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137 results in Palaeontology and life history

Page 1 of 7

Earth History
  • Stories of Our Geological Past
  • Peter Copeland, Janok P. Bhattacharya
  • Published online:
    29 April 2025
    Print publication:
    01 May 2025
  • Providing a new approach to Earth history, this engaging undergraduate textbook highlights key episodes in the history of our planet and uses them to explain the most important concepts in geology. Rather than presenting exhaustive descriptions of each period of geological time, this conceptual approach shows how geologists use multiple strands of evidence to build up an understanding of the geological past, focusing on exciting events like the extinction of the dinosaurs and the formation of the Grand Canyon and the Himalaya. Beginning with an introduction to geology, tectonics, and the origin of the Universe, subsequent chapters chronicle defining moments in Earth history in an accessible narrative style. Each chapter draws on a variety of sub-disciplines, including stratigraphy, paleontology, petrology, geochemistry, and geophysics, to provide students who have little or no previous knowledge of geology with a broad understanding of our planet and its fascinating history.

Dinosaurs
  • A Concise Natural History
  • 4th edition
  • David E. Fastovsky, David B. Weishampel
  • Illustrated by John Sibbick
  • Published online:
    18 August 2021
    Print publication:
    01 July 2021
  • The ideal textbook for non-science majors, this lively and engaging introduction encourages students to ask questions, assess data critically and think like a scientist. Building on the success of previous editions, Dinosaurs has been thoroughly updated to include new discoveries in the field, such as the toothed bird specimens found in China and recent discoveries of dinosaur soft anatomy. Illustrations by leading paleontological illustrator John Sibbick and new, carefully-chosen photographs, clearly show how dinosaurs looked, lived and their role in Earth history. Making science accessible and relevant through clear explanations and extensive illustrations, the text guides students through the dinosaur groups, emphasizing scientific concepts rather than presenting endless facts. Grounded in the common language of modern evolutionary biology – phylogenetic systematics – students learn to think about dinosaurs the way that professional paleontologists do.

Biological Evolution
  • An Introduction
  • Mike Cassidy
  • Published online:
    06 November 2020
    Print publication:
    19 November 2020
  • Biological evolution, the theory of natural selection and of common descent, is a triumph both of human reasoning and scientific undertaking. The biological discipline of evolution contains both a chronicle of human endeavour and the story of life on Earth. This book is concerned with living forms and how they developed from 'simple and unpromising beginnings'. It considers evolution as both process and product. The author, an experienced teacher and educator, employs a historical narrative, used to convey the idea of 'change with modification' and to emphasise the relevance of evolution to contemporary bioscience. Biological evolution has now become part of the scientific orthodoxy and this accessible text will assist undergraduate students in the biological sciences within any ongoing debate.

Applied Palaeontology
  • Robert Wynn Jones
  • Published online:
    13 September 2019
    Print publication:
    04 May 2006
  • This book was first published in 2006. Palaeontology has developed from a descriptive science to an analytical science used to interpret relationships between earth and life history. Applied Palaeontology adopts a holistic, integrated approach to palaeontology, highlighting its key role in the study of the evolving earth, life history and environmental processes. After an introduction to fossils and their classification, each of the principal fossil groups are studied in detail, covering their biology, morphology, classification, palaeobiology and biostratigraphy. The latter sections focus on the applications of fossils in the interpretation of earth and life processes and environments. It concludes with case histories of how our knowledge of fossils is applied, in industry and elsewhere. This is a valuable reference for anyone involved in the applications of palaeontology, including earth, life and environmental scientists, and petroleum, minerals, mining and engineering professionals.

Introduction to Plant Fossils
  • 2nd edition
  • Christopher J. Cleal, Barry A. Thomas
  • Published online:
    28 June 2019
    Print publication:
    27 June 2019
  • Plant remains can preserve a critical part of history of life on Earth. While telling the fascinating evolutionary story of plants and vegetation across the last 500 million years, this book also crucially offers non-specialists a practical guide to studying, dealing with and interpreting plant fossils. It shows how various techniques can be used to reveal the secrets of plant fossils and how to identify common types, such as compressions and impressions. Incorporating the concepts of evolutionary floras, this second edition includes revised data on all main plant groups, the latest approaches to naming plant fossils using fossil-taxa and techniques such as tomography. With extensive illustrations of plant fossils and living plants, the book encourages readers to think of fossils as once-living organisms. It is written for students on introductory or intermediate courses in palaeobotany, palaeontology, plant evolutionary biology and plant science, and for amateurs interested in studying plant fossils.

Rates of Evolution
  • A Quantitative Synthesis
  • Philip D. Gingerich
  • Published online:
    29 April 2019
    Print publication:
    09 May 2019
  • How fast is evolution, and why does it matter? The rate of evolution, and whether it is gradual or punctuated, is a hotly debated topic among biologists and paleontologists. This book compiles and compares examples of evolution from laboratory, field, and fossil record studies, analyzing them to extract their underlying rates. It concludes that while change is slow when averaged over many generations, on a generation-to-generation time scale, evolution is rapid. Chapters cover the history of evolutionary studies, from Lamarck and Darwin in the nineteenth century to the present day. An overview of the statistics of variation, dynamics of random walks, processes of natural selection and random drift, and effects of scale and time averaging are also provided, along with methods for the analysis of evolutionary time series. Containing case studies and worked examples, this book is ideal for advanced students and researchers in paleontology, biology, and anthropology.

A Fossil History of Southern African Land Mammals
  • D. Margaret Avery
  • Published online:
    22 April 2019
    Print publication:
    28 March 2019
  • This reference provides comprehensive information on the taxonomy and distribution in time and space of all currently recognized southern African fossil mammals. After an introductory background chapter on southern Africa, mammals, sites and dating, the following chapters are presented by epoch, covering the Eocene, Miocene, Pliocene, Pleistocene and Holocene. Individual maps provide information on where in the landscape specific taxa have been found, and a comprehensive index lists all the fauna and site locations. The book ends with a chapter on how the book can be used, and lines of future research. Collecting a vast amount of information together in an accessible format, this is an essential reference for non-specialist taxonomists and palaeontologists, as well as for those using fossil data for other applications, such as archaeology, neontology and nature conservation. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.

Dinosaurs
  • A Concise Natural History
  • 3rd edition
  • David E. Fastovsky, David B. Weishampel
  • Illustrated by John Sibbick
  • Published online:
    01 February 2019
    Print publication:
    28 November 2016
  • The ideal textbook for non-science majors, this lively and engaging introduction encourages students to ask questions, assess data critically and think like a scientist. Building on the success of the previous editions, Dinosaurs has been reorganised and extensively rewritten in response to instructor and student feedback. It continues to make science accessible and relevant through its clear explanations and extensive illustrations. Updated to reflect recent fossil discoveries and to include new taxa, the text guides students through the dinosaur groups, emphasising scientific concepts rather than presenting endless facts. It is grounded in the common language of modern evolutionary biology - phylogenetic systematics - so that students examine dinosaurs as professional paleontologists do. The key emerging theme of feathered dinosaurs, and the many implications of feathers, have been integrated throughout the book, highlighted by the inclusion of stunning new photographs in this beautifully illustrated text, now in full colour throughout.

Evolution and Development of Fishes
  • Edited by Zerina Johanson, Charlie Underwood, Martha Richter
  • Published online:
    31 December 2018
    Print publication:
    10 January 2019
  • Fish, or lower vertebrates, occupy the basal nodes of the vertebrate phylogeny, and are therefore crucial in interpreting almost every feature of more advanced vertebrates, including amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. Recent research focuses on combining evolutionary observations - primarily from the fish fossil record - with developmental data from living fishes, in order to better interpret evolutionary history and vertebrate phylogeny. This book highlights the importance of this research in the interpretation of vertebrate evolution, bringing together world-class palaeontologists and biologists to summarise the most interesting, current and cutting-edge topics in fish evolution and development. It will be an invaluable tool for researchers in early vertebrate palaeontology and evolution, and those particularly interested in the interface between evolution and development.

The Evolution of Senescence in the Tree of Life
  • Edited by Richard P. Shefferson, Owen R. Jones, Roberto Salguero-Gómez
  • Published online:
    16 March 2017
    Print publication:
    23 February 2017
  • The existing theories on the evolution of senescence assume that senescence is inevitable in all organisms. However, recent studies have shown that this is not necessarily true. A better understanding of senescence and its underlying mechanisms could have far-reaching consequences for conservation and eco-evolutionary research. This book is the first to offer interdisciplinary perspectives on the evolution of senescence in many species, setting the stage for further developments. It brings together new insights from a wide range of scientific fields and cutting-edge research done on a multitude of different animals (including humans), plants and microbes, giving the reader a complete overview of recent developments and of the controversies currently surrounding the topic. Written by specialists from a variety of disciplines, this book is a valuable source of information for students and researchers interested in ageing and life history traits and populations.

Monograph on the Lias Ammonites of the British Islands
  • Volume 2, Parts 5-8
  • Thomas Wright
  • Published online:
    05 June 2016
    Print publication:
    27 April 2015
    First published in:
    1878
  • Born in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Thomas Wright (1809–84) pursued medical, anatomical and surgical studies, and from 1832 spent the rest of his life in Cheltenham, where he worked as a medical officer and as surgeon to the Cheltenham General Hospital and Dispensary. The fossils he collected from the Jurassic rocks of the neighbourhood led him to publish a series of works, including monographs on the British Jurassic and Cretaceous echinoids (also reissued in this series). Reissued in two volumes, the present work originally appeared in eight parts between 1878 and 1886. Wright died before the final part was completed; this was accomplished from his notes by Thomas Wiltshire. As well as descriptions of fossils, there is a comprehensive stratigraphic section, an account of 'the structure and classification of the Cephalopoda', and a comprehensive 'analysis of the families and genera of the fossil Cephalopoda' by Wiltshire. The work contains nearly ninety exquisite lithographic plates.

Monograph on the British Fossil Echinodermata from the Cretaceous Formations
  • The Echinoidea
  • Thomas Wright
  • Published online:
    05 June 2016
    Print publication:
    30 April 2015
    First published in:
    1864
  • Thomas Wright (1809–84) was a leading nineteenth-century monographer of the Mesozoic echinoderms ('spiny-skinned animals') of the British Isles. The task of describing the British Cretaceous echinoids (sea urchins) was originally to be undertaken by Edward Forbes (1815–54), but his untimely death thrust the responsibility onto Wright. This project was made the more difficult when the accumulated specimens of Forbes disappeared after his death. Fortunately, the British Cretaceous is particularly rich in echinoids which have always been attractive to collectors, so many other sources were available for study. In particular, this work is dominated by the sea urchins of the Chalk, which are diverse, commonly well preserved and sometimes bizarre in morphology. Originally published in ten parts between 1864 and 1882, Wright's text is further enhanced by a suite of fine lithographic plates, mainly by Charles R. Bone (1808–75), who unfortunately died before completion of the project.

Description of the Fossil Remains of Mollusca Found in the Chalk of England
  • Cephalopoda
  • Daniel Sharpe
  • Published online:
    05 June 2016
    Print publication:
    27 April 2015
  • The geologist Daniel Sharpe (1806–56) is best remembered for his pioneering work on cleavage and the effects of tectonics on fossils. Tragically, having just been elected President of the Geological Society of London, he died following a riding accident. The Late Cretaceous Chalk Group contains a rich diversity of cephalopods, including many heteromorph ammonites. The oldest parts of the Chalk, formerly known as the Lower Chalk, yield the greatest diversity of ammonites and nautiloids, whereas the younger parts commonly have belemnites. Originally issued between 1853 and 1857, Sharpe's monograph describes and beautifully illustrates ammonites, nautiloids and belemnites, bringing together new taxa and those previously named by continental authors. A sign of its times, taxa are contained in few genera; for example, the ammonites are assigned to Ammonites. However, this problem is easily resolved by using this work in conjunction with Wright and Wright's 1950 revision.

Monograph on the Lias Ammonites of the British Islands
  • Volume 1, Parts 1-4
  • Thomas Wright
  • Published online:
    05 June 2016
    Print publication:
    27 April 2015
    First published in:
    1878
  • Born in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Thomas Wright (1809–84) pursued medical, anatomical and surgical studies, and from 1832 spent the rest of his life in Cheltenham, where he worked as a medical officer and as surgeon to the Cheltenham General Hospital and Dispensary. The fossils he collected from the Jurassic rocks of the neighbourhood led him to publish a series of works, including monographs on the British Jurassic and Cretaceous echinoids (also reissued in this series). Reissued in two volumes, the present work originally appeared in eight parts between 1878 and 1886. Wright died before the final part was completed; this was accomplished from his notes by Thomas Wiltshire. As well as descriptions of fossils, there is a comprehensive stratigraphic section, an account of 'the structure and classification of the Cephalopoda', and a comprehensive 'analysis of the families and genera of the fossil Cephalopoda' by Wiltshire. The work contains nearly ninety exquisite lithographic plates.

A Monograph of the Fossil Reptilia of the Liassic Formations
  • Richard Owen
  • Published online:
    05 June 2016
    Print publication:
    27 April 2015
    First published in:
    1861
  • Discoveries of fossil reptiles in the sea cliffs of south-western England helped to consolidate ideas of 'deep time' and extinction by revealing ancient worlds whose unfamiliar and bizarre inhabitants had no living counterparts. Many of these fossils were from the Lower and Upper Lias Groups, suites of rocks laid down in the shallow seas that covered much of southern England during the Early Jurassic period (around 201-174 million years ago). Sir Richard Owen (1804–92) was one of several anatomists who provided extensive descriptions of these animals. His monograph on the Liassic Reptilia (published in three parts in 1861–81) includes the first, and so far only, detailed description of the early armoured dinosaur Scelidosaurus (the first dinosaur known from an almost complete skeleton), an important account of Dimorphodon (the first flying reptile named from the United Kingdom), and critical information on two marine reptile groups, the plesiosaurs and ichthyosaurs.

A Monograph on the Fossil Reptilia of the Mesozoic Formations
  • Richard Owen
  • Published online:
    05 June 2016
    Print publication:
    30 April 2015
  • Sir Richard Owen (1804–92) produced a series of monographs on the fossil reptiles found in the Mesozoic and Tertiary rocks of the United Kingdom, describing a wide variety of fossil lizards, turtles, crocodiles, flying reptiles (pterosaurs), marine reptiles and dinosaurs, many of which were new to science and whose names remain in use today. Most of the monographs concentrated on faunas from specific geological formations, but the one Owen began writing as the last in this series, on the Mesozoic Formations (originally published in 1874–7 and gathered together in 1889) described material ranging from the Middle Jurassic through to the Early Cretaceous. It includes the first scientific description of a stegosaurian dinosaur (Omosaurus), which preceded the naming of Stegosaurus from the United States by two years, extensive notes on Jurassic and Cretaceous pterosaurs, and some of the earliest descriptions of the unusual air-filled vertebrae of sauropod dinosaurs.

Monograph on the Fossil Reptilia of the Wealden and Purbeck Formations
  • Richard Owen
  • Published online:
    05 June 2016
    Print publication:
    30 April 2015
  • Sir Richard Owen (1804–92) coined the term 'Dinosauria' in 1842 for the remains of three animals named from the Middle Jurassic and Early Cretaceous rocks of southern England: Megalosaurus, Iguanodon and Hylaeosaurus. In his monograph on the Wealden and Purbeck Reptilia (published in five parts with nine supplements in 1853–79) he confirms the distinctiveness of this newly recognised group, building on earlier work by Gideon Mantell and others. Owen also reviewed the other reptiles then known from these Early Cretaceous faunas, including turtles, crocodiles and lizards. This work initiated major interest in the earliest Cretaceous Purbeck Limestone Group fauna, which remains one of the most diverse small reptile faunas known from the Mesozoic, as well as consolidating the international importance of the Wealden Group in dinosaur studies. The monograph remains a benchmark for many of the species described, particularly the crocodiles and turtles.

A Monograph of British Belemnitidae
  • John Phillips
  • Published online:
    05 June 2016
    Print publication:
    02 July 2015
    First published in:
    1865
  • The nephew of William Smith, John Phillips (1800–1874) was also an influential geologist. Professor of Geology at Oxford, and in part founder of the Oxford University Museum, he notably proposed the three main eras: the Palaeozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic. Originally published between 1865 and 1870, this monograph was the first to attempt a review of British belemnites, and was influenced in part by the author's youthful studies of the Yorkshire Jurassic. During the mid-nineteenth century there were many developments in the study of this important fossil group, with the discovery of soft parts, and documentation of diverse faunas across Europe. Phillips' work complemented these advances. Though he died before completing the Cretaceous section, the monograph covers many of the most important species (though, as was common at the time, restricted to the genus Belemnites in the broad sense). It remains a starting point for any study of British belemnites.

A Monograph of the Ammonites of the Inferior Oolite Series
  • Volume 1, Parts 1-6
  • Sydney Savory Buckman
  • Published online:
    05 September 2015
    Print publication:
    30 April 2015
    First published in:
    1887
  • Originally issued between 1887 and 1907, this monograph by Sydney Savory Buckman (1860–1929) remains the most comprehensive record of British Aalenian to Lower Bajocian ammonites. Reissued here in two volumes, it features superb, accurately drawn illustrations, with some photography. Buckman's early ideas on biochronological subdivision and zonal succession are presented along with refinements in the supplement based on later research. Exhaustive descriptions of numerous morphospecies are given, many prepared when Buckman resided in Dorset and was thoroughly familiar with the local succession. He observed that it was possible to further subdivide strata beyond the zonal scheme of the day. This work laid the foundations for further writings on natural evolutionary classification and time-rock duality. Unfortunately, the monograph was discontinued before the remaining part concerning the Lower to Upper Bajocian and Lower Bathonian was completed. Nevertheless, it remains essential reading for establishing an understanding of Inferior Oolite ammonites.

A Monograph on the British Fossil Echinodermata of the Oolitic Formations
  • Volume 2
  • Thomas Wright
  • Published online:
    05 September 2015
    Print publication:
    19 March 2015
    First published in:
    1863
  • Urged by his colleague Edward Forbes, Thomas Wright (1809–84) devoted himself to completing this monograph of the echinoderms ('spiny-skinned animals') of Britain's Oolitic formations. These would be referred to as Middle Jurassic by the modern geologist. This is a notable contribution, describing as it does the echinoderms following a major stratigraphic gap. In the British Isles, apart from some minor occurrences in the Permian and Lower Jurassic, echinoderms are almost entirely absent from the Lower Carboniferous (Mississippian), a period we now know to represent 150 million years. Although common and diverse elsewhere during this interval, the British Oolitic echinoderms show many changes from those of the Mississippian. Wright's two-volume monograph includes thorough descriptions and locality details, all supported by beautiful plates. Volume 2, originally published in three parts between 1863 and 1880, considers those most beautiful of invertebrates, the asteroids (starfishes) and ophiuroids (brittle stars) of the Middle Jurassic.

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