A study of the phylogenetic relationships of the archosauriforms traditionally assigned to the family Euparkeriidae is published by Sookias.
A redescription of the braincase and the inner ear of Euparkeria capensis is published by Sobral et al..
A study of the phylogenetic relationships of archosauromorph reptiles, with an emphasis on the phylogenetic relationships of proterosuchids and erythrosuchids, is published by Ezcurra.
A study on the patterns of morphological diversity of the skulls of late Permian to Early Jurassic archosauromorph reptiles is published by Foth et al..
A study on the braincase anatomy of the type specimens of Pseudochampsa ischigualastensis and Tropidosuchus romeri is published by Trotteyn & Paulina-Carabajal.
A reevaluation of the neotype specimen of Parasuchus hislopi and a study of the phylogenetic relationships of the species is published by Kammerer et al., who consider the genus Parasuchus to be a senior synonym of the genera Paleorhinus and Arganarhinus, and refer the species Paleorhinus bransoni Williston, Francosuchus angustifrons Kuhn and Paleorhinus magnoculus Dutuit to the genus Parasuchus.
A study on the endocranial anatomy of Parasuchus angustifrons and Ebrachosuchus neukami is published by Lautenschlager & Butler.
New taxa
Pseudosuchians
Research
A study of the skull anatomy of the ornithosuchidRiojasuchus tenuisceps is published by von Baczko & Desojo.
A restudy of Dasygnathoides longidens and Ornithosuchus woodwardi, rejecting their synonymy, is published by von Baczko & Ezcurra.
A study on the cranial anatomy and phylogenetic relationships of the aetosaurParatypothorax andressorum is published by Schoch & Desojo.
New fossil material from the Triassic Pinheiros-Chiniquá Sequence of the Santa Maria Supersequence in Brazil attributed to the rauisuchian species Prestosuchus chiniquensis is described by Lacerda et al..
A study on the presence, size, shape, and position of the subnarial foramen in Prestosuchus chiniquensis and its implication for archosaurian phylogeny is published by Roberto-da-Silva et al..
A redescription of the fossil material assignable to the species Trialestes romeri and a study of the phylogenetic relationships of the species is published by Lecuona, Ezcurra & Irmis.
The osteological description of Carnufex carolinensis and a study of its phylogenetic position is published by Drymala & Zanno.
A study on the changes of crocodyliform biodiversity through the Jurassic/Cretaceous transition and on probable causes of the decline of some crocodyliform lineages at this time is published by Tennant, Mannion & Upchurch.
Description of postcranial skeletons of three specimens of the sphagesauridCaipirasuchus is published by Iori, Carvalho & Marinho.
Description of the postcranial elements of the skeleton of Pissarrachampsa sera is published by Godoy et al..
Description of new cranial remains of Pholidosaurus purbeckensis from the Early Cretaceous of France and a study of phylogenetic relationships of the species is published by Martin, Raslan-Loubatié & Mazin.
A redescription of the holotype specimen of the metriorhynchid species "Plesiosaurus" mexicanus Wieland is published by Barrientos-Lara et al., who transfer the species to the genus Torvoneustes.
A histological study of a specimen of Susisuchus anatoceps is published by Sayão et al..
New fossil material of Allodaposuchus precedens is described from the Late Cretaceous of France by Martin et al..
Fossil mekosuchine vertebrae, tentatively assigned to Mekosuchus whitehunterensis, are described from Riversleigh by Stein, Archer & Hand, who interpret them as confirming that even adult specimens of this species were smaller in snout-vent length than adults of extant small crocodilian species belonging to the genera Paleosuchus and Osteolaemus, and indicating that this species employed feeding behaviours that were unusual for crocodilians.
Partial skeleton of the Chinese alligator is described from the late Pliocene of western Japan by Iijima, Takahashi & Kobayashi.
A study on the osteology of alligator fossils from the late Miocene Moss Acres Racetrack locality in Marion County, Florida and the phylogenetic placement of the alligators these fossils belonged to within the genus Alligator is published by Whiting, Steadman & Vliet.
New information on the anatomy of Globidentosuchus brachyrostris and Centenariosuchus gilmorei and a study of the phylogenetic relationships of these species is published by Hastings, Reisser & Scheyer.
Marsicano et al. date the Chañares Formation, containing fossils of non-dinosaurian dinosauromorphs Lagerpeton, Lewisuchus, Marasuchus and Pseudolagosuchus, to early Carnian, 5–10 million years younger than previously thought. On this basis the authors postulate that the origin of dinosaurs was a relatively rapid event, as the transition from vertebrate communities containing only non-dinosaurian dinosauromorphs to communities containing the first dinosaurs occurred in less than a 5-million year interval.
Basal dinosauromorph fossils including fossils of both Dromomeron romeri and D. gregorii, as well as a dinosauriformfibula resembling the fibula of Marasuchus lilloensis but with much larger size, are described from the Late TriassicDockum Group of Texas, USA by Sarıgül.
New taxa
Non-avian dinosaurs
Research
An assessment of methods used to the determine the ontogenetic status of non-avian dinosaur specimens is published by Hone, Farke & Wedel.
A study of the evolutionary dynamics of speciation and extinction through time in Mesozoic dinosaurs is published by Sakamoto, Benton & Venditti.
A study on the dinosaur metabolism, re-evaluating earlier studies of Werner & Griebeler and Grady et al., is published by Myhrvold.
A study on the morphological similarities of the skulls of Plateosaurus engelhardti, Stegosaurus stenops and Erlikosaurus andrewsi, their feeding mechanics and behaviour is published by Lautenschlager et al..
A study testing for a correlation between the presence of bony cranial ornaments and large body size in non-avian theropod dinosaurs is published by Gates, Organ & Zanno.
A description of theropod teeth from the Late Jurassic of Northern Germany and a study of their phylogenetic relationships is published by Gerke & Wings.
A study on the tooth attachment tissues in Coelophysis bauri is published by Fong et al..
A study on the variation in morphological changes during ontogeny among members of the same species in early dinosaurs Coelophysis bauri and Megapnosaurus rhodesiensis as compared to the variation among living birds and crocodilians is published by Griffin & Nesbitt.
Senter & Juengst identify pathological features in eight pectoral girdle and forelimb bones of the holotype specimen of Dilophosaurus wetherilli.
A study of osteology and phylogenetic relationships of Elaphrosaurus bambergi is published by Rauhut & Carrano.
A new specimen of Velocisaurus unicus is described by Brissón Egli, Agnolín & Novas.
A study on the validity of the theropod genus Altispinax is published by Maisch.
Six isolated spinosauridquadrates, most likely coming from the Kem Kem Beds, are described by Hendrickx, Mateus & Buffetaut, who interpret the differences in their anatomy as confirming the presence of two spinosaurine taxa in the Cenomanian of North Africa, rather than only one.
The description of a new large abelisaurid femur from the Kem Kem Beds, by demonstrates the presence of large bodied individuals of this clade sympatric with other giant theropod dinosaurs from this area. This study includes also an overview on the Cenomanian theropod assemblage from Morocco.
Fossils of a large Early Cretaceous megaraptorid theropod are described from the Griman Creek Formation by Bell et al., who consider the theropod to be the largest predatory dinosaur yet identified from Australia.
A study on the manual anatomy of Megaraptor and Australovenator, as well as its implications for the phylogenetic relationships of these taxa, is published by Novas, Aranciaga Rolando & Agnolín .
A study of the phylogenetic relationships of tyrannosauroid theropods is published by Brusatte and Carr.
Three fossil feathers from the Crato Member of the Early Cretaceous Santana Formation are described by Prado et al., who attribute them to coelurosaurian theropods of uncertain phylogenetic placement.
A study of the effectiveness of proposed pathways for the evolution of the flight stroke in non-avian coelurosaurian theropods and early birds using biomechanical mathematical models is published by Dececchi, Larsson & Habib.
A detailed description of the morphology of the mandible and teeth of Segnosaurus galbinensis is published by Zanno et al..
New specimens of Leptorhynchos elegans and Leptorhynchos sp. are described from the Late Cretaceous of Canada by Funston, Currie & Burns.
A study on the micro- and ultrastructure of the fossil claw sheath of a specimen of Citipati osmolskae, indicating the preservation of original keratinous claw material, is published by Moyer, Zheng & Schweitzer.
A study of the morphological disparity of teeth of maniraptoran theropods living during the last 18 million years of the Cretaceous is published by Larson, Brown and Evans.
A new complete femur assigned to Pampadromaeus barberenai is described by Müller et al..
A study on the jaw adductor musculature and bite forces in Plateosaurus and Camarasaurus is published by Button, Barrett & Rayfield.
A study of the evolution of whole-body shape and body segment properties of sauropod dinosaurs is published by Bates et al..
A study on the intervertebral joints in the necks and tails of sauropod dinosaurs, characterized by having the convex articular face directed away from the body and the concave articular face directed toward the body, is published by Fronimos, Wilson & Baumiller, who argue that these joints evolved to prevent possible joint failure caused by rotation, providing stability with greater mobility and facilitating the evolution of elongated necks and tails in sauropods.
A restudy of Sanpasaurus yaoi, originally classified as an ornithopod dinosaur, is published by McPhee et al., who consider this species to be an early sauropod instead.
Description of several sauropod vertebrae collected from the Early Cretaceous Kirkwood Formation and a study on the diversity of the sauropods known from the Kirkwood Formation is published by McPhee et al..
Sauropod fossils, including a caudal vertebra attributed to a large-bodied lithostrotian titanosaur, are reported from the Cretaceous Kem Kem Beds by Ibrahim et al..
Well-vascularised endosteally formed bone tissue is reported in the saltasaurine titanosaurs by Chinsamy, Cerda & Powell, who argue that additional evidence is required to determine whether vascularised endosteal bone tissues reported in extinct archosaurs are medullary bone or just a pathological bone.
A study on the effect of jaw shape and jaw adductor musculature on the relative bite force in members of 52 ornithischian genera is published by Nabavizadeh.
A study on the anatomical diversity of the predentary in ornithischian dinosaurs is published by Nabavizadeh & Weishampel.
Heterodontosauridmetatarsi, phalanges and tail vertebrae are described from the Early Jurassic Cañadon Asfalto Formation by Becerra et al., who note the similarities in anatomy of the digits of this heterodontosaurid and the digits of arboreal birds and argue that the heterodontosaurid might have had grasping feet with long digits.
New specimens of Lesothosaurus diagnosticus are described by Barrett et al..
A description of the braincase anatomy of Pawpawsaurus campbelli based on CT scans is published by Paulina-Carabajal, Lee & Jacobs.
A new specimen of Haya griva is described from the Late Cretaceous of Mongolia by Norell & Barta.
A reassessment of the holotype locality of Leaellynasaura amicagraphica is published by Herne, Tait & Salisbury, who argue that several fossils traditionally referred to L. amicagraphica cannot be confidently attributed to this species.
A study on the evolution of the teeth morphologies of the ornithopod dinosaurs is published by Strickson et al., who argue that major increases of rates of dental character evolution among ornithopods did not correspond to times of plant diversification, including the radiation of the flowering plants.
A new specimen of Valdosaurus canaliculatus, the most complete yet found, is described by Barrett.
Tibia and tail vertebrae of iguanodontian dinosaurs are described from the Cleaver Bank by Mulder & Fraaije.
Isolated teeth of large-bodied iguanodontians are described from the Early Cretaceous of Tunisia by Fanti et al..
Parallel trackways of medium-sized and robust ornithopods similar to Draconyx or Cumnoria, providing evidence of gregarious behavior, are described from the Late Jurassic of Spain by Piñuela et al..
A revision of the original diagnosis of Willinakaqe salitralensis and of fossil material attributed to this species is published by Cruzado Caballero and Coria, who argue that the fossils attributed to Willinakaqe salitralensis might represent more than a single taxon of hadrosaurid and that all characters of the original diagnosis are invalid.
Large ornithopod tracks, assigned to the ichnogenusHadrosauropodus, are described from the Maastrichtian-Danian Yacoraite Formation of Argentina by Díaz-Martínez, de Valais & Cónsole-Gonella.
A study on the development of the dental battery of the hadrosaurid dinosaurs through their ontogeny and on the evolution of the hadrosaurid dental battery is published by LeBlanc et al..
Chondroid bone is reported in embryos and nestlings of Hypacrosaurus by Bailleul et al..
Restudies of the fossil material attributed to Stegoceras novomexicanum are published by Williamson & Brusatte and Jasinski & Sullivan.
A study on the skull anatomy of Yinlong downsi is published by Han et al..
A study of the bristle-like appendages on the tail of Psittacosaurus is published by Mayret al..
A study on the color patterns of a well-preserved specimen of Psittacosaurus sp. as indicated by the distribution of organic residues is published by Vinther et al..
A study on the dental microwear in Leptoceratops gracilis is published by Varriale.
A study of the frill bones of Protoceratops andrewsi, indicating that its frill increased in length and width during the ontogeny of the animal and that the growth of the frill was greater than the overall growth of the animal, is published by Hone, Wood & Knell, who interpret these findings as indicating that Protoceratops most likely used its frill for sexual and social dominance signaling.
A revision of the species assigned to the genus Chasmosaurus is published by Campbell et al..
Forelimb studies show Oryctodromeus was extremely adapted for an underground lifestyle.
A group of paleontologists discovered the remains of the smallest specimen of Pachycephalosaurus to date. The specimen also casts doubt on the validity of Dracorex and Stygimoloch.
A study was done on the skulls of Majungasaurus and revealed changes throughout the life cycle of this dinosaur.
A study was conducted on the skeleton of Nasutoceratops, revealing that it and Avaceratops belonged to a completely new group of centrosaurines.
New taxa
Birds
Research
A study on the rates of morphological evolution in Early Cretaceous birds is published by Wang and Lloyd.
A study on the microbodies associated with feathers of a new specimen of Eoconfuciusornis from the Early Cretaceous Huajiying Formation and on the matrix in which the microbodies were embedded is published by Pan et al., who interpret the microbodies as melanosomes.
Remains of non-plumage soft tissues, including scales, toe pads, skin and muscle, are identified in two specimens of Confuciusornis by Falk et al..
A skeleton of an enantiornithinebird preserving a gastric pellet that includes fish bones is described from the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota of China by Wang, Zhou & Sullivan.
Two partial wings with vestiges of soft tissues, probably belonging to precocial hatchlings of enantiornithine birds, are described from the Late Cretaceous Burmese amber by Xing et al..
A revised diagnosis of Cerebavis cenomanica, a study on the braincase anatomy of the species and a study on its phylogenetic relationships is published by Walsh, Milner & Bourdon.
A study on the shape, growth, attachment, implantation, replacement, and tissue microstructures of the teeth of Hesperornis and Ichthyornis is published by Dumont et al..
A specimen of Hesperornis with a healed wound is described from the Late Cretaceous Pierre Shale by Martin, Rothschild & Burnham, who interpret the wound as caused by an unsuccessful attack of a polycotylidplesiosaur.
Pelvic elements of Gargantuavis philoinos, providing new information about the pelvic morphology of the species, are described from the Late Cretaceous of southern France by Buffetaut & Angst.
A specimen of Vegavis iaai with a fossilized syrinx is described from the Late Cretaceous of Antarctica by Clarke et al..
A study on the feeding mechanics and behaviour of five moa species is published by Attard et al..
Mariana B.J. Picasso & María Clelia Mosto, 2016: Hinasuri nehuensis Tambussi was a robust, extinct rheid bird from the early Pliocene of Buenos Aires province, Argentina. This paper revisits the femoral morphology of H. nehuensis and provides an updated osteological description together with new insights into its palaeobiology.
Restudies of the Pleistocene species Rhea pampeana and Rhea anchorenensis are published by Picasso and Picasso and Mosto, respectively, who consider these species to be junior synonyms of the extant greater rhea.
Worthyet al. argue that Sylviornis neocaledoniae is a stem-galliform related to Megavitiornis altirostris and both are placed in the Sylviornithidae Mourer-Chauviré et Balouet, 2005.
A revision of the systematics of the early Eocene North American members of Geranoididae is published by Mayr, who argues that geranoidids might be stem group representatives of the Gruoidea.
Zelenkov, Boev & Lazaridis reinterpret Otis hellenica from the Miocene of Greece, originally thought to be a bustard, as a member of Gruiformes belonging to the family Eogruidae and the subfamily Ergilornithinae; the authors classify it as a possible member of the genus Amphipelargus of uncertain specific assignment.
A restudy of the holotype specimen of Bathornis grallator and a study on the taxonomic composition and phylogenetic affinities of bathornithids is published by Mayr.
Zelenkov, Volkova and Gorobets describe buttonquail fossils from the late Miocene of Hungary, southern Ukraine and northern Kazakhstan, and transfer the species Calidris janossyi Kessler to the genus Ortyxelos.
Gerald Mayr and Zbigniew M. Bochenski, describe a disarticulated postcranial skeleton of a Ralloidea from the Early Oligocene Jamna Dolna Site 2 in Poland as Gen. et Sp. indet.
Body mass estimates for 25 extinct pan-alcids and a study of body mass evolution in Pan-Alcidae are published by Smith.
The earliest known cranial endocast of a stem-penguin is described from the Paleocene Waipara Greensand by Proffitt, Clarke & Scofield.
Thomas & Ksepka classify a Whaingaroanpenguin from the Glen Massey Formation, first described in 1973, as a member of the genus Kairuku of uncertain specific assignment, extending the geographic range of the genus.
Park et al., 2016 The description of recently collected penguin fossils from the re-dated upper Miocene Port Campbell Limestone of Portland, in addition to reanalysis of previously described material, has allowed the Cenozoic history of penguins in Australia to be placed into a global context for the first time. Australian pre-Quaternary fossil penguins represent stem taxa phylogenetically disparate from each other and Eudyptula minor, implying multiple dispersals and extinctions.
Carolina Acosta Hospitaleche, Leandro M. Pérez, Sergio Marenssi, Marcelo Reguero. The purpose of this paper is to provide a taphonomic analysis of the holotype of Crossvallia unienwillia, in order to improve the knowledge of the vertebrate record of the Cross Valley Formation, a unit exposed in the central area of Marambio Island, Antarctic Peninsula.
A new skeleton of the Eocene penguin Palaeeudyptes klekowskii is described from the Submeseta Formation by Acosta Hospitaleche.
Carolina Acosta Hospitaleche & Eduardo Olivero, 2016: Eocene penguins are known mostly from Antarctic specimens. A previously documented partial skeleton consisting of a pelvis, femur, tibiotarsus and fibula, from the middle Eocene Leticia Formation, Tierra del Fuego Province, Argentina, has been prepared and re-described. Re-analysis favours assignment to Palaeeudyptes gunnari, a species widely recorded in the Eocene of Antarctica.
Fossils of a stork and a heron belonging or related to the tribe Nycticoracini are described from the Pliocene of Myanmar by Stidham et al..
A restudy of the fossils attributed to the species Liornis floweri and Callornis giganteus from the Miocene Santa Cruz Formation is published by Buffetaut, who considers L. floweri to be a junior synonym of Brontornis burmeisteri and considers C. giganteus to be a chimera based on a phorusrhacid tarsometatarsus and a brontornithid tibiotarsus.
A study of eggshell fragments from the Pleistocene of Australia putatively referred to Genyornis newtoni is published by Grellet-Tinner, Spooner & Worthy, who argue that these fossils are more likely to be remains of eggs laid by megapodes. Based on the similarities in the structure of eggshells of megapodes and dromornithids, the authors also hypothesize that dromornithids might be a sister group to galliforms rather than to or within anseriforms.
A study of burnt putative Genyornis eggshell fragments from the Pleistocene of Australia is published by Miller et al., who interpret them as confirming that eggs of Genyornis newtoni were harvested by humans.
A study on the possible presence, form, and extent of sexual dimorphism in Dromornis stirtoni is published by Handley et al..
The genus Wilaru, initially considered to be of a stone-curlew, is reinterpreted as a member of Presbyornithidae by De Pietri et al. ; the authors also reassess the Cretaceous species Teviornis gobiensis and confirm it as a member of Presbyornithidae.
A revision of anseriform birds known from the late Miocene localities in central Hungary is published by Zelenkov, who transfers the species Anas denesi Kessler to the genus Aythya and classifies the species Anas albae Janossy as a member of tribe Mergini of uncertain generic assignment.
A revision of galliform birds known from the late Miocene localities in central Hungary is published by Zelenkov, who transfers the subspecies Pavo aesculapi phasianoides Janossy to the genus Syrmaticus and raises it to the rank of a separate species Syrmaticus phasianoides.
New fossil remains of the Eocene cuckooChambicuculus pusillus are described from Tunisia by Mourer-Chauviré et al..
Virtual cranial endocast of the dodo is described by Gold, Bourdon & Norell.
An ungualphalanx of a large member of Accipitridae belonging to an unknown genus and species is described from the Miocene of Panama by Steadman & MacFadden.
Partial tarsometatarsus of a small parrot is described from the Early Miocene Khalagay Formation by Zelenkov.
A study on the phylogenetic relationships of extant and extinct New Zealand wrens, as indicated by data from novel mitochondrial genome sequences, is published by Mitchell et al..
Fossil avian feet from the Early Eocene of Messel, Germany are described by Gerald Mayr
A new tracksite with bird footprints, preserved in the early Miocene Lerín Formation, is described by Díaz-Martínez et al..
A new ichnospecies, Koreananornis lii, from the Lower Cretaceous avian track locality in the Guanshan area, Yongjing County, Gansu Province, northwest China, is described by Xing, Buckley, Lockley, Zhang, Marty, Wang, Li, McCrea et Peng, 2016..
An avian egg from the Lower Cretaceous Liangtoutang Formation is described by Lawver et al. and named Pachycorioolithus jinyunensis oogen. et oosp. nov. within Pachycorioolithidae oofam. nov.
Three pellets with bird remains are described from the Eocene Messel pit by Mayr & Schaal, who interpret two of the pellets as probably produced by snakes or other squamates, and one as probable owl pellet, possibly produced by the owl Palaeoglaux artophoron.
Description of a new specimen of Gladocephaloideus jingangshanensis and a study of the phylogenetic relationships of this species is published by Lü, Kundrát & Shen.
New information on the braincase anatomy of Pterodaustro guinazui is published by Codorniú, Paulina-Carabajal & Gianechini.
