Bahndwicivi is
based on FMNH PR2260, a skeleton collected from the Thompson Ranch Locality of the
Fossil Butte Member of the Green River Formation. It was described in
2006 by Jack Conrad. The
type species is
B. ammoskius. The genus name means "handsome in the water" in
Shoshoni, a reference both to the animal's possible semiaquatic lifestyle and to the
Shoshone people who once lived in the area. The specific name is a combination of the
Ancient Greek words for sandy (
ammos) and shade (
skia), referring to its habitat. FMNH PR2260 is more or less complete, primarily lacking some bones from the rear of the skull. The skeleton is well-articulated, with numerous rows of
osteoderms remaining in place beneath the tail, but is somewhat flattened. The animal appears to have been an adult when it died. It differs from
Shinisaurus in a few details. For example, FMNH PR2260 had a proportionally longer snout and an additional tooth in the
upper jaw, and its
postorbital and
postfrontal bones were not fused. ==Paleoecology==