigilmassasaurus ''Sigilmassasaurus'' ( ; "Sijilmassa lizard") is a controversial genus of spinosaurid dinosaur that lived approximately 100 to 94 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous Period in what is now northern Africa. Named in 1996 by Canadian pal ...
brevicollis'' to be
junior synonyms In taxonomy, the scientific classification of living organisms, a synonym is an alternative scientific name for the accepted scientific name of a taxon. The botanical and zoological codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. ...
of ''Spinosaurus aegyptiacus''. * Beevor ''et al.'' (2020) report a new locality near Tarda on the northern margin of the Tafilalt (
Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...
) dominated by dental remains of ''Spinosaurus'', and interpret the high abundance of spinosaur teeth compared to remains of terrestrial dinosaurs as evidence supporting the interpretation of ''Spinosaurus'' as an aquatic animal. * A study on the anatomy of teeth of ''
Sinraptor ''Sinraptor'' () is a genus of metriacanthosaurid theropod dinosaur from the Late Jurassic. The name ''Sinraptor'' comes from the Latin prefix "Sino", meaning Chinese, and "raptor", meaning robber. The specific name ''dongi'' honours Dong Zhimin ...
dongi'', comparing it with dentition of other theropods and evaluating its implications for the knowledge of the feeding ecology of ''S. dongi'', is published by Hendrickx ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on theropod bite marks on Late Jurassic vertebrate fossils from the Mygatt-Moore Quarry (
Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
), the identification of the trace makers and their feeding ecology is published by Drumheller ''et al.'' (2020), who report possible evidence of
cannibalism Cannibalism is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. Human cannibalism is also well document ...
in ''
Allosaurus ''Allosaurus'' ( ) is an extinct genus of theropod dinosaur that lived 155 to 145 million years ago during the Late Jurassic period ( Kimmeridgian to late Tithonian ages). The first fossil remains that could definitively be ascribed to th ...
''. * A revision of putative carcharodontosaurid teeth from the Upper Cretaceous Bauru Group (
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
) is published by Delcourt ''et al.'' (2020), who interpret the studied fossil material as more likely to belong to
abelisaurid Abelisauridae (meaning "Abel's lizards") is a family (or clade) of ceratosaurian theropod dinosaurs. Abelisaurids thrived during the Cretaceous period, on the ancient southern supercontinent of Gondwana, and today their fossil remains are foun ...
theropods. * A study on an indeterminate megaraptoran specimen from the
Winton Formation The Winton Formation is a Cretaceous Formation (geology), geological formation in central-western Queensland, Australia. It is late Albian to early Turonian in age. The formation blankets large areas of central-western Queensland. It consists of ...
(Australia) is published by White ''et al.'' (2020), who interpret this finding as evidence of either ontogenetic or intraspecific variation in ''
Australovenator ''Australovenator'' (meaning "southern hunter") is a genus of megaraptoran theropod dinosaur from Cenomanian (Late Cretaceous)-age Winton Formation (dated to 95 million years ago) of Australia. Some specimens from the Albian-aged Eumeralla Forma ...
'', or the presence of a second megaraptorid taxon in the Winton Formation. * Two partial skeletons of large-bodied megaraptorid theropods, representing the most ancient unquestionable records of Megaraptoridae from South America reported so far, are described from the Upper Cretaceous (
Cenomanian The Cenomanian is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy's (ICS) geological timescale, the oldest or earliest age (geology), age of the Late Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or the lowest stage (stratigraphy), stage of the Upper Cretace ...
Turonian The Turonian is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy, ICS' geologic timescale, the second age (geology), age in the Late Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch, or a stage (stratigraphy), stage in the Upper Cretaceous series (stratigraphy), ...
)
Bajo Barreal Formation The Bajo Barreal Formation is a geological Formation (geology), formation in the Golfo San Jorge Basin of Chubut Province, Chubut and Santa Cruz Province, Argentina, Santa Cruz, Argentina whose strata date back to the Cenomanian, Middle Cenomanian ...
(
Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
) by Lamanna ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the pneumaticity of the
sacrum The sacrum (: sacra or sacrums), in human anatomy, is a triangular bone at the base of the spine that forms by the fusing of the sacral vertebrae (S1S5) between ages 18 and 30. The sacrum situates at the upper, back part of the pelvic cavity, ...
and tail of ''
Aoniraptor ''Aoniraptor'' is an extinct genus of megaraptoran theropod dinosaurs from the Late Cretaceous Huincul Formation of Argentina. The genus contains a single species, ''Aoniraptor libertatem'', known from a partial skeleton. Discovery and naming ...
libertatem'', and on its implications for the knowledge of the evolution of pneumaticity through Theropoda, is published by Rolando, Marsà &
Novas A nova ( novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. All observed novae involve white d ...
(2020). * Pol & Goloboff (2020) present a protocol that identifies unstable taxa that decrease support measures in the phylogenetic analyses, and explore a dataset of coelurosaurian relationships published by Pei ''et al.'' (2020) using this protocol. * A study on the
biogeography Biogeography is the study of the species distribution, distribution of species and ecosystems in geography, geographic space and through evolutionary history of life, geological time. Organisms and biological community (ecology), communities o ...
of coelurosaurian theropods is published by Ding ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the endocranial anatomy of ''
Bistahieversor ''Bistahieversor'' (meaning "Bistahi destroyer"), also known as the "Bisti Beast", is a genus of basal Eutyrannosauria, eutyrannosaurian Theropoda, theropod dinosaur. The genus contains only a single known species, ''B. sealeyi'', described in 2 ...
sealeyi'', evaluating its implications for the knowledge of the evolution of the brains and sinuses of
tyrannosauroids Tyrannosauroidea (meaning 'tyrant lizard forms') is a superfamily (or clade) of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaurs that includes the family Tyrannosauridae as well as more basal relatives. Tyrannosauroids lived on the Laurasian supercontinent b ...
, is published by McKeown ''et al.'' (2020). * A metatarsal bone of a young tyrannosaurid theropod, assigned to a very small juvenile ''
Gorgosaurus ''Gorgosaurus'' ( ; ) is a genus of tyrannosaurid theropod dinosaur that lived in western North America during the Late Cretaceous Period (Campanian), between about 76.5 and 75 million years ago. Fossil remains have been found in the Ca ...
'' is described from the Campanian
Dinosaur Park Formation The Dinosaur Park Formation is the uppermost member of the Belly River Group (also known as the Judith River Group), a major geologic unit in southern Alberta. It was deposited during the Campanian stage of the Late Cretaceous, between about 7 ...
(Alberta, Canada) by Yun (2020). * A frontal bone of a subadult ''
Daspletosaurus ''Daspletosaurus'' ( ; meaning "frightful lizard") is a genus of tyrannosaurid dinosaur that lived in Laramidia between about 77 and 74.4 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous Period. The genus ''Daspletosaurus'' contains three named ...
torosus'' is described from the Campanian Dinosaur Park Formation (Alberta, Canada) by Yun (2020). * A study on the proposed autapomorphies of ''
Dynamoterror ''Dynamoterror'' (meaning "powerful terror") is a monospecific genus of tyrannosaurid dinosaur from New Mexico that lived during the Late Cretaceous (lower Campanian age, 78 Ma) in what is now the upper Allison Member of the Menefee Formation. Th ...
dynastes'' is published by Yun (2020), who determined a taxonomic name to be a ''nomen dubium''. * A study on the bone microstructure of two half-grown specimens of ''
Tyrannosaurus ''Tyrannosaurus'' () is a genus of large theropod dinosaur. The type species ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' ( meaning 'king' in Latin), often shortened to ''T. rex'' or colloquially t-rex, is one of the best represented theropods. It lived througho ...
rex'', evaluating its implications for the knowledge of the early life history of members of this species and the taxonomic validity of ''
Nanotyrannus ''Tyrannosaurus'' () is a genus of large theropoda, theropod dinosaur. The type species ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' ( meaning 'king' in Latin), often shortened to ''T. rex'' or colloquially t-rex, is one of the best represented theropods. It live ...
lancensis'', is published by Woodward ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on changes in skeleton of ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' during its growth, aiming to assign known specimens of this taxon to specific growth categories, is published by Carr (2020). * A study on the pathologies observed in the caudal
vertebra Each vertebra (: vertebrae) is an irregular bone with a complex structure composed of bone and some hyaline cartilage, that make up the vertebral column or spine, of vertebrates. The proportions of the vertebrae differ according to their spina ...
e and left
fibula The fibula (: fibulae or fibulas) or calf bone is a leg bone on the lateral side of the tibia, to which it is connected above and below. It is the smaller of the two bones and, in proportion to its length, the most slender of all the long bones. ...
of the ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' specimen
FMNH The Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH), also known as The Field Museum, is a natural history museum in Chicago, Illinois, and is one of the largest such museums in the world. The museum is popular for the size and quality of its educationa ...
PR2081 (" Sue") is published by Hamm ''et al.'' (2020), who diagnose this specimen as affected by
osteomyelitis Osteomyelitis (OM) is the infectious inflammation of bone marrow. Symptoms may include pain in a specific bone with overlying redness, fever, and weakness. The feet, spine, and hips are the most commonly involved bones in adults. The cause is ...
. * A study on the anatomy of the integumentary structures of ''
Juravenator ''Juravenator'' is a genus of small (75 cm long) coelurosaurian theropod dinosaur (although a 2020 study proposed it to be a hatchling megalosauroid), which lived about 151 or 152 million years ago in the area that would someday become the ...
starki'' and ''
Sciurumimus ''Sciurumimus'' ("Squirrel-mimic," named for its tail's resemblance to that of the tree squirrel, ''Sciurus'') is an extinct genus of Tetanurae, tetanuran Theropoda, theropod from the Late Jurassic Torleite Formation of Germany. It is known from ...
albersdoerferi'' from the Kimmeridgian Torleite Formation of southern Germany is published by Foth ''et al.'' (2020). * A unique scale type with distinctive circular nodes, interpreted as integumentary sense organs analogous to those in modern crocodylians, is reported from the tail of ''Juravenator starki'' by Bell & Hendrickx (2020). * A study on diversity and possible functions of the
epidermal The epidermis is the outermost of the three layers that comprise the skin, the inner layers being the dermis and hypodermis. The epidermal layer provides a barrier to infection from environmental pathogens and regulates the amount of water relea ...
covering of ''Juravenator starki'' is published online by Bell & Hendrickx (2020). * A compsognathid specimen preserved with elaborate integumentary structures was described from the Lower Cretaceous
Crato Formation The Crato Formation is a geologic formation (stratigraphy), formation of Early Cretaceous (Aptian) age in northeastern Brazil's Araripe Basin. It is an important Lagerstätten, Lagerstätte (undisturbed fossil accumulation) for palaeontology, pa ...
(
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
); the announcement of its discovery sparked a legal and ethical controversy regarding the circumstances of the fossil's export from Brazil, and the publication describing the specimen was subsequently withdrawn. * A study on the pneumatic chambers in the vertebrae of ''
Nothronychus ''Nothronychus'' (meaning "slothful claw") is a genus of therizinosaurid theropod dinosaurs that lived in North America during the Late Cretaceous period. The type species, ''Nothronychus mckinleyi'', was described by James Kirkland and Dougla ...
mckinleyi'' is published by Smith, Sanders & Wolfe (2020). * A review of the research on the phylogenetic relationships, morphology and locomotory (including aerial) capabilities of scansoriopterygids, and on their implications for the knowledge of the origin of
oviraptorosaurs Oviraptorosaurs ("egg thief lizards") are a group of feathered maniraptoran dinosaurs from the Cretaceous Period of what are now Asia and North America. They are distinct for their characteristically short, beaked, parrot-like skulls, with or wi ...
, is published by Sorkin (2020). * Partial skeleton of an oviraptorosaur theropod closely associated with two eggs (one within the pelvic canal and the other just posterior to it) is described from the Upper Cretaceous
Nanxiong Formation The Nanxiong Formation (also known as Yuanpu Formation) is a Late Cretaceous geologic Formation (geology), formation in Guangdong Province. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation. Description It cons ...
(China) by Jin ''et al.'' (2020), who note the complete absence of medullary bone in this egg-bearing specimen. * New fossil material of ''
Chirostenotes ''Chirostenotes'' ( ; named from Ancient Greek, Greek 'narrow-handed') is a genus of oviraptorosaurian dinosaur from the late Cretaceous (about 76.5–75 million years ago) of Alberta, Canada. The type species is ''Chirostenotes pergracilis''. ...
pergracilis'', representing the first associated
mandibular In jawed vertebrates, the mandible (from the Latin ''mandibula'', 'for chewing'), lower jaw, or jawbone is a bone that makes up the lowerand typically more mobilecomponent of the mouth (the upper jaw being known as the maxilla). The jawbone i ...
and postcranial material of a
caenagnathid Caenagnathidae is a family of derived caenagnathoid dinosaurs from the Cretaceous of North America and Asia. They are a member of the Oviraptorosauria, and relatives of the Oviraptoridae. Like other oviraptorosaurs, caenagnathids had specialized ...
from the
Dinosaur Park Formation The Dinosaur Park Formation is the uppermost member of the Belly River Group (also known as the Judith River Group), a major geologic unit in southern Alberta. It was deposited during the Campanian stage of the Late Cretaceous, between about 7 ...
(
Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
), is described by Funston &
Currie Currie is a village and suburb on the outskirts of Edinburgh, Scotland, situated south west of the city centre. Formerly within the County of Midlothian, it now falls within the jurisdiction of the City of Edinburgh Council. It is situated be ...
(2020), who evaluate the implications of these fossils for the knowledge of taxonomy and diversity of caenagnathids from the Dinosaur Park Formation and the growth patterns of ''Chirostenotes pergracilis''. * Description of new caenagnathid fossil material from the Dinosaur Park Formation (Alberta, Canada), providing new information on pelvic anatomy of caenagnathids, is published by Rhodes, Funston & Currie (2020). * Description of a partial skeleton of a caenagnathid theropod from the Upper Cretaceous
Hell Creek Formation The Hell Creek Formation is an intensively studied division of mostly Upper Cretaceous and some lower Paleocene rocks in North America, named for exposures studied along Hell Creek, near Jordan, Montana. The Formation (stratigraphy), formation s ...
(
Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
) and study on the bone
histology Histology, also known as microscopic anatomy or microanatomy, is the branch of biology that studies the microscopic anatomy of biological tissue (biology), tissues. Histology is the microscopic counterpart to gross anatomy, which looks at large ...
of this specimen is published by Cullen ''et al.'' (2020), who evaluate the implications of their findings for the knowledge of the utility of size as a determinant for referral of incomplete or fragmentary skeletal remains to specific or new
coelurosaur Coelurosauria (; from Greek, meaning "hollow-tailed lizards") is the clade containing all theropod dinosaurs more closely related to birds than to carnosaurs. Coelurosauria is a subgroup of theropod dinosaurs that includes compsognathids, ty ...
taxa. * An adult
oviraptorid Oviraptoridae is a group of bird-like, herbivorous and omnivorous maniraptoran dinosaurs. Oviraptorids are characterized by their toothless, parrot-like beaks and, in some cases, elaborate crests. They were generally small, measuring between one ...
specimen preserved atop an egg clutch that contains embryonic remains, representing the first such finding among non-avialan dinosaurs, is described by Bi ''et al.'' (2020). * The first probable
deinonychosaur Deinonychosauria is a clade of paravian dinosaurs which lived from the Late Jurassic to the Late Cretaceous periods. Fossils have been found across the globe in North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, South America, and Antarctica,Case, J.A., Marti ...
(likely
troodontid Troodontidae is a clade of bird-like theropod dinosaurs from the Late Jurassic to Late Cretaceous. During most of the 20th century, troodontid fossils were few and incomplete and they have therefore been allied, at various times, with many dinos ...
) tracks from Canada are described from the Campanian Wapiti Formation (Alberta) by Enriquez ''et al.'' (2020). * New theropod teeth, possibly belonging to members of the family
Dromaeosauridae Dromaeosauridae () is a family of feathered coelurosaurian theropod dinosaurs. They were generally small to medium-sized feathered carnivores that flourished in the Cretaceous Period. The name Dromaeosauridae means 'running lizards', from ...
and representing the first record of that group from the southern Junggar Basin, are reported from the Upper Jurassic
Qigu Formation The Qigu Formation is a Late Jurassic ( Oxfordian) geologic formation in the Southern Junggar Basin in China. Indeterminate Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation, including the stegosaur (" Angustungu ...
(
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
) by Maisch & Matzke (2020). * A study on the facial
pneumatic Pneumatics (from Greek 'wind, breath') is the use of gas or pressurized air in mechanical systems. Pneumatic systems used in Industrial sector, industry are commonly powered by compressed air or compressed inert gases. A centrally located a ...
features of members of the family Dromaeosauridae, and on the evolutionary history of these features, is published by Brownstein (2020). * A study on the differences in the locomotor and predatory specializations of
eudromaeosaurs Eudromaeosauria ( ; "true dromaeosaurs") is a subgroup of terrestrial dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaurs. They were small to large-sized predators that flourished during the Cretaceous Period. Eudromaeosaur fossils are known almost exclusively fr ...
and
unenlagiines Unenlagiinae is a subfamily of long-snouted Paraves, paravian theropods. They are traditionally considered to be members of Dromaeosauridae, though some authors place them into their own family, Unenlagiidae, sometimes alongside the subfamily Ha ...
, as indicated by the anatomy of their hindlimbs, is published by Gianechini, Ercoli & Díaz-Martínez (2020). * A study on eudromaeosaurian
maxilla In vertebrates, the maxilla (: maxillae ) is the upper fixed (not fixed in Neopterygii) bone of the jaw formed from the fusion of two maxillary bones. In humans, the upper jaw includes the hard palate in the front of the mouth. The two maxil ...
e, aiming to determine the extent to which maxillae can be used to draw ecological and phylogenetic inferences about dromaeosaurids, is published by Powers, Sullivan & Currie (2020). * Evidence of sequential wing feather molt in a specimen of ''
Microraptor ''Microraptor'' (Greek language, Greek, μικρός, ''mīkros'': "small"; Latin language, Latin, ''raptor'': "one who seizes") is a genus of small, four-winged dromaeosaurid dinosaurs. Numerous well-preserved fossil specimens have been recovere ...
'' is presented by Kiat ''et al.'' (2020), who evaluate the implications of this finding for the knowledge of the ecology and locomotion of this theropod. * Partial dentary of a juvenile
saurornitholestine Eudromaeosauria ( ; "true dromaeosaurs") is a subgroup of terrestrial dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaurs. They were small to large-sized predators that flourished during the Cretaceous Period. Eudromaeosaur fossils are known almost exclusively fr ...
dromaeosaurid is described from the Upper Cretaceous
Prince Creek Formation The Prince Creek Formation is a geological Formation (geology), formation in Alaska with strata dating to the Late Campanian stage of the Late Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.Weishamp ...
(
Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...
, United States) by Chiarenza ''et al.'' (2020), representing the first confirmed non-dental fossil specimen of a member of Dromaeosauridae in the Arctic. * The first cranial material of ''
Saurornitholestes ''Saurornitholestes'' ("lizard-bird thief") is a genus of carnivorous dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaur from the late Cretaceous of Canada (Alberta and Saskatchewan) and the United States (Montana, New Mexico, Alabama, and South Carolina). Two spe ...
'' is described from the
Judith River Formation The Judith River Formation is a fossil-bearing geologic formation in Montana, and is part of the Montana Group. It dates to the Late Cretaceous, between 79 and 75.3 million years ago, corresponding to the "Judithian" land vertebrate age. It was ...
(
Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...
, United States) by Wilson & Fowler (2020), representing the easternmost occurrence of this genus reported so far. * A study testing for dietary changes through growth in ''
Deinonychus ''Deinonychus'' ( ; ) is a genus of Dromaeosauridae, dromaeosaurid Theropoda, theropod dinosaur with one described species, ''Deinonychus antirrhopus''. This species, which could grow up to long, lived during the early Cretaceous Period (ge ...
antirrhopus'' is published by Frederickson, Engel & Cifelli (2020). * A study on the anatomy of the hindbrain and inner ear of ''
Velociraptor ''Velociraptor'' (; ) is a genus of small dromaeosaurid dinosaurs that lived in Asia during the Late Cretaceous epoch, about 75 million to 71 million years ago. Two species are currently recognized, although others have been assigned in th ...
mongoliensis'', evaluating its implications for the knowledge of the trophic ecology and sensory aptitude of this theropod, is published by King ''et al.'' (2020). * A study aiming to determine the thermoregulatory efficiency of contact incubation of partially buried eggs by ''
Troodon ''Troodon'' ( ; ''Troödon'' in older sources) is a controversial genus of relatively small, bird-like theropod dinosaurs definitively known from the Campanian age of the Late Cretaceous period (about 77 million years ago). It includes at l ...
formosus'' is published by Hogan & Varricchio (2020). * Description of the anatomy of the skeleton of ''
Rahonavis ''Rahonavis'' is a genus of bird-like theropod from the Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian, from about 72.1 to 66 mya) of what is now northwestern Madagascar. It is known from a partial skeleton ( UA 8656) found by Catherine Forster and colleagues ...
ostromi'' is published by Forster ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the flight potential and gliding capabilities of '' Yi qi'' and ''
Ambopteryx ''Ambopteryx'' (meaning "both wing") is a genus of Scansoriopterygidae, scansoriopterygid dinosaur from the Oxfordian stage of the Late Jurassic of China. It is the second dinosaur to be found with both feathers and bat-like membranous wings. Yi ( ...
longibrachium'' is published by Dececchi ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the chemical preservation of fossil feathers preserved in association with the skeleton of ''
Anchiornis ''Anchiornis'' is a genus of small, four-winged Paraves, paravian dinosaurs, with only one known species, the type species ''Anchiornis huxleyi'', named for its similarity to modern birds. The Latin name ''Anchiornis'' derives from a Greek word m ...
huxleyi'' is published by Cincotta ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the quality of the
sauropodomorph Sauropodomorpha ( ; from Greek, meaning "lizard-footed forms") is an extinct clade of long-necked, herbivorous, saurischian dinosaurs that includes the sauropods and their ancestral relatives. Sauropods generally grew to very large sizes, had lo ...
fossil record is published by Cashmore ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the anatomy of the endocranial cavity and the probable anatomy of the brain of ''
Buriolestes ''Buriolestes'' is a genus of early sauropodomorph dinosaurs from the Late Triassic Santa Maria Formation of the Paraná Basin in southern Brazil. It contains a single species, ''B. schultzi'', named in 2016. The type specimen was found alongsid ...
schultzi'' is published by Müller ''et al.'' (2020). * Description of new fossil material of ''
Thecodontosaurus ''Thecodontosaurus'' ("socket-tooth lizard") is a genus of herbivorous basal sauropodomorph dinosaur that lived during the late Triassic period (Carnian? age). Its remains are known mostly from Triassic "fissure fillings" in South England. ''T ...
antiquus'', providing new information on the skeletal anatomy of this species, is published by Ballell,
Rayfield Rayfield is an English surname. Notable people with the name include: People * Dan Rayfield (born 1979), American politician from Oregon * Donald Rayfield (born 1942), British professor and writer * Emily Rayfield, British palaeontologist * Gordon ...
& Benton (2020), who evaluate the implications of these fossils for the knowledge of the paleoecology of ''Thecodontosaurus'' and the taxonomy of Late Triassic British sauropodomorphs. * A study on the anatomy of the braincase of ''Thecodontosaurus antiquus'' is published by Ballell ''et al.'' (2020), who also reconstruct the anatomy of the brain of this dinosaur, and evaluate its implications for the knowledge of the paleobiology of ''Thecodontosaurus''. *Greenfield ''et al.'' (2020) reviewed the nomenclature of ''
Coloradisaurus ''Coloradisaurus'' (meaning "Los Colorados lizard") is a genus of massospondylid sauropodomorph dinosaur. It lived during the Late Triassic period (Norian stage) in what is now La Rioja Province, Argentina. It is known from two specimens coll ...
'' and determined that the authorship should be attributed to
Peter Galton Peter Malcolm Galton (born 14 March 1942 in London) is a British vertebrate paleontologist who has to date written or co-written about 190 papers in scientific journals or chapters in paleontology textbooks, especially on ornithischian and prosau ...
and not David Lambert. * A study on the morphological variation of ''
Plateosaurus ''Plateosaurus'' (probably meaning "broad lizard", often mistranslated as "flat lizard") is a genus of plateosaurid dinosaur that lived during the Late Triassic period, around 214 to 204 million years ago, in what is now Central and Northern Eu ...
'' occurring at the genus level, as indicated by data on the shape variation of a sample of limb long bones, is published by Lefebvre ''et al.'' (2020). * New skeleton of ''Plateosaurus'', representing the first substantially complete specimen of a juvenile ''Plateosaurus'' and the first such specimen with a body size significantly below the known adult size range of this taxon, is described from the
Norian The Norian is a division of the Triassic geological period, Period. It has the rank of an age (geology), age (geochronology) or stage (stratigraphy), stage (chronostratigraphy). It lasted from ~227.3 to Mya (unit), million years ago. It was prec ...
Klettgau Formation The Klettgau Formation is a geological formation in Switzerland. It is Late Triassic in age, covering most of the mid to late Norian, the Carnian, and into the Rhaetian, spanning a period of 26-30 million years.Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
) by Nau ''et al.'' (2020). * The second-known specimen of ''
Ignavusaurus ''Ignavusaurus'' is a genus of basal sauropodomorph dinosaur that lived during the Early Jurassic in what is now Lesotho. Its fossils were found in the Upper Elliot Formation which is probably Hettangian in age (around 200 million years ago). It ...
rachelis'', extending known geographic range of this species, is described from the Likhoele Mountain near
Mafeteng Mafeteng is a city in Lesotho, and the Camptown (capital city) of the district of Mafeteng. It is located about 76 kilometres south of the country's capital, Maseru and has a population of approximately 61,000. The South African border town to M ...
(
Upper Elliot Formation The Elliot Formation is a geological formation and forms part of the Stormberg Group, the uppermost geological group that comprises the greater Karoo Supergroup. Outcrops of the Elliot Formation have been found in the northern Eastern Cape, south ...
,
Lesotho Lesotho, formally the Kingdom of Lesotho and formerly known as Basutoland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Entirely surrounded by South Africa, it is the largest of only three sovereign enclave and exclave, enclaves in the world, t ...
) by Bodenham & Barrett (2020). * A study on teeth development in embryos of ''
Lufengosaurus ''Lufengosaurus'' (, meaning "Lufeng lizard") is a genus of massospondylid dinosaur which lived during the Early Jurassic period in what is now southwestern China."Lufengosaurus." In: Dodson, Peter & Britt, Brooks & Carpenter, Kenneth & Forster, ...
'' is published by
Reisz Reisz may refer to: * Albie Reisz, American professional football quarterback for the Cleveland Rams/Los Angeles Rams *Karel Reisz, Czech-born British filmmaker active in post–war Britain * Kristopher Reisz, American author known for his young ad ...
''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the
histology Histology, also known as microscopic anatomy or microanatomy, is the branch of biology that studies the microscopic anatomy of biological tissue (biology), tissues. Histology is the microscopic counterpart to gross anatomy, which looks at large ...
of the
humeri The humerus (; : humeri) is a long bone in the arm that runs from the shoulder to the elbow. It connects the scapula and the two bones of the lower arm, the radius and ulna, and consists of three sections. The humeral upper extremity consists of ...
of two basal sauropod specimens from the
Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately 143.1 Mya. ...
of
Niger Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Niger border, north-east, Chad to the Chad–Niger border, east ...
and
Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...
, reporting evidence of a layer of the radial fibrolamellar bone buried in the outer cortex of these bones, is published by Jentgen-Ceschino, Stein & Fischer (2020), who interpret their findings as evidence of these sauropods being affected by pathologies similar to Ewing's sarcoma and avian
osteopetrosis Osteopetrosis, literally , also known as marble bone disease or Albers-Schönberg disease, is an extremely rare inherited disorder whereby the bones harden, becoming denser, in contrast to more prevalent conditions like osteoporosis, in which ...
or haemangioma. * A study comparing articulation and range of motion of necks of extant giraffes and ''
Spinophorosaurus ''Spinophorosaurus'' is a genus of sauropod dinosaur that lived in what is now Niger during the Middle Jurassic period. The first two specimens were excavated in the 2000s by German and Spanish teams under difficult conditions. The skeletons were ...
nigerensis'' is published by Vidal ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the body plan, functional morphology of the neck and feeding capabilities of ''Spinophorosaurus nigerensis'' is published by Vidal ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the skeletal anatomy and phylogenetic relationships of ''
Klamelisaurus ''Klamelisaurus'' (meaning "Kelameili Mountains lizard") is a genus of herbivorous sauropod dinosaur from the Middle Jurassic Shishugou Formation of China. The type species is ''Klamelisaurus gobiensis'', which was named by Zhao Xijin in 1993, ba ...
gobiensis'' is published by Moore ''et al.'' (2020). * Two vertebrae of
diplodocoid Diplodocoidea is a superfamily of sauropod dinosaurs, which included some of the longest animals of all time, including slender giants like '' Supersaurus'', ''Diplodocus'', ''Apatosaurus'', and ''Amphicoelias''. Most had very long necks and long ...
sauropods are described from the Middle Jurassic (
Callovian In the geologic timescale, the Callovian is an age and stage in the Middle Jurassic, lasting between 165.3 ± 1.1 Ma (million years ago) and 161.5 ± 1.0 Ma. It is the last stage of the Middle Jurassic, following the Bathonian and preceding the ...
) Podosinki Formation (
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
) by Averianov & Zverkov (2020), who evaluate the implications of this finding for the knowledge of the initial radiation of Diplodocoidea. * Fossils of a member of
Flagellicaudata Diplodocoidea is a superfamily of sauropod dinosaurs, which included some of the longest animals of all time, including slender giants like '' Supersaurus'', ''Diplodocus'', ''Apatosaurus'', and ''Amphicoelias''. Most had very long necks and long ...
are described from the Middle Jurassic Otlaltepec Formation (
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
) by Rivera-Sylva & Espinosa-Arrubarrena (2020), representing the first conclusive evidence of the occurrence of Flagellicaudata in this part of North America throughout the
Bathonian In the geologic timescale the Bathonian is an age (geology), age and stage (stratigraphy), stage of the Middle Jurassic. It lasted from approximately 168.2 ±1.2 annum, Ma to around 165.3 ±1.1 Ma (million years ago). The Bathonian Age succeeds ...
-Callovian. * Baron (2020) argues that the elongate tails of
diplodocid Diplodocids, or members of the family Diplodocidae ("double beams"), are a group of sauropod dinosaurs. The family includes some of the longest creatures ever to walk the Earth, including '' Diplodocus'' and '' Supersaurus'', some of which may ha ...
sauropods were used for herding co-ordination. * A review of the distribution of the Cretaceous fossils of
rebbachisaurid Rebbachisauridae is a Family (biology), family of sauropod dinosaurs known from fragmentary fossil remains from the Cretaceous of South America, Africa, North America, Europe and possibly Central Asia. Taxonomy In 1990 sauropod specialist Jack M ...
sauropods is published by Pereira ''et al.'' (2020), who report the first occurrence of a rebbachisaurid from the
Açu Formation The Açu Formation is an Early Cretaceous (Albian) geologic geologic formation, formation of the Potiguar Basin in Ceará, northeastern Brazil. The formation comprises coarse-grained sandstones deposited in a fluvial, fluvio-river delta, deltaic ...
( Potiguar Basin,
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
), and discuss its paleobiogeographic implications. * A reconstruction of the epaxial and hypaxial musculature of the tail of ''
Giraffatitan ''Giraffatitan'' (name meaning "titanic giraffe") is a genus of sauropod dinosaur that lived during the late Jurassic Period (geology), Period (Kimmeridgian–Tithonian stages) in what is now Lindi Region, Tanzania. Only one species is known, ...
brancai'' is published by Díez Díaz ''et al.'' (2020). * A humerus of a
titanosauriform Macronaria is a clade of sauropod dinosaurs. Macronarians are named after the large diameter of the nasal opening of their skull, known as the external naris, which exceeded the size of the orbit, the skull opening where the eye is located (hence ...
sauropod, likely belonging to a member or a relative of the genus ''
Duriatitan ''Duriatitan'' is a genus of titanosauriform sauropod dinosaur that lived in the Late Jurassic in what is now England. The holotype specimen of ''Duriatitan'', BMNH 44635, is a partial left upper arm bone which was found by R.I. Smith nea ...
'', is described from the
Tithonian In the geological timescale, the Tithonian is the latest age (geology), age of the Late Jurassic Epoch and the uppermost stage (stratigraphy), stage of the Upper Jurassic Series. It spans the time between 149.2 ±0.7 annum, Ma and 143.1 ±0.6 (mi ...
-
Berriasian In the geological timescale, the Berriasian is an age/ stage of the Early/Lower Cretaceous. It is the oldest subdivision in the entire Cretaceous. It has been taken to span the time between 143.1 ±0.6 Ma and 137.05 ± 0.2 (million years ago) ...
Rupelo Formation (
Burgos Burgos () is a city in Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populous municipality of the province of Burgos. Burgos is situated in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, on the confluence of th ...
,
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
) by Torcida Fernández-Baldor, Canudo & Huerta (2020). * A large sauropod humerus, probably belonging to a member of the species ''
Fusuisaurus ''Fusuisaurus'' (meaning "Fusui lizard" from the name of the county where it was discovered) is a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous of China. Fragmentary postcranial remains of this animal have been discovered in 2001 in the ...
zhaoi'', is described from the Lower Cretaceous
Xinlong Formation The Xinlong Formation (sometimes called the "Napai Formation", or misspelt as "Napan Formation") is an Early Cretaceous geologic Formation (geology), formation in Guangxi, southern China.Guangxi Guangxi,; officially the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People's Republic of China, located in South China and bordering Vietnam (Hà Giang Province, Hà Giang, Cao Bằn ...
,
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
) by Mo ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on sauropod teeth from the
Cenomanian The Cenomanian is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy's (ICS) geological timescale, the oldest or earliest age (geology), age of the Late Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or the lowest stage (stratigraphy), stage of the Upper Cretace ...
Griman Creek Formation The Griman Creek Formation is a geological formation in northern New South Wales and southern Queensland, Australia whose strata date back to the Albian-Cenomanian stages of the mid-Cretaceous. It is most notable being a major source of opal, ...
(
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
), evaluating their implications for the knowledge of the diversity and palaeoecology of the sauropods from this formation, is published by Frauenfelder ''et al.'' (2020), who report evidence of the presence of at least two taxa of non-
titanosaur Titanosaurs (or titanosaurians; members of the group Titanosauria) were a diverse group of sauropod dinosaurs, including genera from all seven continents. The titanosaurs were the last surviving group of long-necked sauropods, with taxa still thr ...
titanosauriforms and a possible titanosaur. * A study on
histology Histology, also known as microscopic anatomy or microanatomy, is the branch of biology that studies the microscopic anatomy of biological tissue (biology), tissues. Histology is the microscopic counterpart to gross anatomy, which looks at large ...
and affinities of two bone fragments from the Upper Cretaceous (lower
Santonian The Santonian is an age in the geologic timescale or a chronostratigraphic stage. It is a subdivision of the Late Cretaceous Epoch or Upper Cretaceous Series. It spans the time between 86.3 ± 0.7 mya ( million years ago) and 83.6 ± 0.7 m ...
to/or lower
Campanian The Campanian is the fifth of six ages of the Late Cretaceous epoch on the geologic timescale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). In chronostratigraphy, it is the fifth of six stages in the Upper Cretaceous Series. Campa ...
) of the Western Srednogorie (
Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...
) is published by Nikolov ''et al.'' (2020), who interpret these fossils as bones of a titanosaur sauropod, coming from a time interval when sauropods are rare in the fossil record of Europe. * An almost intact embryonic skull of a titanosaur sauropod is described from the Upper Cretaceous
Allen Formation The Allen Formation is a geological formation in Argentina whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous (middle Campanian to early Maastrichtian.Salgado et al., 2007 Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the forma ...
(
Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
) by Kundrát ''et al.'' (2020), who interpret this specimen as indicating that titanosaurs hatched with a temporary monocerotid (single-horned) face, retracted narial openings, and early binocular vision. * Evidence of aggressive case of
osteomyelitis Osteomyelitis (OM) is the infectious inflammation of bone marrow. Symptoms may include pain in a specific bone with overlying redness, fever, and weakness. The feet, spine, and hips are the most commonly involved bones in adults. The cause is ...
affecting a titanosaur specimen from the Upper Cretaceous
Adamantina Formation The Adamantina Formation is a geological Formation (geology), formation in the Bauru Basin of western São Paulo (state), São Paulo state in southeastern Brazil. Its strata date back to the Late Cretaceous epoch of the Cretaceous, Cretaceous Per ...
(
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
) is reported by Aureliano ''et al.'' (2020), who also report the preservation of tens of parasites throughout the specimen’s vascular canals. * Description of the skeletal anatomy of ''
Savannasaurus ''Savannasaurus'' is a genus of titanosaurian sauropoda, sauropod dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous Winton Formation of Queensland, Australia. It contains one species, ''Savannasaurus elliottorum'', named in 2016 by Stephen Poropat and colleagues ...
elliottorum'' is published by Poropat ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the anatomy of the brain and inner ear of '' Narambuenatitan palomoi'' is published by Paulina-Carabajal, Filippi & Knoll (2020). * Voegele ''et al.'' (2020) reconstruct the forelimb and shoulder girdle musculature of ''
Dreadnoughtus ''Dreadnoughtus'' is a genus of titanosaurian sauropod dinosaur containing a single species, ''Dreadnoughtus schrani''. ''D. schrani'' is known from two partial skeletons discovered in Upper Cretaceous (Campanian to Maastrichtian; approximately ...
schrani'', as well as the pelvic girdle and hindlimb musculature of this sauropod. * A study on the anatomy of the appendicular skeleton of ''
Patagotitan ''Patagotitan'' is a genus of titanosaurian sauropoda, sauropod dinosaur from the Cerro Barcino Formation in Chubut Province, Patagonia, Argentina. The genus contains a single species known from at least six young adult individuals, ''Patagotita ...
mayorum'' is published by Otero, Carballido & Moreno (2020), who also provide a new body mass estimate of this species.


Ornithischian research

* A study on the phylogenetic relationships of the silesaurids is published by Müller & Garcia (2020), who recover silesaurids as an
evolutionary grade A grade is a taxon united by a level of morphological or physiological complexity. The term was coined by British biologist Julian Huxley, to contrast with clade, a strictly phylogenetic unit. Phylogenetics The concept of evolutionary grades ...
of early ornithischian dinosaurs. * A study on the microstructure of the
tooth enamel Tooth enamel is one of the four major Tissue (biology), tissues that make up the tooth in humans and many animals, including some species of fish. It makes up the normally visible part of the tooth, covering the Crown (tooth), crown. The other ...
of '' Manidens condorensis'', evaluating its implications for the knowledge of the evolution of tooth enamel in
Ornithischia Ornithischia () is an extinct clade of mainly herbivorous dinosaurs characterized by a pelvic structure superficially similar to that of birds. The name ''Ornithischia'', or "bird-hipped", reflects this similarity and is derived from the Greek ...
, is published by Becerra & Pol (2020). * A study on tooth replacement in ''Manidens condorensis'' is published by Becerra ''et al.'' (2020). * New specimens of ''
Scutellosaurus ''Scutellosaurus'' ( ) is a genus of basal thyreophoran dinosaur that lived approximately 196 million years ago during the early part of the Jurassic Period in what is now Arizona, USA. It is classified in Thyreophora, the armoured dinosaurs; ...
lawleri'', providing new information on the anatomy of this species, are described from the Lower Jurassic
Kayenta Formation The Kayenta Formation is a geological formation in the Glen Canyon Group that is spread across the Colorado Plateau area of the United States, including northern Arizona, northwest Colorado, Nevada, and Utah. Originally suggested as being Sinemur ...
(
Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...
, United States), by Breeden & Rowe (2020). * Studies on the structure and development of the dermal skeleton of ''
Scelidosaurus ''Scelidosaurus'' (; with the intended meaning of "limb lizard", from Greek / meaning 'rib of beef' and ''sauros''/ meaning 'lizard')Liddell & Scott (1980). Greek-English Lexicon, Abridged Edition. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. is a ge ...
harrisonii'', the neurocranium and the associated principal sensory systems of this dinosaur, its locomotor abilities, breathing, and on its phylogenetic relationships, are published by
Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 9th and 10th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norma ...
(2020). * Description of the dermal armor of ''
Stegosaurus ''Stegosaurus'' (; ) is a genus of herbivorous, four-legged, armored dinosaur from the Late Jurassic, characterized by the distinctive kite-shaped upright plates along their backs and spikes on their tails. Fossils of the genus have been fo ...
'', revision of the various reconstructions of the dermal armor of ''S. ungulatus'' and ''S. stenops'', and a summary of the evidence for and against the different functions proposed for the plates and spines of ''Stegosaurus'' is published by
Galton Sir Francis Galton (; 16 February 1822 – 17 January 1911) was an English polymath and the originator of eugenics during the Victorian era; his ideas later became the basis of behavioural genetics. Galton produced over 340 papers and b ...
(2020). * An isolated caudal vertebra representing the first evidence of the presence of an ankylosaur in the Upper Jurassic
Qigu Formation The Qigu Formation is a Late Jurassic ( Oxfordian) geologic formation in the Southern Junggar Basin in China. Indeterminate Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation, including the stegosaur (" Angustungu ...
(China) is described by Augustin ''et al.'' (2020). * A study aiming to determine the social lifestyle of ankylosaurs, as indicated by anatomy, taphonomic history, ontogenetic composition of the mass death assemblages and inferred habitat characteristics, is published by Botfalvai, Prondvai & Ősi (2020). * Redescription of the anatomy of the
holotype A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...
specimens of ''
Hylaeosaurus ''Hylaeosaurus'' ( ; Greek: / "belonging to the forest" and / "lizard") is a herbivorous ankylosaurian dinosaur that lived about 136 million years ago, in the late Valanginian stage of the early Cretaceous period of England. It was found i ...
armatus'' and ''
Polacanthus ''Polacanthus'', deriving its name from the Ancient Greek polys-/πολύς- "many" and akantha/ἄκανθα "thorn" or "prickle", is an early armoured, spiked, plant-eating ankylosaurian dinosaur from the early Cretaceous period of England. In ...
foxii'', and a study on the taxonomy of all ankylosaur specimens from the British
Wealden Supergroup The Wealden Group, occasionally also referred to as the Wealden Supergroup, is a group (a sequence of rock strata) in the lithostratigraphy of southern England. The Wealden group consists of paralic to continental (freshwater) facies sedimentar ...
, is published by Raven ''et al.'' (2020). * Fossil stomach contents preserved within the abdominal cavity of the
holotype A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...
specimen of ''
Borealopelta ''Borealopelta'' (meaning "Northern shield") is a genus of nodosaurid ankylosaur from the Lower Cretaceous of what is today Alberta, Canada. It contains a single species, ''B. markmitchelli'', named in 2017 by Caleb Brown and colleagues from a w ...
markmitchelli'' are described by Brown ''et al.'' (2020). * Description of the anatomy of braincases of three specimens of ''
Bissektipelta ''Bissektipelta'' (meaning " Bissekty shield") is a genus of ankylosaurine thyreophoran dinosaurs that lived in Asia during the Late Cretaceous in what is now the Bissekty Formation of Uzbekistan. ''Bissektipelta'' is a monospecific genus, cont ...
archibaldi'' is published by Kuzmin ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the phylogenetic relationships of
cerapoda Neornithischia ("new ornithischians") is a clade of the dinosaur order Ornithischia. It is the sister group of the Thyreophora within the clade Genasauria. Neornithischians are united by having a thicker layer of asymmetrical enamel on the ins ...
n ornithischians is published by Dieudonné ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the bone
histology Histology, also known as microscopic anatomy or microanatomy, is the branch of biology that studies the microscopic anatomy of biological tissue (biology), tissues. Histology is the microscopic counterpart to gross anatomy, which looks at large ...
and probable life history of ''
Jeholosaurus ''Jeholosaurus'' is a genus of neornithischian dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Period. It is thought to have been a herbivorous small ornithopod. History of discovery The first two ''Jeholosaurus'' specimens were found in 2000 at Lujiatu ...
shangyuanensis'' is published by Han ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the bone histology and growth patterns of ''
Trinisaura ''Trinisaura'' is a genus of ornithopod dinosaur that lived during the late Campanian stage of the Late Cretaceous, Upper Cretaceous, around 73 to 72 million years ago in what is now James Ross Island off the coast of northern Antarctica near Pa ...
santamartaensis'' and ''
Morrosaurus ''Morrosaurus'' is an extinct genus of herbivorous elasmarian dinosaur that lived in the late Cretaceous in Antarctica. The only known species is the type ''Morrosaurus antarcticus''. Discovery In 2002, the Argentine paleontologist Fernando ...
antarcticus'' is published by Garcia-Marsà ''et al.'' (2020). * Redescription of ''
Eucercosaurus ''Eucercosaurus'' (meaning "good-tailed lizard") is the name given to a genus of ornithopod dinosaur from the Albian stage of the Early Cretaceous. It was an ornithopod discovered in the Cambridge Greensand of England and is known from 19 centra, ...
tanyspondylus'' and ''
Syngonosaurus ''Syngonosaurus'' is an extinct genus of ornithopod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous. It was an iguanodontian discovered in the Cambridge Greensand of England and was first described in 1879. The type species, ''S. macrocercus'', was described ...
macrocercus'' from the Cenomanian
Cambridge Greensand The Cambridge Greensand is a geological unit in England whose strata are earliest Cenomanian in age. It lies above the erosive contact between the Gault Formation and the Chalk Group in the vicinity of Cambridgeshire, and technically forms the l ...
(
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
) is published by Barrett & Bonsor (2020), who interpret both these taxa as described on the basis of fossils of
iguanodontia Ornithopoda () is a clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, called ornithopods (). They represent one of the most successful groups of herbivorous dinosaurs during the Cretaceous. The most primitive members of the group were bipedal and relatively sm ...
n dinosaurs possessing no clear diagnostic features. * A study on the bone microstructure of
Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...
n
hadrosauroid Hadrosauroidea is a clade or superfamily of ornithischian dinosaurs that includes the "duck-billed" dinosaurs, or Hadrosauridae, and all dinosaurs more closely related to them than to ''Iguanodon''. Their remains have been recovered in Asia, Euro ...
dinosaurs, evaluating its implications for the knowledge of growth strategies and evolution of gigantism in hadrosauroids, is published by Słowiak ''et al.'' (2020). * Brownstein (2020) describes new fossil material of hadrosauromorphs from the
Maastrichtian The Maastrichtian ( ) is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS) geologic timescale, the latest age (geology), age (uppermost stage (stratigraphy), stage) of the Late Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or Upper Cretaceous series (s ...
New Egypt Formation (
New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
), including a skeleton of a specimen which was probably a small-bodied adult hadrosauromorph from a lineage outside
Hadrosauridae Hadrosaurids (), also hadrosaurs or duck-billed dinosaurs, are members of the ornithischian family Hadrosauridae. This group is known as the duck-billed dinosaurs for the flat duck-bill appearance of the bones in their snouts. The ornithopod fam ...
and fossils of juvenile hadrosauromorphs. * A study on the anatomy of the tail of ''
Tethyshadros ''Tethyshadros'' ("Tethys Ocean, Tethyan hadrosauroid") is a genus of Hadrosauroidea, hadrosauroid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous (Campanian) Calcare di Aurisina (previously thought to come from the younger Liburnia Formation) of Trieste, Ita ...
insularis'' is published by Dalla Vecchia (2020). * A study on pathologies affecting two hadrosaurid vertebrae from the
Dinosaur Provincial Park Dinosaur Provincial Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site situated 220 kilometres (137 mi) east of Calgary, Alberta, Canada; or northeast of Brooks. The park is situated in the Red Deer River valley, which is noted for its striking badland topo ...
(
Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
) is published by Rothschild ''et al.'' (2020), who consider
Langerhans cell histiocytosis Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is an abnormal clonal proliferation of Langerhans cells, abnormal cells deriving from bone marrow and capable of migrating from skin to lymph nodes. Symptoms range from isolated bone lesions to multisystem d ...
to be the most likely diagnosis, making it the first case of LCH recognized in a dinosaur so far. * A study on a set of fused hadrosaur vertebrae with fragments of a tooth of ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' scattered through the intervertebral space is published by Rothschild ''et al.'' (2020), who interpret this findings as evidence indicating that the space between the vertebrae was not occupied by intervertebral discs, but rather by an articular space similar to that in modern reptiles. * A study on the migratory behaviours of hadrosaurs, as indicated by strontium isotope data from hadrosaur teeth from the Late Cretaceous of Alberta (Canada), is published by Terrill, Henderson & Anderson (2020). * A study aiming to determine whether body size and
ontogenetic Ontogeny (also ontogenesis) is the origination and development of an organism (both physical and psychological, e.g., moral development), usually from the time of fertilization of the egg to adult. The term can also be used to refer to the stu ...
age were strongly correlated in hadrosaurid dinosaurs from the
Dinosaur Park Formation The Dinosaur Park Formation is the uppermost member of the Belly River Group (also known as the Judith River Group), a major geologic unit in southern Alberta. It was deposited during the Campanian stage of the Late Cretaceous, between about 7 ...
(Alberta, Canada), and to test the hypothesis of a rapid growth rate of hadrosaurids from the Dinosaur Park Formation relative to those from the
Two Medicine Formation The Two Medicine Formation is a geological formation, or rock body, in northwestern Montana and southern Alberta that was deposited between 82.4 Ma and 74.4 Ma, during Campanian (Late Cretaceous) time. It crops out to the east of the Rocky Mountai ...
, is published by Wosik ''et al.'' (2020). * Partial forelimb of a large hadrosaurid with similarities to forelimbs of
lambeosaurines Lambeosauridae /ˌlæmbiəˈsɔːraɪniː/ (meaning 'lambe's lizards') is an extinct group of crested hadrosauroid dinosaurs. Description Size Uncertainty surrounds the size of lambeosaurs from the European continent. Hadrosaurs found there, a ...
is described from the Maastrichtian New Egypt Formation (
New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
, United States) by Brownstein & Bissell (2020), who interpret this findings as evidence of the presence of a morphotype of large hadrosauromorph with elongate forelimbs in the latest Maastrichtian of eastern North America. * A study on the anatomy of fossils of '' Ugrunaaluk kuukpikensis'' and on the taxonomic status of this species is published by Takasaki ''et al.'' (2020), who consider ''Ugrunaaluk'' to be a
junior synonym In taxonomy, the scientific classification of living organisms, a synonym is an alternative scientific name for the accepted scientific name of a taxon. The botanical and zoological codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. ...
of the genus ''
Edmontosaurus ''Edmontosaurus'' ( ) (meaning "lizard from Edmonton"), with the second species often colloquially and historically known as ''Anatosaurus'' or ''Anatotitan'' (meaning "duck lizard" and "giant duck"), is a genus of hadrosaurid (duck-billed) din ...
''. * Evidence of pre-mortem traumatic injuries in multiple skeletal elements (especially in tail vertebrae) of ''
Edmontosaurus annectens ''Edmontosaurus annectens'' (meaning "connected lizard from Edmonton"), often colloquially and historically known as ''Anatosaurus'' (meaning "duck lizard"), is a species of flat-headed Saurolophinae, saurolophine hadrosaurid dinosaur from the la ...
'' from the
Lance Formation The Lance (Creek) Formation is a division of Late Cretaceous (dating to about 69–66 Ma) rocks in the western United States. Named after Lance Creek, Wyoming, the microvertebrate fossils and dinosaurs represent important components of the lates ...
(
Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...
, United States) is presented by Siviero ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the
taphonomy Taphonomy is the study of how organisms decay and become fossilized or preserved in the paleontological record. The term ''taphonomy'' (from Greek language, Greek , 'burial' and , 'law') was introduced to paleontology in 1940 by Soviet scientis ...
and depositional history of an extensive
Maastrichtian The Maastrichtian ( ) is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS) geologic timescale, the latest age (geology), age (uppermost stage (stratigraphy), stage) of the Late Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or Upper Cretaceous series (s ...
bonebed in the
Lance Formation The Lance (Creek) Formation is a division of Late Cretaceous (dating to about 69–66 Ma) rocks in the western United States. Named after Lance Creek, Wyoming, the microvertebrate fossils and dinosaurs represent important components of the lates ...
of eastern
Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...
dominated by fossils of ''Edmontosaurus annectens'' is published by Snyder ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the interior structure of the nasal spine of ''
Tsintaosaurus ''Tsintaosaurus'' (; ''sic'' for the Chinese postal romanization, old transliteration "Tsingtao", meaning "Qingdao lizard") is a genus of Hadrosauridae, hadrosaurid dinosaur from China. It was about long and weighed . The type species is ''Tsin ...
spinorhinus'' is published by Zhang ''et al.'' (2020). * Description of new fossil material of ''
Pararhabdodon ''Pararhabdodon'' (meaning "near fluted tooth" in reference to ''Rhabdodon'') is a genus of tsintaosaurin hadrosaurid dinosaur, from the Maastrichtian-age Upper Cretaceous Tremp Group of Spain. The first remains were discovered from the Sant Rom� ...
isonensis'', and a study on the bone
histology Histology, also known as microscopic anatomy or microanatomy, is the branch of biology that studies the microscopic anatomy of biological tissue (biology), tissues. Histology is the microscopic counterpart to gross anatomy, which looks at large ...
and life history of this taxon, is published by Serrano ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the morphology and likely causes of the injuries in the
holotype A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...
specimen of ''
Parasaurolophus ''Parasaurolophus'' (; meaning "beside crested lizard" in reference to ''Saurolophus'') is a genus of hadrosaurid "duck-billed" dinosaur that lived in what is now western North America and possibly Asia during the Late Cretaceous period, a ...
walkeri'' is published by Bertozzo ''et al.'' (2020). * Evidence of preservation of proteins, chromosomes and chemical markers of DNA in the cartilage of a nestling of ''
Hypacrosaurus ''Hypacrosaurus'' (meaning "near the highest lizard"
reek υπο-, ''hypo-'' = less + ακρος, ''akros'', high Reek may refer to: Places * Reek, Netherlands, a village in the Dutch province of North Brabant * Croagh Patrick, a mountain in the west of Ireland nicknamed "The Reek" People * Nikolai Reek (1890–1942), Estonian military commander * Salme Ree ...
because it was almost but not quite as large as ''Tyrannosaurus'') is an extinct genus of hadrosaurid, duckbill dinosaur simila ...
stebingeri'' from the
Campanian The Campanian is the fifth of six ages of the Late Cretaceous epoch on the geologic timescale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). In chronostratigraphy, it is the fifth of six stages in the Upper Cretaceous Series. Campa ...
Two Medicine Formation The Two Medicine Formation is a geological formation, or rock body, in northwestern Montana and southern Alberta that was deposited between 82.4 Ma and 74.4 Ma, during Campanian (Late Cretaceous) time. It crops out to the east of the Rocky Mountai ...
(
Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
) is presented by Bailleul ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on patterns of morphological variation of the
ceratopsia Ceratopsia or Ceratopia ( or ; Ancient Greek, Greek: "horned faces") is a group of herbivore, herbivorous, beaked dinosaurs that thrived in what are now North America, Asia and Europe, during the Cretaceous Period (geology), Period, although ance ...
n frill, and on its implications for the knowledge of the ontogeny and evolution of this structure, is published by Prieto-Márquez ''et al.'' (2020). * New
protoceratopsid Protoceratopsidae is a family of basal (primitive) ceratopsians from the Late Cretaceous period. Although ceratopsians have been found all over the world, protoceratopsids are only definitively known from Cretaceous strata in Asia, with most spec ...
specimens are described from the Üüden Sair and Zamyn Khond localities (
Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...
) by Czepiński (2020), who evaluates the implications of these specimens for correlation of fossil sites of the
Djadochta Formation The Djadochta formation (sometimes transcribed and also known as Djadokhta, Djadokata, or Dzhadokhtskaya) is a highly fossiliferous geological formation in Central Asia, Gobi Desert, dating from the Late Cretaceous period, about 75 million ...
, and interprets one of these specimens as probable evidence of an
anagenetic Anagenesis is the gradual evolution of a species that continues to exist as an interbreeding population. This contrasts with cladogenesis, which occurs when branching or splitting occurs, leading to two or more lineages and resulting in separate ...
transition from ''
Protoceratops ''Protoceratops'' (; ) is a genus of small protoceratopsid dinosaurs that lived in Asia during the Late Cretaceous, around 75 to 71 million years ago. The genus ''Protoceratops'' includes two species: ''P. andrewsi'' and the larger ''P. hellenik ...
andrewsi'' to ''
Bagaceratops ''Bagaceratops'' (meaning "small-horned face") is a genus of small protoceratopsid dinosaurs that lived in Asia during the Late Cretaceous, around 72 to 71 million years ago. ''Bagaceratops'' remains have been reported from the Barun Goyot Forma ...
rozhdestvenskyi''. * Evidence of
osteosarcoma An osteosarcoma (OS) or osteogenic sarcoma (OGS) is a cancerous tumor in a bone. Specifically, it is an aggressive malignant neoplasm that arises from primitive transformed cells of mesenchyme, mesenchymal origin (and thus a sarcoma) and that exhi ...
affecting a specimen of ''
Centrosaurus ''Centrosaurus'' ( ; ) is a genus of centrosaurine ceratopsian dinosaur from Campanian age of Late Cretaceous Canada. Their remains have been found in the Dinosaur Park Formation, dating from 76.5 to 75.5 million years ago. Discovery and nami ...
apertus'', representing the first case of osteosarcoma in a dinosaur reported so far, is presented by Ekhtiari ''et al.'' (2020). * Description of an immature specimen of ''
Styracosaurus ''Styracosaurus'' ( ; meaning "spiked lizard" from the Ancient Greek / "spike at the butt-end of a spear-shaft" and / "lizard") is an extinct genus of herbivorous ceratopsian dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous (Campanian stage) of North America. ...
albertensis'' (the smallest known for this species) from the
Campanian The Campanian is the fifth of six ages of the Late Cretaceous epoch on the geologic timescale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). In chronostratigraphy, it is the fifth of six stages in the Upper Cretaceous Series. Campa ...
Dinosaur Park Formation The Dinosaur Park Formation is the uppermost member of the Belly River Group (also known as the Judith River Group), a major geologic unit in southern Alberta. It was deposited during the Campanian stage of the Late Cretaceous, between about 7 ...
(
Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
), and a study comparing the ontogeny and individual variation of the skulls in ''Styracosaurus'' and ''
Centrosaurus ''Centrosaurus'' ( ; ) is a genus of centrosaurine ceratopsian dinosaur from Campanian age of Late Cretaceous Canada. Their remains have been found in the Dinosaur Park Formation, dating from 76.5 to 75.5 million years ago. Discovery and nami ...
'', is published by Brown, Holmes & Currie (2020). * A study on the braincases of two specimens of ''
Triceratops ''Triceratops'' ( ; ) is a genus of Chasmosaurinae, chasmosaurine Ceratopsia, ceratopsian dinosaur that lived during the late Maastrichtian age of the Late Cretaceous Period (geology), period, about 68 to 66 million years ago on the island ...
'' is published by Sakagami & Kawabe (2020), who present three-dimensional virtual renderings of the endocasts of the cranial cavities and bony labyrinths, and compare the endocranial endocasts of specimens of ''Triceratops'' and other ceratopsians.


Birds


New bird taxa


Avian research

* A study on the phylogenetic relationships and powered flight potential of early birds and their closest relatives is published by Pei ''et al.'' (2020), who argue that the potential for powered flight evolved at least three times (once in birds and twice in
dromaeosaurids Dromaeosauridae () is a family of feathered coelurosaurian theropod dinosaurs. They were generally small to medium-sized feathered carnivores that flourished in the Cretaceous Period. The name Dromaeosauridae means 'running lizards', from Gree ...
). * A study aiming to determine whether the origin of birds was marked with a distinct shift in cranial evolutionary dynamics, based on data from birds and non-avian dinosaurs, is published by Felice ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on patterns of evolution of avian brain size and its relationship with body size evolution, based on data from extant and fossil birds and from non-avian theropod dinosaurs, is published by Ksepka ''et al.'' (2020). * A study aiming to determine the volumes of the brain structures used to infer behavior or functional capabilities in ''
Archaeopteryx ''Archaeopteryx'' (; ), sometimes referred to by its German name, "" ( ''Primeval Bird'') is a genus of bird-like dinosaurs. The name derives from the ancient Greek (''archaîos''), meaning "ancient", and (''ptéryx''), meaning "feather" ...
lithographica'', ''
Lithornis ''Lithornis'' is a genus of extinct paleognathous birds. Although ''Lithornis'' was able to fly well, their closest relatives are the extant tinamous (which are poor flyers) and ratites (which are flightless birds). Fossils of ''Lithornis'' ar ...
plebius'', ''
Dinornis The giant moa (''Dinornis'') is an extinct genus of birds belonging to the moa family. As with other moa, it was a member of the order Dinornithiformes. It was endemic to New Zealand. Two species of ''Dinornis'' are considered valid, the Nort ...
robustus'', '' Paraptenodytes antarcticus'', ''
Psilopterus ''Psilopterus'' (Greek for "bare wing") is an extinct genus of phorusrhacid ("terror bird") from the Middle Oligocene to possibly the Late Pleistocene of Argentina and Uruguay. Compared to other phorusrhacids, members of the genus are both relat ...
lemoinei'', ''
Llallawavis ''Llallawavis scagliai'' (magnificent bird of Scaglia) is a large, extinct predatory bird from Pliocene Argentina. Its fossil is the most complete fossil of a phorusrhacid (or "terror bird") yet found. Description The fossil, discovered in ...
scagliai'' and an unnamed
Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...
galliform Galliformes is an order (biology), order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding birds that includes turkey (bird), turkeys, chickens, Old World quail, quail, and other landfowl. Gallinaceous birds, as they are called, are important in their ecosystems ...
is published by Early, Ridgely & Witmer (2020). * The study on the identity of the
holotype A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...
feather of ''Archaeopteryx lithographica'' published by Kaye ''et al.'' (2019) is criticized by Carney, Tischlinger & Shawkey (2020). * Evidence of feather moulting in the Thermopolis specimen of ''Archaeopteryx'' is presented by Kaye, Pittman & Wahl (2020), who evaluate the implications of this finding for the knowledge of the origins of flight-related molting and flight; the study is subsequently criticized by Kiat ''et al.'' (2021). * A study on the structure and possible function of the paddle-shaped skeletal elements preserved in the thoracic region of the skeleton of ''
Jeholornis ''Jeholornis'' (meaning "Jehol bird") is a genus of avialan dinosaurs that lived between approximately 122 and 120 million years ago during the early Cretaceous Period in China. Fossil ''Jeholornis'' were first discovered in the Jiufotang Formati ...
'' is published by Zheng ''et al.'' (2020), who interpret these elements as anomalously expanded sternal ribs. * Traces of the soft tissue of the beak preserved with two specimens of ''
Confuciusornis ''Confuciusornis'' is a genus of basal crow-sized avialan from the Early Cretaceous Period of the Yixian and Jiufotang Formations of China, dating from 125 to 120 million years ago. Like modern birds, ''Confuciusornis'' had a toothless beak, bu ...
'' are described by Zheng ''et al.'' (2020). * Miller ''et al.'' (2020) describe a new specimen of ''Confuciusornis sanctus'' preserving a disassociated
rhamphotheca The beak, bill, or rostrum is an external anatomical structure found mostly in birds, but also in turtles, non-avian dinosaurs and a few mammals. A beak is used for pecking, grasping, and holding (in probing for food, eating, manipulating and ca ...
, and evaluate the differences in the keratinous and bony beak anatomy between confuciusornithids and modern birds. * A study on the
furcula The (Latin for "little fork"; : furculae) or wishbone is a forked bone found in most birds and some species of non-avian dinosaurs, and is either an interclavicle or formed by the fusion of the two clavicles. In birds, its primary function is ...
-
coracoid A coracoid is a paired bone which is part of the shoulder assembly in all vertebrates except therian mammals (marsupials and placentals). In therian mammals (including humans), a coracoid process is present as part of the scapula, but this is n ...
articulation in ''Confuciusornis'' and in extant birds that utilize different flight styles is published by Wu ''et al.'' (2020), who report the first evidence of fossilized secondary
cartilage Cartilage is a resilient and smooth type of connective tissue. Semi-transparent and non-porous, it is usually covered by a tough and fibrous membrane called perichondrium. In tetrapods, it covers and protects the ends of long bones at the joints ...
on the furcula of a fossil bird, and evaluate the implications of their findings for the knowledge of flight styles in Mesozoic birds. * A study on the anatomy of the skull of ''
Sapeornis ''Sapeornis'' is a monotypic genus of avialan dinosaurs which lived during the early Cretaceous period ( late Barremian to early Aptian, roughly 125-120 mya). ''Sapeornis'' contains only one species, ''Sapeornis chaoyangensis''. Description ...
chaoyangensis'' is published by Hu ''et al.'' (2020). * New specimen of ''
Longusunguis ''Longusunguis'' is an extinct genus of bohaiornithid enantiornithean dinosaur known from the Early Cretaceous of Liaoning Province, northeastern China. It contains a single species, ''Longusunguis kurochkini''. Discovery ''Longusunguis'' was f ...
kurochkini'', providing new information on the anatomy of this taxon and indicating that the
plesiomorphic In phylogenetics, a plesiomorphy ("near form") and symplesiomorphy are synonyms for an ancestral character shared by all members of a clade, which does not distinguish the clade from other clades. Plesiomorphy, symplesiomorphy, apomorphy, an ...
diapsid Diapsids ("two arches") are a clade of sauropsids, distinguished from more primitive eureptiles by the presence of two holes, known as temporal fenestrae, in each side of their skulls. The earliest traditionally identified diapsids, the araeosc ...
skull was retained by at least some basal
enantiornithines The Enantiornithes, also known as enantiornithines or enantiornitheans in literature, are a group of extinct avialans ("birds" in the broad sense), the most abundant and diverse group known from the Mesozoic era. Almost all retained teeth and cl ...
, is described from the Lower Cretaceous
Jiufotang Formation The Jiufotang Formation () is an Early Cretaceous geological formation in Chaoyang, Liaoning which has yielded fossils of feathered dinosaurs, primitive birds, pterosaurs, and other organisms (see Jehol Biota). It is a member of the Jehol group. T ...
(
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
) by Hu ''et al.'' (2020). * An isolated foot of an enantiornithine consisting of complete
metatarsals The metatarsal bones or metatarsus (: metatarsi) are a group of five long bones in the midfoot, located between the tarsal bones (which form the heel and the ankle) and the phalanges (toes). Lacking individual names, the metatarsal bones are nu ...
and digits, including the claws, is described from the Cretaceous
Burmese amber Burmese amber, also known as Burmite or Kachin amber, is amber from the Hukawng Valley in northern Myanmar. The amber is dated to around 100 million years ago, during the latest Albian to earliest Cenomanian ages of the mid-Cretaceous period. Th ...
by Xing ''et al.'' (2020). * New enantiornithine specimen preserving portions of two forelimbs and two feet, as well as associated feathers, is described from the Cretaceous Burmese amber by Xing ''et al.'' (2020), providing new evidence of a diversity of limb proportions and plumage patterns in the enantiornithine fauna from Myanmar. * Bailleul ''et al.'' (2020) confirm the presence of
ovarian follicle An ovarian follicle is a roughly spheroid cellular aggregation set found in the ovaries. It secretes hormones that influence stages of the menstrual cycle. In humans, women have approximately 200,000 to 300,000 follicles at the time of puberty, ea ...
s in an enantiornithine specimen STM10–12 from the Lower Cretaceous of China; the conclusions of this study are subsequently contested by Mayr ''et al.'' (2020), who interpret putative ovarian follicles of this specimen and other birds from the Jehol Biota as more likely to be ingested food items. * New specimen of ''
Protopteryx ''Protopteryx'' is an extinct bird and possibly the basalmost enantiornithean, from the Cretaceous period.Zhou, Zhonghe. (2002). "A new and primitive enantiornithine bird from the Early Cretaceous of China." ''Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology' ...
fengningensis'', providing additional information on the plumage of this species, is described by O’Connor ''et al.'' (2020). * Wang & Zhou (2020) describe a new specimen of '' Piscivorenantiornis inusitatus'' from the Lower Cretaceous
Jiufotang Formation The Jiufotang Formation () is an Early Cretaceous geological formation in Chaoyang, Liaoning which has yielded fossils of feathered dinosaurs, primitive birds, pterosaurs, and other organisms (see Jehol Biota). It is a member of the Jehol group. T ...
(China), providing new information on the anatomy and phylogenetic relationships of this taxon. * A feather fragment from an aquatic bird is reported from amber recovered from the Pipestone Creek bonebed from the
Campanian The Campanian is the fifth of six ages of the Late Cretaceous epoch on the geologic timescale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). In chronostratigraphy, it is the fifth of six stages in the Upper Cretaceous Series. Campa ...
Wapiti Formation (
Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
) by Cockx ''et al.'' (2020). * A
tibiotarsus The tibiotarsus is the large bone between the femur and the tarsometatarsus in the leg of a bird. It is the fusion of the proximal part of the tarsus with the tibia. A similar structure also occurred in the Mesozoic Heterodontosauridae. These ...
of a non-hesperornithid
hesperornithiform Hesperornithes is an extinct and highly specialized group of aquatic avialans closely related to the ancestors of modern birds. They inhabited both marine and freshwater habitats in the Northern Hemisphere, and include genera such as ''Hesperorn ...
is described from the Upper Cretaceous (
Maastrichtian The Maastrichtian ( ) is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS) geologic timescale, the latest age (geology), age (uppermost stage (stratigraphy), stage) of the Late Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or Upper Cretaceous series (s ...
) Kita-ama Formation (
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
) by Tanaka ''et al.'' (2020), representing the first hesperornithiform record from marine Maastrichtian deposits in Asia reported so far, and indicating that the habitat of hesperornithiforms during the Maastrichtian extended to both terrestrial and marine environments in Asia and North America. * A study on the anatomy of the skeleton of ''
Parahesperornis ''Parahesperornis'' is a genus of prehistoric flightless birds from the Late Cretaceous. Its range in space and time may have been extensive, but its remains are rather few and far between, at least compared with its contemporary relatives in ''H ...
alexi'' is published by Bell & Chiappe (2020), who report that this taxon possessed a mosaic of basal and derived traits found among other hesperornithiform taxa. * A study on
melanosome A melanosome is an organelle found in animal cells and is the site for synthesis, storage and transport of melanin, the most common light-absorbing pigment found in the animal kingdom. Melanosomes are responsible for color and photoprotectio ...
morphologies in two lithornithid specimens from the Eocene
Green River Formation The Green River Formation is an Eocene geologic formation that records the sedimentation in a group of intermountain lakes in three basins along the present-day Green River (Colorado River), Green River in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah. The sedimen ...
(
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
), evaluating their implications for reconstructions of coloration in lithornithids and for the knowledge of color evolution in
palaeognaths Palaeognathae (; ) is an infraclass of birds, called paleognaths or palaeognaths, within the class Aves of the clade Archosauria. It is one of the two extant infraclasses of birds, the other being Neognathae, both of which form Neornithes. Pala ...
, is published by Eliason &
Clarke Clarke is a surname which means "clerk". The surname is of English and Irish origin and comes from the Latin . Variants include Clerk and Clark. Clarke is also uncommonly chosen as a given name. Irish surname origin Clarke is a common surname ...
(2020). * Evidence of the presence of the
bill tip organ The beak, bill, or rostrum is an external anatomical structure found mostly in birds, but also in turtles, non-avian dinosaurs and a few mammals. A beak is used for pecking, grasping, and holding (in probing for food, eating, manipulating and c ...
in lithornithids is presented by du Toit, Chinsamy & Cunningham (2020), who interpret their findings as indicating that remote-touch probe foraging evolved very early among the
Neornithes Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweight ...
and may even have predated the palaeognathous– neognathous divergence. * A study on the life history of the
elephant bird Elephant birds are extinct flightless birds belonging to the Order (biology), order Aepyornithiformes that were native to the island of Madagascar. They are thought to have gone extinct around 1000 CE, likely as a result of human activity. Eleph ...
s, as indicated by bone
histology Histology, also known as microscopic anatomy or microanatomy, is the branch of biology that studies the microscopic anatomy of biological tissue (biology), tissues. Histology is the microscopic counterpart to gross anatomy, which looks at large ...
, is published by Chinsamy ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the evolutionary history of the ostriches in Africa and Eurasia during the Miocene, Pliocene and Pleistocene, as indicated by data from eggshell and bone fossil record, is published by Mikhailov & Zelenkov (2020). * A
dentary In jawed vertebrates, the mandible (from the Latin ''mandibula'', 'for chewing'), lower jaw, or jawbone is a bone that makes up the lowerand typically more mobilecomponent of the mouth (the upper jaw being known as the maxilla). The jawbone ...
fragment of a
pelagornithid The Pelagornithidae, commonly called pelagornithids, pseudodontorns, bony-toothed birds, false-toothed birds or pseudotooth birds, are a prehistoric family (biology), family of large seabirds. Their fossil remains have been found all over the wor ...
bird with an estimated body size on par with the largest known members of Pelagornithidae is described from the Eocene Submeseta Formation (
Seymour Island Seymour Island or Marambio Island, is an island in the chain of 16 major islands around the tip of the Graham Land on the Antarctic Peninsula. Graham Land is the closest part of Antarctica to South America. It lies within the section of the isl ...
,
Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...
) by Kloess, Poust & Stidham (2020), who interpret this finding as evidence of early evolution of giant body size in Pelagornithidae. * A study on the flight capacity of ''
Pelagornis ''Pelagornis'' is an extinct genus of prehistoric pseudotooth birds, a group of extinct seabirds. Species span from the Oligocene to the Early Pleistocene. Members of ''Pelagornis'' represent among the largest pseudotooth birds, with one species ...
chilensis'' is published by Meza-Vélez (2020). * Volkova & Zelenkov (2020) describe new fossil material of geese from the late
Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...
locality Khyargas Nuur 2 in western
Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...
, and evaluate the implications of these fossils for the knowledge of the late Miocene evolution and paleogeography of geese. * A
coracoid A coracoid is a paired bone which is part of the shoulder assembly in all vertebrates except therian mammals (marsupials and placentals). In therian mammals (including humans), a coracoid process is present as part of the scapula, but this is n ...
of a small-bodied paraortygid is reported from the
Uinta Formation The Uinta Formation is a geologic formation in northeastern Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Ariz ...
(
Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
) by Stidham, Townsend & Holroyd (2020), representing the only known
pangalliform Pangalliformes is the scientific name of a provisional clade of birds within the group Galloanserae. It is defined as all birds more closely related to chickens than to ducks, and includes all modern chickens, turkeys, pheasants, and megapodes, a ...
from the middle
Eocene The Eocene ( ) is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (Ma). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes ...
of North America, occurring in a temporal gap in their history between the early Eocene '' Gallinuloides wyomingensis'' and late Eocene '' Nanortyx inexpectus''. * A revision of the fossil material from
Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
attributed to ''
Plioperdix ''Plioperdix'' is an extinct genus of phasianid that lived during the Neogene period. Distribution ''Plioperdix ponticus'' inhabited Moldova and southern Ukraine during the Zanclean and Transbaikalia and Mongolia during the Piacenzian. ''P. a ...
pontica'', and a study on the taxonomy of small phasianids of the Neogene-Pleistocene in the Northern Black Sea region and Eastern Europe, is published by Zelenkov & Gorobets (2020). * Barton ''et al.'' (2020) reinterpret purported chicken specimens from the
Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...
site at
Dadiwan The Dadiwan culture (c. 5800–5400 BCE) was a Neolithic culture located primarily in the eastern portion of Gansu and Shaanxi provinces in modern China. The culture takes its name from the deepest cultural layer found during the original excava ...
as remains of pheasants, and argue that these remains provide evidence of exploitation of grain-fed pheasants by early farmers in arid northwest
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
. * Lawal ''et al.'' (2020) report that chicken was domesticated 8,000 years ago from its primary ancestor,
Red junglefowl The red junglefowl (''Gallus gallus''), also known as the Indian red junglefowl (and formerly the bankiva or bankiva-fowl), is a species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the a ...
and that the genome of chicken was subsequently enhanced through introgression with the other three junglefowls i.e.
Grey junglefowl The gray junglefowl (''Gallus sonneratii''), also known as Sonnerat's junglefowl, is one of the wild ancestors of the domestic chicken together with the red junglefowl and other junglefowls. The species epithet commemorates the French explorer ...
,
Sri Lankan junglefowl The Sri Lankan junglefowl (''Gallus lafayettii'' sometimes spelled ''Gallus lafayetii''), also known as the Ceylon junglefowl or Lafayette's junglefowl, is a member of the Galliformes bird order. It is a common endemic bird in Sri Lanka, where it ...
, and
Green junglefowl The green junglefowl (''Gallus varius''), also known as Javan junglefowl, forktail or green Javanese junglefowl, is the most distantly related and the first to diverge at least 4 million years ago among the four species of the junglefowl. ...
. * A study on the origin and history of domestication of chickens, as indicated by data from domestic chicken and wild jungle fowl genomes, is published by Wang ''et al.'' (2020), who interpret their findings as indicating that domestic chickens were initially derived from the
red junglefowl The red junglefowl (''Gallus gallus''), also known as the Indian red junglefowl (and formerly the bankiva or bankiva-fowl), is a species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the a ...
subspecies ''Gallus gallus spadiceus'', and that they interbred locally with other subspecies of the red junglefowl and with other jungle fowl species after their domestication. * Partial skull of a large-bodied crane with a long beak, representing the oldest record of the subfamily Gruinae reported so far and expanding the known temporal range for the occurrence of large-sized cranes in Europe, is described from the Miocene (
Tortonian The Tortonian is in the geologic time scale an age or stage of the late Miocene that spans the time between 11.608 ± 0.005 Ma and 7.246 ± 0.005 Ma (million years ago). It follows the Serravallian and is followed by the Messinian. The Tort ...
) locality Hammerschmiede (
Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...
,
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
) by Mayr, Lechner & Böhme (2020). * A study comparing the
osteology Osteology () is the scientific study of bones, practiced by osteologists . A subdiscipline of anatomy, anthropology, archaeology and paleontology, osteology is the detailed study of the structure of bones, skeletal elements, teeth, microbone mo ...
of plotopterids and
Paleocene The Paleocene ( ), or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 mya (unit), million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), ...
stem group In phylogenetics, the crown group or crown assemblage is a collection of species composed of the living representatives of the collection, the most recent common ancestor of the collection, and all descendants of the most recent common ancestor. ...
penguins is published by
Mayr Mayr is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Andrea Mayr (born 1979), Austrian female long-distance runner * Ernst Mayr (1904–2005), German American evolutionary biologist * Franz Xaver Mayr (1875–1965), Austrian gastro ...
''et al.'' (2020). * New fossil material of '' Macranhinga ranzii'' is described from the Miocene
Solimões Formation The Pebas Formation is a lithostratigraphic unit of Miocene age, found in western Amazonia. The formation extends over , including parts of Brazil, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia.Wesselingh et al., 2006 It is interpreted as representing the deposit ...
(
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
) by Guilherme ''et al.'' (2020), who also study the phylogenetic relationships of this species. * A study on the morphological diversity of bills of extant and fossil penguins, and its relationship with feeding habits, is published by Chávez-Hoffmeister (2020). * Partial skeleton of an early penguin (possibly belonging to the species ''
Muriwaimanu ''Muriwaimanu'' is an extinct genus of early penguin from the Paleocene Waipara Greensand of New Zealand. Only the type species ''M. tuatahi'' is known. Etymology The name ''Muriwaimanu'' comes from ''muri'', Māori for "after", and ''Waimanu ...
tuatahi''), preserving the first complete wing of a
Paleocene The Paleocene ( ), or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 mya (unit), million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), ...
penguin reported so far and providing new information on the skeletal anatomy of this taxon, is described from the Waipara Greensand (
New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
) by Mayr ''et al.'' (2020). * An articulated wing of ''
Palaeeudyptes ''Palaeeudyptes'' is an extinct genus of large penguins, currently containing four accepted species. They were probably larger than almost all living penguins, with the smaller species being about the size of an emperor penguin, and the largest s ...
gunnari'', preserving mineralized skin, is described from the
Eocene The Eocene ( ) is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (Ma). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes ...
(
Lutetian The Lutetian is, in the geologic timescale, a stage (stratigraphy), stage or age (geology), age in the Eocene. It spans the time between . The Lutetian is preceded by the Ypresian and is followed by the Bartonian. Together with the Bartonian it ...
) of
Seymour Island Seymour Island or Marambio Island, is an island in the chain of 16 major islands around the tip of the Graham Land on the Antarctic Peninsula. Graham Land is the closest part of Antarctica to South America. It lies within the section of the isl ...
(
Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...
) by Acosta Hospitaleche ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the swimming capabilities of '' Inkayacu paracasensis'' is published by Meza-Vélez (2020). * New fossil material of '' Anhinga pannonica'' is described from the Miocene (
Tortonian The Tortonian is in the geologic time scale an age or stage of the late Miocene that spans the time between 11.608 ± 0.005 Ma and 7.246 ± 0.005 Ma (million years ago). It follows the Serravallian and is followed by the Messinian. The Tort ...
) of the
Hammerschmiede clay pit The Hammerschmiede clay pit (German: Tongrube Hammerschmiede) is a fossil bearing locality in Pforzen, Bavaria, Germany most well known for the discovery of ''Danuvius guggenmosi'', the potentially earliest known Bipedalism, bipedal ape. With an ...
(
Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...
,
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
) by Mayr, Lechner & Böhme (2020), who also reinterpret the putative Miocene cormorant ''Phalacrocorax brunhuberi'' as another, previously misclassified, record of ''A. pannonica''. * New fossil material of penguins and a member of
Gruiformes The Gruiformes ( ) are an order containing a considerable number of living and extinct bird families, with a widespread geographical diversity. Gruiform means "crane-like". Traditionally, a number of wading and terrestrial bird families that ...
is reported from the Eocene La Meseta and Submeseta Formations of the Seymour Island by Davis ''et al.'' (2020), supporting previously controversial reports of Gruiformes from Antarctica. * Partial tibiotarsus of an owl (possibly a member of Selenornithinae) is described from the
Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch (geology), epoch of the Paleogene Geologic time scale, Period that extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that defin ...
of the
Jebel Qatrani Formation The Jebel Qatrani Formation (also Gebel Qatrani, Gabal Qatrani or Djebel Qatrani) is a geologic formation located in the Faiyum Governorate of central Egypt. It is exposed between the Jebel Qatrani escarpment and the Qasr el Sagha escarpment, nor ...
(
Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
) by Smith, Stidham & Mitchell (2020), representing the first occurrence of a fossil owl from the Paleogene of Africa reported so far. * Part of a
maxilla In vertebrates, the maxilla (: maxillae ) is the upper fixed (not fixed in Neopterygii) bone of the jaw formed from the fusion of two maxillary bones. In humans, the upper jaw includes the hard palate in the front of the mouth. The two maxil ...
of a member of the genus ''
Tockus ''Tockus'' is a genus of birds in the hornbill family, Bucerotidae, which are native to Africa. Description Hornbills in the genus ''Tockus'' are medium-sized African birds with triangular shaped curved bills. They can be found in tropical an ...
'' is described from the early Miocene of Napak (
Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...
) by Riamon ''et al.'' (2020), representing the earliest fossil of a
hornbill Hornbills are birds found in tropical and subtropical Africa, Asia and Melanesia of the family Bucerotidae. They are characterized by a long, down-curved bill which is frequently brightly coloured and sometimes has a horny casque on the upper ...
reported so far. * A nearly complete passerine specimen is described from the early
Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch (geology), epoch of the Paleogene Geologic time scale, Period that extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that defin ...
of Revest-des-Brousses (Luberon,
Alpes-de-Haute-Provence Alpes-de-Haute-Provence (sometimes abbreviated as AHP; ; ; ), formerly until 1970 known as Basses-Alpes (, ), is a department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of France, bordering Alpes-Maritimes and Italy to the east, Var to the sou ...
,
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
) by Riamon, Tourment & Louchart (2020), who interpret this specimen as a member of
Tyranni The Tyranni (suboscines) are a suborder of passerine birds that includes more than 1,000 species, a large majority of which are South American. It is named after the type genus '' Tyrannus''. These have a different anatomy of the syrinx musculat ...
, most likely belonging to the
stem group In phylogenetics, the crown group or crown assemblage is a collection of species composed of the living representatives of the collection, the most recent common ancestor of the collection, and all descendants of the most recent common ancestor. ...
of Tyrannida. * New fossil material of
lark Larks are passerine birds of the family Alaudidae. Larks have a cosmopolitan distribution with the largest number of species occurring in Africa. Only a single species, the horned lark, occurs in North America, and only Horsfield's bush lark occ ...
s is reported from the late
Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch (geology), epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.33 to 2.58Transbaikal Transbaikal, Trans-Baikal, Transbaikalia ( rus, Забайка́лье, r=Zabaykal'ye, p=zəbɐjˈkalʲjɪ), or Dauria (, ''Dauriya'') is a mountainous region to the east of or "beyond" (trans-) Lake Baikal at the south side of the eastern Si ...
ia (
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
) and
Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...
by Palastrova & Zelenkov (2020), who transfer the species ''Pliocalcarius orkhonensis'' to the genus '' Eremophila'', and evaluate the implications of their findings for the knowledge of the evolutionary history of larks. * An exceptionally well-preserved bird carcass found in the
Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...
n
permafrost Permafrost () is soil or underwater sediment which continuously remains below for two years or more; the oldest permafrost has been continuously frozen for around 700,000 years. Whilst the shallowest permafrost has a vertical extent of below ...
and dated to approximately 44–49 ka BP is described by Dussex ''et al.'' (2020), who identify this specimen as a female
horned lark The horned lark or shore lark (''Eremophila alpestris'') is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae found across the northern hemisphere. It is known as "horned lark" in North America and "shore lark" in Europe. Taxonomy The horned lark was Sp ...
, and evaluate the implications of this specimen for the knowledge of the evolution and biogeography of its species during the Pleistocene. * New fossil material of '' Rhodospiza shaamarica'' is described from the
Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch (geology), epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.33 to 2.58Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...
) and Beregovaya (south Transbaikalia,
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
) by Palastrova & Zelenkov (2020), who transfer this species to the genus ''
Emberiza The buntings are a group of Old World passerine birds forming the genus ''Emberiza'', the only genus in the Family (biology), family Emberizidae. The family contains 44 species. They are seed-eating birds with stubby, conical bills. Taxonomy Th ...
''. * A study on Pleistocene bird tracks from the Cape south coast of
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
is published by Helm ''et al.'' (2020), who report six tracksites with tracks produced by large birds, possibly indicating the existence of large Pleistocene forms of extant bird taxa. * A study on the impact of the
climate change Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...
s of the last 35,000 years on small birds from the
La Brea Tar Pits La Brea Tar Pits comprise an active Paleontological site, paleontological research site in urban Los Angeles. Hancock Park was formed around a group of tar pits where natural Bitumen, asphalt (also called asphaltum, bitumen, or pitch; ''brea'' ...
is published by Long,
Prothero Prothero is a surname of Welsh origin (from ''ap Rhydderch'') and may refer to: * Donald Prothero (born 1954), American paleontologist and author * George Walter Prothero (1848–1922), English writer and historian * Lewis Prothero, fictiona ...
& Syverson (2020). * A study comparing predicted breeding and wintering distributions for landbird species identified from the La Brea Tar Pits during the
Last Glacial Maximum The Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), also referred to as the Last Glacial Coldest Period, was the most recent time during the Last Glacial Period where ice sheets were at their greatest extent between 26,000 and 20,000 years ago. Ice sheets covered m ...
, aiming to determine if niche models successfully predict species’ presence, to estimate the degree of species turnover, to evaluate the fluidity of life history strategies of birds from La Brea, and to compare niche breadths of bark-foraging birds from La Brea between the Last Glacial Maximum and the present, is published by Zink ''et al.'' (2020). * New fossil material of seabirds, including remains of the
little auk The little auk (Europe) or dovekie (North America) ''Alle alle'' is a small auk, the only member of the genus ''Alle''. ''Alle'' is the Sami name of the long-tailed duck; it is onomatopoeic and imitates the call of the drake duck. Linnaeus was n ...
or a related species, is reported from the Pleistocene Kazusa and Shimosa groups (
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
) by Watanabe ''et al.'' (2020), who interpret this finding as possible evidence that the little auk more widespread in the North Pacific in the middle Pleistocene than it is today. * A study comparing the bird communities of the Bahamian Archipelago (
The Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of ...
and
Turks and Caicos Islands The Turks and Caicos Islands (abbreviated TCI; and ) are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean and no ...
) during the Late Pleistocene, Holocene prior to human arrival and Late Holocene subsequent to human arrival, aiming to determine what drove changes in biodiversity of Bahamian birds throughout the Late Quaternary, is published by Steadman &
Franklin Franklin may refer to: People and characters * Franklin (given name), including list of people and characters with the name * Franklin (surname), including list of people and characters with the name * Franklin (class), a member of a historic ...
(2020). * A study on flightlessness in bird species known to have gone extinct since the rise of humans (i.e. in the Late Pleistocene and Holocene), aiming to determine the extent to which inferences about evolutionary transitions and rates of evolution of flightlessness in birds are biased by anthropogenic extinctions, is published by Sayol ''et al.'' (2020).


Pterosaurs


New pterosaur taxa


Pterosaur research

* A study on the ingroup relationships within Pterosauria is published by Baron (2020), who names new clades
Zambellisauria Pterosaurs are an extinct clade of flying reptiles in the order Pterosauria. They existed during most of the Mesozoic: from the Late Triassic to the end of the Cretaceous (228 million to 66 million years ago). Pterosaurs are the earlie ...
and Caviramidae. * A study on the fusion process of the
notarial A notary is a person authorised to perform acts in legal affairs, in particular witnessing signatures on documents. The form that the notarial profession takes varies with local legal systems. A notary, while a legal professional, is distin ...
elements of pterosaurs is published by Aires ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the evolution of the flight efficiency of pterosaurs is published by Venditti ''et al.'' (2020). * A study aiming to determine diets of 17 pterosaur genera, as indicated by data from dental microwear texture analysis, is published by Bestwick ''et al.'' (2020). * Mazin & Pouech (2020) describe non-
pterodactyloid Pterodactyloidea ( ; derived from the Greek words ''πτερόν'' (''pterón'', for usual ''ptéryx'') "wing", and ''δάκτυλος'' (''dáktylos'') "finger") is one of the two traditional suborders of pterosaurs ("wing lizards"), and contai ...
pterosaur tracks from the ichnological site known as "the Pterosaur Beach of Crayssac" (
Tithonian In the geological timescale, the Tithonian is the latest age (geology), age of the Late Jurassic Epoch and the uppermost stage (stratigraphy), stage of the Upper Jurassic Series. It spans the time between 149.2 ±0.7 annum, Ma and 143.1 ±0.6 (mi ...
; south-western
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
), evaluate the implications of these tracks for the knowledge of the terrestrial capabilities of non-pterodactyloid pterosaurs, and name a new
ichnogenus An ichnotaxon (plural ichnotaxa) is "a taxon based on the fossilized work of an organism", i.e. the non-human equivalent of an artifact. ''Ichnotaxon'' comes from the Ancient Greek (''íchnos'') meaning "track" and English , itself derived from ...
'' Rhamphichnus''. * The record of pycnofibers in two specimens of
anurognathid Anurognathidae is a family (biology), family of small, short-tailed pterosaurs that lived in Europe, Asia, and possibly North America during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. Eight genera are definitively known: ''Anurognathus'', from the Late ...
pterosaurs from the
Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately 143.1 Mya. ...
of
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
interpreted by Yang ''et al.'' (2019) as showing diagnostic features of feathers is reexamined and challenged by Unwin & Martill (2020). * A
coleoid Coleoidea or Dibranchiata is one of the two subclasses of cephalopod molluscs containing all the various taxa popularly thought of as "soft-bodied" or "shell-less" (i.e. octopus, squid and cuttlefish). Unlike its extant sister group Nautiloide ...
cephalopod A cephalopod is any member of the molluscan Taxonomic rank, class Cephalopoda (Greek language, Greek plural , ; "head-feet") such as a squid, octopus, cuttlefish, or nautilus. These exclusively marine animals are characterized by bilateral symm ...
specimen preserved with an associated tooth of a pterosaur (probably ''
Rhamphorhynchus ''Rhamphorhynchus'' (, from Ancient Greek ''rhamphos'' meaning "beak" and ''rhynchus'' meaning "snout") is a genus of long-tailed pterosaurs in the Jurassic period. Less specialized than contemporary, short-tailed pterodactyloid pterosaurs such ...
'') is reported from the Upper Jurassic Altmühltal Formation (
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
) by Hoffmann ''et al.'' (2020), who evaluate the implications of this finding for the knowledge of feeding behaviours of ''Rhamphorhynchus''. * A study on changes in the skeletal anatomy during growth in ''Rhamphorhynchus muensteri'' is published by Hone ''et al.'' (2020), who consider it likely that ''R. muensteri'' was able to fly soon after hatching. * A well-preserved basihyal is reported for the first time in a pterosaur specimen (possibly belonging to the species ''
Gladocephaloideus ''Gladocephaloideus'' is a genus of ctenochasmatid Ctenochasmatoidea, ctenochasmatoid pterosaur from the Early Cretaceous period (early Aptian stage) of what is now western Liaoning, China. Discovery ''Gladocephaloideus'' is known from a compl ...
jingangshanensis'') from the Lower Cretaceous
Yixian Formation The Yixian Formation (; formerly Romanization of Chinese, transcribed as Yihsien Formation or Yixiang Formation) is a geological formation in Jinzhou, Liaoning, People's Republic of China, that spans the Barremian stage of the Early Cretaceous. I ...
(
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
) by Jiang ''et al.'' (2020). * Jacobs ''et al.'' (2020) describe new fossil material of pterosaurs from the
Kem Kem Beds The Kem Kem Group (commonly known as the Kem Kem beds) is a geological group in the Kem Kem region of eastern Morocco, whose strata date back to the Cenomanian stage of the Late Cretaceous. Its strata are subdivided into two geological formations ...
(
Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...
), bringing the Kem Kem pterosaur fauna up to at least nine species (of which three are ornithocheirids), and confirming that toothed pterosaurs remained diverse during the mid-Cretaceous. * Fossil material of pterosaurs (including a large non-
pteranodontia Pteranodontia is an extinct group of ornithocheiroid pterodactyloid pterosaurs. It lived during the Late Cretaceous (Turonian to Maastrichtian stages) of North America, South America, Europe and Africa. They were some of the most advanced pterosa ...
n
ornithocheiroid Pterodactyloidea ( ; derived from the Greek words ''πτερόν'' (''pterón'', for usual ''ptéryx'') "wing", and ''δάκτυλος'' (''dáktylos'') "finger") is one of the two traditional suborders of pterosaurs ("wing lizards"), and contai ...
) is described from the
Valanginian In the geologic timescale, the Valanginian is an age or stage of the Early or Lower Cretaceous. It spans between 137.05 ± 0.2 Ma and 132.6 ± 0.2 Ma (million years ago). The Valanginian Stage succeeds the Berriasian Stage of the Lower Cretac ...
Rosablanca Formation The Rosablanca Formation (, Kir) is a geological formation of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, Eastern Ranges of the Colombian Andes and the Middle Magdalena Basin. The formation consists of grey limestones, dolomites and shales with at the upper ...
by Cadena, Unwin & Martill (2020), representing the first record of pterosaurs from
Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...
. * New forelimb of a
pteranodontoid Pteranodontoidea (or pteranodontoids, from Greek meaning "toothless wings") is an extinct clade of ornithocheiroid pterosaurs from the Early to Late Cretaceous (early Valanginian to late Maastrichtian stages) of Asia, Africa, Europe, North Ameri ...
pterosaur is described from the Lower Cretaceous
Yixian Formation The Yixian Formation (; formerly Romanization of Chinese, transcribed as Yihsien Formation or Yixiang Formation) is a geological formation in Jinzhou, Liaoning, People's Republic of China, that spans the Barremian stage of the Early Cretaceous. I ...
(China) by Jiang ''et al.'' (2020), who also revise the species '' Yixianopterus jingangshanensis''. * Averianov (2020) reassesses the taxonomy of the
Lonchodectidae Lonchodectidae or LonchodraconidaePêgas, R.V., Holgado, B., Leal, M.E.C., 2019. "''Targaryendraco wiedenrothi'' gen. nov. (Pterodactyloidea, Pteranodontoidea, Lanceodontia) and recognition of a new cosmopolitan lineage of Cretaceous toothed pter ...
, transferring the species "''
Lonchodraco ''Lonchodraco'' is a genus of lonchodraconid Pterodactyloidea, pterodactyloid pterosaur from the Late Cretaceous of southern England. The genus includes species that were previously assigned to other genera. Discovery and naming In 1846, Jame ...
''" ''machaerorhynchus'' (including ''L. microdon'' and ''Pterodactylus oweni'') to the genus '' Ikrandraco''. * Martill ''et al.'' (2020) report evidence of the presence of clusters of circular foramina on the tip of the beak of ''
Lonchodraco ''Lonchodraco'' is a genus of lonchodraconid Pterodactyloidea, pterodactyloid pterosaur from the Late Cretaceous of southern England. The genus includes species that were previously assigned to other genera. Discovery and naming In 1846, Jame ...
giganteus'', interpret this finding as evidence of enhanced sensitivity of the rostrum tip, and argue that this pattern implies tactile feeding in ''L. giganteus''. * An ornithocheirid
metacarpus In human anatomy, the metacarpal bones or metacarpus, also known as the "palm bones", are the appendicular skeleton, appendicular bones that form the intermediate part of the hand between the phalanges (fingers) and the carpal bones (wrist, wris ...
, representing one of the geologically youngest ornithocheirid remains reported worldwide, is described from the Upper Cretaceous (
Cenomanian The Cenomanian is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy's (ICS) geological timescale, the oldest or earliest age (geology), age of the Late Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or the lowest stage (stratigraphy), stage of the Upper Cretace ...
) of the Crema Bonfil quarry (
Coahuila Coahuila, formally Coahuila de Zaragoza, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza, is one of the 31 states of Mexico. The largest city and State Capital is the city of Saltillo; the second largest is Torreón and the thi ...
,
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
) by Frey ''et al.'' (2020), who evaluate the implications of this finding for the knowledge of the extinction of the toothed pterosaurs during the Late Cretaceous. * Fossil material of a large
pteranodontid The Pteranodontidae are a family of large pterosaurs from the Late Cretaceous of North America and possibly other continents including Europe and Africa. The family was named in 1876 by Othniel Charles Marsh. Pteranodontids had a distinctive, elon ...
pterosaur is described from the
Campanian The Campanian is the fifth of six ages of the Late Cretaceous epoch on the geologic timescale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). In chronostratigraphy, it is the fifth of six stages in the Upper Cretaceous Series. Campa ...
Beloe Ozero locality ( Rybushka Formation;
Saratov Oblast Saratov Oblast is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast), located in the Volga Federal District. Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Saratov. As of the 2021 Russian cens ...
,
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
) by Averianov & Arkhangelsky (2020), who also review other putative records of pteranodontids in the Late Cretaceous of North America, Europe and Asia, and argue that ''
Volgadraco ''Volgadraco'' ("Volga River dragon") is a genus of pteranodontian pterosaur from the Upper Cretaceous of European Russia. Discovery and naming ''Volgadraco'' is known from lower beak (holotype SGU, no. 46/104a) and postcranial fragments from the ...
bogolubovi'' is more likely to be a pteranodontid than
azhdarchid Azhdarchidae (from the Persian word , , a dragon-like creature in Persian mythology) is a family of pterosaurs known primarily from the Late Cretaceous Period, though an isolated vertebra apparently from an azhdarchid is known from the Early Cre ...
. * New
tapejarid Tapejaridae (from a Tupi word meaning 'the lord of the ways') is a family of azhdarchoid pterosaurs from the Cretaceous period. Members are currently known from Brazil, England, Hungary, Morocco, Spain, the United States, and China. The most p ...
specimen, providing new information on the anatomy of the vertebral column of tapejarids, is described from the
Aptian The Aptian is an age (geology), age in the geologic timescale or a stage (stratigraphy), stage in the stratigraphic column. It is a subdivision of the Early Cretaceous, Early or Lower Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or series (stratigraphy), S ...
Crato Formation The Crato Formation is a geologic formation (stratigraphy), formation of Early Cretaceous (Aptian) age in northeastern Brazil's Araripe Basin. It is an important Lagerstätten, Lagerstätte (undisturbed fossil accumulation) for palaeontology, pa ...
(
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
) by Cheng ''et al.'' (2020). * New information on the anatomy of ''
Dsungaripterus ''Dsungaripterus'' is a genus of dsungaripterid pterosaur which lived during the Early Cretaceous in what is now China and possibly South Korea. Its fossils come from the Wuerho Pterosaur Fauna group (WPF) of the Tugulu Group, comprising sectio ...
weii'' (especially on the
palatal The palate () is the roof of the mouth in humans and other mammals. It separates the oral cavity from the nasal cavity. A similar structure is found in crocodilians, but in most other tetrapods, the oral and nasal cavities are not truly sepa ...
region), based on the study of new and previously collected specimens, is published by Chen ''et al.'' (2020). * New fossil material of ''
Tethydraco ''Tethydraco'' is a genus of pterodactyloid pterosaur that lived during the Late Cretaceous period (Maastrichtian stage) of what is now the area of present Morocco, about 66 million years ago. ''Tethydraco'' was originally assigned to the family ...
regalis'' is described from the
Maastrichtian The Maastrichtian ( ) is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS) geologic timescale, the latest age (geology), age (uppermost stage (stratigraphy), stage) of the Late Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or Upper Cretaceous series (s ...
deposits of the
Ouled Abdoun Basin The Oulad Abdoun Basin (also known as the Ouled Abdoun Basin or Khouribga Basin) is a phosphate sedimentary basin located in Morocco, near the city of Khouribga. It is the largest in Morocco, comprising 44% of Morocco's phosphate reserves, and at ...
(
Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...
) by Labita & Martill (2020), who consider it more likely that ''T. regalis'' was an azhdarchid rather than a pteranodontian. * New specimens of edentulous pterosaur jaw fragments are described from the
Cambridge Greensand The Cambridge Greensand is a geological unit in England whose strata are earliest Cenomanian in age. It lies above the erosive contact between the Gault Formation and the Chalk Group in the vicinity of Cambridgeshire, and technically forms the l ...
(eastern England, United Kingdom) by Smith ''et al.'' (2020), who also revise the fossil material of ''
Ornithostoma ''Ornithostoma'' (meaning "bird mouth") is a genus of pterodactyloid pterosaur that lived during the Early Cretaceous period (Albian stage) of Europe, around 110 million years ago. ''Ornithostoma'' was once thought to have been a senior synonym ...
sedgwicki'' and assign this taxon to the group
Azhdarchoidea Azhdarchoidea ( , meaning "azhdarchid-like forms") is a group of pterosaurs within the suborder Pterodactyloidea. Pterosaurs belonging to this group lived throughout the Early and Late Cretaceous periods, with one tentative member, '' Tendaguri ...
rather than to the family Pteranodontidae.


Other archosaurs


Other new archosaur taxa


Other archosaur research

* A study on the anatomy, locomotion and phylogenetic relationships of ''
Scleromochlus ''Scleromochlus'' (from , 'hard' and , 'lever') is an extinct genus of small pterosauromorph archosaurs from the Late Triassic Lossiemouth Sandstone of Scotland. The genus contains the type and only species ''Scleromochlus taylori'', named by ...
taylori'' is published by Bennett (2020). * An Otischalkian assemblage of
lagerpetid Lagerpetidae (; originally Lagerpetonidae) is a family of basal avemetatarsalians (early-diverging members of the reptile lineage leading to birds and other dinosaurs). Though traditionally considered the earliest-diverging dinosauromorphs (ar ...
and
silesaurid Silesauridae is an extinct family of Triassic dinosauriforms. It is most commonly considered to be a clade of non-dinosaur dinosauriforms, and the sister group of dinosaurs. Some studies have instead suggested that most or all silesaurids compr ...
fossils, including lagerpetid material of unusually large size assignable to ''
Dromomeron ''Dromomeron'' (meaning "running femur") is a genus of Lagerpetidae, lagerpetid Avemetatarsalia, avemetatarsalian which lived around 220 to 211.9 ± 0.7 million years ago. The genus contains species known from Late Triassic-age rocks of the South ...
'', is described from the Los Esteros Member of the Santa Rosa Formation (
New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...
, United States) by Beyl, Nesbitt & Stocker (2020), who interpret this finding as evidence that lagerpetids achieved large body size earlier than previously recognized. * A study on the phylogenetic relationships of lagerpetids is published by Ezcurra ''et al.'' (2020), who interpret lagerpetids as the
sister group In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and ...
of pterosaurs. * New
dinosauromorph Dinosauromorpha is a clade of Avemetatarsalia, avemetatarsalians (archosaurs closer to birds than to crocodilians) that includes the Dinosauria (dinosaurs) and some of their close relatives. It was originally defined to include Dinosauriformes, d ...
fossil material is described from the Upper Triassic
Chinle Formation The Chinle Formation is an Upper Triassic continental geological formation of fluvial, lacustrine, and palustrine to eolian deposits spread across the U.S. states of Nevada, Utah, northern Arizona, western New Mexico, and western Colorado. In ...
(
Petrified Forest National Park Petrified Forest National Park is a national park of the United States in Navajo and Apache counties in northeastern Arizona. Named for its large deposits of petrified wood, the park covers about , encompassing semi-desert shrub steppe as wel ...
,
Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...
, United States) by Marsh & Parker (2020), who also review the global fossil record of Late Triassic dinosauromorphs. * A study on the musculoskeletal apparatus and posture of ''
Silesaurus ''Silesaurus'' is a genus of silesaurid dinosauriform from the Late Triassic, of what is now Poland. Discovery and naming The Krasiejów claypit near Opole, Poland, was first discovered as a fossil locality in the 1980s after quarrying for ...
opolensis'', evaluating its implications for the knowledge of the evolution of the fully erect limb posture in archosaurs, is published by Piechowski & Tałanda (2020).


General research

* A study aiming to determine how mass properties and body proportions relate to each other and locomotor posture in archosaurs is published online by Bishop ''et al.'' (2020). * A study on the brain growth in the American alligator and in the
common ostrich The common ostrich (''Struthio camelus''), or simply ostrich, is a species of flightless bird native to certain areas of Africa. It is one of two extant species of ostriches, the only living members of the genus ''Struthio'' in the ratite group ...
throughout their
ontogeny Ontogeny (also ontogenesis) is the origination and development of an organism (both physical and psychological, e.g., moral development), usually from the time of fertilization of the ovum, egg to adult. The term can also be used to refer to t ...
is published by Hu ''et al.'' (2020), who evaluate the implications of their findings for the knowledge of the development of the brain in non-avian dinosaurs. * A study on the evolution of metabolic rates along the bird
stem Stem or STEM most commonly refers to: * Plant stem, a structural axis of a vascular plant * Stem group * Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics Stem or STEM can also refer to: Language and writing * Word stem, part of a word respon ...
lineage is published by Rezende ''et al.'' (2020). * A review of the anatomy of the respiratory systems and mechanics of breathing in living and fossil archosaurs, evaluating their physiological implications, is published by Brocklehurst ''et al.'' (2020). * A study aiming to determine the relationship between atmospheric O2 and CO2 levels during the
Late Triassic The Late Triassic is the third and final epoch (geology), epoch of the Triassic geologic time scale, Period in the geologic time scale, spanning the time between annum, Ma and Ma (million years ago). It is preceded by the Middle Triassic Epoch a ...
and the evolution of
skeletal pneumaticity Skeletal pneumaticity is the presence of air spaces within bones. It is generally produced during development by excavation of bone by pneumatic diverticula (air sacs) from an air-filled space, such as the lungs or nasal cavity. Pneumatization is h ...
and respiratory systems in
theropod Theropoda (; from ancient Greek , (''therion'') "wild beast"; , (''pous, podos'') "foot"">wiktionary:ποδός"> (''pous, podos'') "foot" is one of the three major groups (clades) of dinosaurs, alongside Ornithischia and Sauropodom ...
dinosaurs and in
paracrocodylomorphs Paracrocodylomorpha is a clade of pseudosuchian archosaurs. The clade includes the diverse and unusual group Poposauroidea as well as the generally carnivorous and quadrupedal members of Loricata, including modern crocodylians. Paracrocodylomor ...
is published by Hudgins, Uhen & Hinnov (2020). * A study on
sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where sexes of the same species exhibit different Morphology (biology), morphological characteristics, including characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most dioecy, di ...
in the skulls of extant
gharial The gharial (''Gavialis gangeticus''), also known as gavial or fish-eating crocodile, is a crocodilian in the family (biology), family Gavialidae and among the longest of all living crocodilians. Mature females are long, and males . Adult males ...
s, and on its implications for the feasibility of detecting dimorphism in non-avian dinosaurs, is published by Hone ''et al.'' (2020). * A study evaluating the impact of different sampling effects on calculations of mean von Ebner line increment width (the measure of
dentin Dentin ( ) (American English) or dentine ( or ) (British English) () is a calcified tissue (biology), tissue of the body and, along with tooth enamel, enamel, cementum, and pulp (tooth), pulp, is one of the four major components of teeth. It i ...
thickness divided by the mean width between von Ebner lines), tooth formation times and replacement rates in fossil archosaurs, based on data from extant American alligator, is published by Kosch & Zanno (2020). * A study on the microstructure of teeth of Mesozoic birds and non-avian
paravian Paraves are a widespread group of theropod dinosaurs that originated in the Middle Jurassic period. In addition to the extinct dromaeosaurids, troodontids, anchiornithids, and possibly the scansoriopterygids, the group also contains the av ...
theropods is published by Li ''et al.'' (2020), who evaluate the implications of their findings for the knowledge of differences in feeding ecology of early birds and closely related paravians. * A study on the phylogenetic distribution and structural diversity of
medullary bone The medullary cavity (''medulla'', innermost part) is the central cavity of bone shafts where red bone marrow and/or yellow bone marrow (adipose tissue) is stored; hence, the medullary cavity is also known as the marrow cavity. Located in the ma ...
in extant birds, reevaluating the criteria proposed to allow the identification of medullary bone in fossils of
avemetatarsalia Avemetatarsalia (meaning "bird metatarsals") is a clade of diapsid Reptile, reptiles containing all archosaurs more closely related to birds than to crocodilians. The two most successful groups of avemetatarsalians were the dinosaurs and pterosau ...
ns, is published by Canoville,
Schweitzer Schweitzer is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Albert Schweitzer (1875–1965), German theologian, musician, physician, and medical missionary, winner of the 1952 Nobel Peace Prize * Anton Schweitzer (1735–1787), German op ...
& Zanno (2020). * An archosaur egg of uncertain affinities, with eggshell containing several parallel dark bands, is reported from the Upper Cretaceous of
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
by Choi ''et al.'' (2020), who investigate the origin of the dark bands, and name a new
ootaxon Egg fossils are the fossilized remains of eggs laid by ancient animals. As evidence of the physiological processes of an animal, egg fossils are considered a type of trace fossil. Under rare circumstances a fossil egg may preserve the remains of t ...
'' Aenigmaoolithus vesicularis''. * A study on the relationship between the curvatures of
ungual An ungual (from Latin ''unguis'', i.e. ''nail'') is a highly modified distal toe bone which ends in a hoof, claw, or nail. Elephants and ungulates have ungual phalanges, as did the sauropod Sauropoda (), whose members are known as sauropods (; ...
bones and behaviour in extant birds and
squamates Squamata (, Latin ''squamatus'', 'scaly, having scales') is the largest order of reptiles; most members of which are commonly known as lizards, with the group also including snakes. With over 11,991 species, it is also the second-largest order ...
, evaluating its implications for the knowledge of the lifestyle of Mesozoic birds and non-avian theropods, is published by Cobb & Sellers (2020). * Xing, Cockx & McKellar (2020) describe a large sample set of 150 specimens of the
Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 mya (unit), million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era (geology), Era, as well as the longest. At around 77.1 million years, it is the ...
Burmese amber Burmese amber, also known as Burmite or Kachin amber, is amber from the Hukawng Valley in northern Myanmar. The amber is dated to around 100 million years ago, during the latest Albian to earliest Cenomanian ages of the mid-Cretaceous period. Th ...
containing feathers most likely belonging to non-avian dinosaurs and
enantiornithean The Enantiornithes, also known as enantiornithines or enantiornitheans in literature, are a group of extinct avialans ("birds" in the broad sense), the most abundant and diverse group known from the Mesozoic era. Almost all retained teeth and cl ...
birds.


References

{{reflist Archosaurs 2020 in paleontology