... that in the first scientific study of fossils in English, William Martin speculated that horn coral(pictured) was a kind of bamboo and said another fossil was not a small crocodile tail?
... that the extinct ant Agroecomyrmex duisburgi(head pictured) was first described in 1868?
... that the entire Arostropsis weevil genus is known from only one specimen, which is 45 million years old?
... that over the course of the history of stegosaur research, their iconicback plates have been thought to function as armor plating, to regulate body temperature, or to attract mates?
... that Mesotherium ("middle beast") (skull pictured) was so named because its discoverer believed it was an intermediate between rodents and pachyderms?
... that Bambolinetta was probably the only duck species to propel itself underwater with its wings, like a penguin?
...that the prehistoric marine reptile Excalibosaurus(pictured) was named after King Arthur's sword because of the sword-like appearance of its upper jaw?
... that the extinct ant Anochetus lucidus is named for its shiny exoskeleton?
... that the recently described extinct penguinInkayacu from the Eocene of Peru is postulated to have had gray and reddish brown feathers, unlike the black and white feathers of living penguins?
... that Ocepeia (pictured), a 60-million-year-old afrotherianmammal, is named after a Moroccan mining company?
... that Electrinocellia peculiaris is named for the Latin "electrum" meaning amber, "Inocellia", the type genus for Inocelliidae, and "peculiaris" for the enigmatic nature of the species?
... that Adolf Carl Noé challenged disbelief in the possibility of North American coal balls(example pictured) by presenting a wheelbarrow full of them?
...that the discovery of Icadyptes salasi, a prehistoric five-foot-tall penguin in Peru, has caused scientists to reconsider the timeline of penguin evolution?
... that the Cretaceous snakeflyNecroraphidia arcuata takes its name, in part, from the Latin word for "bent" and the Greek word for "dead"?
... that the fossil maple Acer taurocursum is named for its type locality, the "Bull Run flora"?
... that paleontologistGerta Keller theorizes that dinosaurs did not become extinct until 300,000 years after the Chicxulub meteor, though she agrees that "I'm sure the day after, they had a headache"?
... that one species of the extinct Eocene bulldog ant Ypresiomyrma reached up to 25 millimetres (0.98 in) in length?
... that the discovery of the fossil of Shenshou, a squirrel-like early mammal from the Tiaojishan Formation, pushed the origin of mammals back to the Late Triassic, 220 million to 200 million years ago?
... that Gustava Aigner made the first discovery of graptolites in the northern greywacke zone of the Alps, with her former fellow student, Ida Peltzmann, who named two species for her?
... that the extinct sumacRhus rooseae was described from fossils over 35 million years old?
...that the prehistoric mammalYanoconodon(pictured) was a Eutriconodont, a group of early, ancestral mammals that in some cases, grew so big they were able to eat small dinosaurs?
... that dental similarities in Afrotarsius, an African fossil primate, and Afrasia, a newly described fossil primate from Myanmar, add support to the hypothesis that simians first evolved in Asia?
... that before modern paleontology came about, fossils of Encrinus went by a number of names in Germany, including "sun wheels", "Saint Boniface's pennies", and "witches' money"?
... that the extinct witchalder Fothergilla malloryi(pictured) is the oldest confirmed member of the genus Fothergilla?
... that the flat-headed crocodilian relative Aegisuchus had a circular projection on top of its skull that may have served as an eyespot in mating displays?
...that the type specimen of Dromicosuchus had damage to its jaw and neck that may have been inflicted by the teeth of the large carnivore it was found underneath?
...that though no fossil grasses have been discovered, the earliest-known grassland ecosystem, the 30+ million-year-old Tinguiririca fauna of Chile, can be detected through the grazers' teeth?
... that the only known specimen of the early crocodile relativeStegomosuchus was kept in the discoverer's yard for several years before being given over for study?
... that as recently as 500 years ago, the island of Madagascar was inhabited by giant lemurs, referred to as subfossil lemurs, that weighed between 10 and 200 kg (22 and 441 lb)?
...that although no fossils of the extinct Malagasy Hippopotamus have been dated within the last 1,000 years, villagers in Madagascar described a similar creature still alive as recently as 1976?
... that one species of the extinct bivalve Similodonta was found in 108.90 metres (357.3 ft) down a Welsh borehole?
...that the discovery of Lazarussuchus showed that choristoderes, a type of aquatic reptile, had not gone extinct in the Eocene, but persisted for millions of years after?
... that although the giant fossa, formerly one of the top carnivores of Madagascar, is thought to be extinct, there is some anecdotal evidence of very large living fossas?
... that ants of the extinct genus Haidomyrmex could possibly open their mandibles to almost twice their head size?
... that with a 150-millimetre (5.9 in) wingspan, Sinomeganeura is small for the Griffenfly family Meganeuridae, known for species with spans over 700 millimetres (28 in)?
... that the family placement for the fossil moth genus Dominickus was not noticed until entomologistNorman Tindale was looking at pictures of modern moths from Australia?
... that, in one study on the aetosaurRedondasuchus, the orientation of a diagram in the paper may have contributed to the misidentification of its holotype as a left scute rather than a right?
... that Augustasaurus' name comes from the mountain range of northwestern Nevada, where its fossilized bones were first discovered?
... that the powerful teeth and jaws of Heliopithecus may have played a key role in the spread of Hominoids from Africa into Eurasia, 17 million years ago?
... that Obamadon was an extinct lizard that was named after President Barack Obama as a tribute to his "role model of good oral hygiene for the world"?
... that the 150-million-year-old ink of the extinct, squid-like Belemnotheutis(artist's rendition pictured) was used to draw a picture that paleontologists called "the ultimate self portrait"?
... that although the first two fossils of Indraloris to be found were misidentified as a carnivoran and a loris, it is in fact a member of the extinct adapiform primates?
... that a group of Late Permian mammal relatives called Nanictidopidae(restoration pictured) may have eaten fruit because their small teeth were unsuitable for grinding most plant material?
... that the Red Deer Cave people are the youngest prehistoric people discovered who do not appear similar to modern humans?
... that the extinct ant Anochetus conisquamis is noted for having a nipple-shaped spine?
... that a new species of the extinct ant Archimyrmex was described in 2012?
... that although the prehistoric shark Nanocetorhinus is named for the resemblance of its teeth to miniature Cetorhinus teeth, there is no evidence the two genera are closely related?
... that Orsten, fossil-bearing lagerstätten in Sweden and elsewhere, are called "stinking stones" from organic content that has been preserved since the Cambrian Period?
... that fossils of the extinct bivalve family Praenuculidae have been found on every continent except Antarctica?
...that prehistoricfrogBeelzebufo may have grown to over 40 cm (16 in)*(size comparison pictured), larger than any living frogs, and is called "the Frog from Hell" by the media?
... that remains of the recently described saber-toothed anomodontTiarajudens were uncovered from a location in Brazil that was first found using Google Earth?
... that the name Pachylemur, now used for a type of extinct giant lemur, was first used as group name of primitive primates once considered intermediate between pachyderms and lemurs?
... that over 16 million years ago, four species of parrot in the genus Nelepsittacus made their home in subtropical rainforest in what is now Otago, New Zealand?
... that humans living next to a lake at the Bouri Formation in Ethiopia 160,000 and 154,000 years ago butchered not only adult Hippopotamuses but also those that were newborn?
... that it is unknown whether the dinosaur Nankangia was carnivorous or herbivorous?
... that Wushan Man, a species of Homo, was identified from a fossil jaw found south of the Yangtze River but is now thought to come from an extinct ape that lived in China two million years ago?
...that eighty years on, scientists are still debating whether the Palæozoicfossils known as Chitinozoans(SEM image pictured) represent plants, animals or eggs?
... that the first Columbian mammoth(artist's restoration pictured) found at the Snowmastodon site, an Ice Age fossil dig near Denver, was initially dug out by a construction worker using a bulldozer?
... that the fossil moss Rhizomnium dentatum is preserved in the same amber block as two other mosses and part of a centipede?
... that the 500-million-year-old Cambrian predator Hurdia was thought to be a number of separate organisms for 100 years, until the complete animal was reconstructed in March 2009?
... that the newly named extinct prawn Aciculopoda is the third unambiguous fossil decapod from before the Mesozoic?
... that the extinct ant Afropone was first described from fossils in kimberlite?
... that the discovery of the fossil giant ant Titanomyrma(pictured with a hummingbird) in Wyoming indicates that warmth-loving fauna spread through the north between Europe and America during hot spells in the Eocene?