Fossil taxa described in 2022

Syllipsimopodi is an extinct member of the cephalopod subclass Coleoidea originally interpreted to belong to the clade Vampyropoda, which includes octopuses (Octopoda) and vampire squids (Vampyromorphida). The type and only known species is Syllipsimopodi bideni, named in honor of US President Joe Biden, and to raise awareness of his climate change policies. The holotype fossil was found in the Bear Gulch Limestone deposit in the US state of Montana in 1988, and donated that year to the Royal Ontario Museum by B. Hawes, designated ROMIP 64897. The species lived during the (Carboniferous) Mississippian subperiod, 330.3 to 323.4 million years ago, pushing back the group of cephalopods by 81.9 million years.

Dearc (dearc) is a genus of large-bodied rhamphorhynchine pterosaur from the Middle Jurassic Lealt Shale Formation of Scotland. The holotype, a juvenile or subadult that was still actively growing, has an estimated wingspan of 2.5 to 3 meters, making it the largest flying animal of its time. This pushes the origin of large pterosaurs back significantly, as it was previously assumed that pterosaurs did not reach greater body sizes until the short-tailed pterodactyloid lineages of the Cretaceous. The genus contains a single species, Dearc sgiathanach (dearc sgiathanach).

Vigilosaurus is an extinct genus of archosauriform reptile from the Permian-aged Guodikeng Formation of Xinjiang, China. It contains a single species, V. gaochangensis.

Lutavis (meaning "clay bird") is an extinct genus of potentially afroavian bird from the Early Eocene London Clay Formation of Essex, United Kingdom. The genus contains a single species, L. platypelvis, known from a partial skeleton.

Yatenavis (meaning "stone bird") is an extinct genus of enantiornithine bird from the Late Cretaceous Chorrillo Formation of Santa Cruz Province, Argentina. The genus contains a single species, Y. ieujensis, known from a partial humerus.

Natovenator is a genus of halszkaraptorine dromaeosaurid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous Barun Goyot Formation of Mongolia. The genus is known from a single species, N. polydontus. Natovenator is crucial to the understanding of halszkaraptorines due to it providing more support for the semi-aquatic lifestyle that has been proposed for this clade. This discovery is important as the semi-aquatic lifestyles of halszkaraptorines (mainly Halszkaraptor) was contested in early 2022.

Transylvanosaurus (meaning "lizard from across the forest") is an extinct genus of rhabdodontid ornithopod dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) Hateg Basin of Romania. The type species is Transylvanosaurus platycephalus, known from a fragmentary skull.

Leviathanochelys is an extinct genus of giant sea turtle from the Middle Campanian of northern Spain. Although only known from the rear end of the carapace and the connecting pubic bones, these elements clearly show that they belonged to a turtle of great size, comparable in dimensions to the giant Archelon and Protostega from the Western Interior Seaway of the USA. This makes Leviathanochelys the first giant sea turtle known from Europe and one of the largest known turtles of all time. This great size was evolved independently from the American protostegid turtles and was likely an adaptation to the conditions of the Cretaceous oceans covering much of Europe. Being classified in the superfamily Chelonioidea, Leviathanochelys is likely more closely related to modern sea turtles (families Dermochelyidae and Cheloniidae) than the protostegids, which are thought to be more basal and have a more uncertain relationship to modern sea turtles. Leviathanochelys is thought to have been a pelagic animal. The genus contains a single species, Leviathanochelys aenigmatica.

Puercosuchus (translated literally as "Puerco River crocodile") is an extinct genus of archosauromorph reptile from the Late Triassic (Norian) of what is now Arizona, North America. It includes only the type species P. traverorum, and was described and named in 2022. Puercosuchus is known mainly from two bonebeds in the Blue Mesa Member of the Chinle Formation, preserving the mixed remains of multiple individuals in each one representing almost the entire skeleton. It is a member of the Azendohsauridae, a clade of Triassic reptiles that was initially recognised by adaptations for herbivory. However, Puercosuchus and its close relatives in the subclade Malerisaurinae retained the carnivorous diet and body form ancestral to archosauromorphs. Unlike non-malerisaurine azendohsaurids, Puercosuchus had a long and shallow snout with sharp, blade-like teeth similar to those of carnivorous dinosaurs. Despite its seemingly ancestral morphology and ecology, Puercosuchus is the youngest known genus of azendohsaurid in the world. The discovery of Puercosuchus allowed palaeontologists to recognise similar bones and teeth that had been collected from Late Triassic southwestern North America in the past as belonging to it or similar animals, acting as a sort of "rosetta stone" for malerisaurine azendohsaurid anatomy.

Auroralumina (from Latin aurōra "dawn", lūmina "lights") is a genus of cnidarian from the Ediacaran of Charnwood Forest, comprising the single species Auroralumina attenboroughii. It is the earliest known crown-group cnidarian, and also the earliest known animal predator.