Introducing Palaeontology

Jackson Patrick Wyse

Description

Life on Earth can be traced back over three billion years into the past. Many examples of the Earths former inhabitants are to be found in rocks, preserved as beautiful and fascinating fossils. The earliest life forms were bacteria and algae; these produced the oxygen that enabled more complex life forms to develop. About 600 million years ago multi-cellular organisms appeared on Earth, some of which could protect themselves with hard parts such as shells. Many of these life forms were readily fossilized and are used to subdivide geological time. Numerous species have evolved and most are now extinct. Lineages can be traced and extinctions explained as a consequence of terrestrial and extra-terrestrial events.Now in a revised, updated and expanded Second Edition Introducing Palaeontology will continue to provide readers with a concise and accessible introduction to the science of palaeontology.

Sujets

• Sciences et techniques
• Paleontology

Informations

• Publié par: Dunedin Academic Press
• Date de parution: 01 novembre 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781780466200
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 10 Mo

Extrait

Introducing Palaeontology
A Guide to Ancient Life
Second Edition
Patrick N. Wyse Jackson
With illustrations by John Murray
Contents
Acknowledgements
Note on illustrations
Suggested additional reading and further information
Note to the second edition
Part 1: The science of palaeontology
1.1 Preface: the fascination of fossils
1.2 A chancy business: the preservation of fossils
1.3 From the field to the laboratory: how to collect, curate, study and image fossils
1.4 Code of conduct for fossil collectors
1.5 Taxonomy: how to classify and identify fossils
1.6 Uses of fossils
1.6.1 Palaeobiological history of life on Earth
1.6.2 Evolution and extinctions
1.6.3 Interpretation of ancient environments and climates
1.6.4 Biostratigraphy and the concept of zone fossils
1.6.5 Development of the geological timescale
1.7 Fossil Lagerstätten: exceptional preservation of fossils
1.8 Colour in fossils
1.9 Early ideas on the nature and significance of fossils
Part 2: Fossil groups
2.1 Algae and vascular plants
2.2 Unicellular animals: Foraminifera and Radiolarians
2.3 Sponges
2.4 Cnidaria
2.5 Bryozoans
2.6 Molluscs
2.6.1 Cephalopods
2.6.2 Gastropods
2.6.3 Bivalves
2.6.4 Other Molluscs
2.7 Brachiopoda
2.8 Echinodermata
2.8.1 Echinoids and Edrioasteroids
2.8.2 Crinoids and Blastoids
2.8.3 Starfish, Brittlestars and Homalozoans
2.9 Arthropods
2.9.1 Trilobites
2.9.2 Crustaceans (Crabs, Shrimps and Ostracods)
2.9.3 Chelicerates (Horseshoe Crabs, Eurypterids and Spiders)
2.9.4 Myriapods
2.9.5 Insects
2.10 Graptolites
2.11 Conodonts
2.12 Fishes
2.13 Tetrapods and Amphibians
2.14 Reptiles
2.15 Birds
2.16 Mammals
2.17 Hominids and Hominins
2.18 Trace Fossils
Glossary
Acknowledgements
I have received advice and assistance from many quarters during the preparation of this book and in particular thank Charles Holland for his long-standing encouragement of my palaeontological endeavors and Anthony Kinahan for his enthusiastic support of this project. I am most grateful to a number of colleagues and friends who all kindly made images available for this book, and thank in particular John Murray (Earth and Ocean Sciences, NUI Galway) whose artistic ability and palaeontological expertise has contributed greatly to this book. Úna Farrell (TCD) and John Murray commented critically on the first edition for which I am most grateful. I owe a considerable debt of gratitude to both Maria McNamara (UCC) who provided the bulk of the text on ‘Colour in fossils’, and to John Murray for updating the ‘Hominids and Hominins’ section. I thank Anne Morton and David McLeod for their help in preparing this book for the press, and Euan Clarkson for his helpful suggestions.
Photographs or diagrams were supplied by Declan Burke ( 12 , 48D , 74B ), Neil Clark ( 83C ), Geoffrey Clayton ( 34A , 47 ), Patricio Dominguez Alonso ( 74C ), Gareth Dyke ( 39B , 98 ), Andrej Ernst ( 7B , 39A , C , 91 ), Russell Garwood ( 9C – E ), John Graham ( 106A ), Sarah Heal ( 34B ), Charles Holland ( 16B ), Marcus Key ( 27A , 28 , 56B ), Uta Kiel/Forschungsinstitut Senckenberg, Germany ( 43 ), Jonathan Larwood/Natural England ( 10B ), Alf Lenz ( 82B – D ), Maria McNamara/Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Madrid ( 42 ), John Murray ( 15 , 21 , 25 , 26 , 30 , 51A – B , 52D , 53 , 55 , 57 , 59B – C , 61 , 63 , 66 , 70 , 72A – C , 73 left, 75 , 81 , 83A , 103 ), Chris Nicholas ( 16A , 17B – C , 18 , 19 , 20 , 80C ), John Nudds ( 17A , 41 , 87A ), Aodhan O Gogain ( 9A ), Matthew Parkes ( 88 ), Colin Prosser/Natural England ( 10A ), Jeremy Stone ( 83B ), Adam Stuart Smith ( 92 ), Mark Wilson ( 3 , 24 , 37B – D , 38C , 46B , 52A , 54D , 62B , 64D , 65 , 69 , 71F , 106B ), Patrick Wyse Jackson ( 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 , 7A , 8 , 9B , 13 , 14 , 22 , 23 , 27B , 29 , 33 , 35 , 36 , 38A – B , 40 , 44 , 46A , C – E , 48A – C , 49 , 52B – C , 54A – C , 56A , C – E , 58 , 59 , 60 , 64A – C , 71A – E , 72D , 73 right, 74A , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79A , 80A – B , 82A , 85 , 86 , 87B , 89 , 93 , 94 , 95 , 96 , 97 , 100 , 101 , 102 , 107 ). I warmly thank Susanna Wyse Jackson who skilfully redrafted a number of figures.

Note on illustrations
Most of the specimens illustrated are in the collections of the Geological Museum, Trinity College, Dublin. Some specimens were photographed during visits to other museums which are indicated by the following acronyms: AMHM: American Museum of Natural History, New York; CMNHS: Cincinnati Museum of Natural History and Science; FOSP: Falls of the Ohio State Park Interpretive Center; JMMG: James Mitchell Museum, University College, Galway, LNHM: Lausanne Natural History Museum; TMP: Transvaal Museum, Pretoria. The dates given on the International Chronostratigraphic Chart ( www.stratigraphy.com ) (Figure 14) are those published in 2018.
Note: all terms highlighted in bold are defined in the Glossary at the end of the book. Where appropriate figure captions show the scale of magnification of the fossil illustrated using the style [×nn] to indicate the scale.

Suggested additional reading and further information
The following books provide more detail on geology and many of the groups and topics covered in this book:
Benton, M. J. 2015. Vertebrate Palaeontology. Wiley Blackwell, Chichester.
Benton, M.J. and Harper, D.A.T. 2009. Introduction to Palaeobiology and the Fossil Record . Wiley Blackwell, Chichester.
Briggs, D.E.G. and Crowther, P.R. (eds). 1990. Palaeobiology: a synthesis. Blackwell Publishing, Oxford.
Briggs, D.E.G. and Crowther, P.R. (eds). 2001. Palaeobiology II. Blackwell Publishing, Oxford.
Clarkson, E.N.K. 1998. Invertebrate Palaeontology and Evolution. Blackwell Publishing, Oxford.
MacLeod, N. 2015. The Great Extinctions: what causes them and how they shape life. Firefly Books, Ontario.
Nudds, J.R. and Selden, P.A. 2013. Fossil Ecosystems of North America: A guide to the sites and their extraordinary biotas. CRC Press, London.
Park, G. 2010. Introducing Geology – A Guide to the World of Rocks. Dunedin Academic Press, Edinburgh.
Prothero, D.R. 2015. 25 fossils: tales of intrepid fossil hunters and the wonders of evolution. Columbia University Press, New York.
Selden, P.A. and Nudds, J.R. 2012. Evolution of Fossil Ecosystems. CRC Press, London.
Stringer, C. and Andrews, P. 2012. The Complete World of Human Evolution . Thames and Hudson, London.
Taylor, P.D. and O’Dea, A. 2015. A history of life in 100 fossils . Natural History Museum, London.
In addition there are many good guides available from commercial publishers, which can be used profitably to identify your fossil finds. Various societies include the Palaeontological Association ( www.palass.org ) and the Paleontological Society ( www.paleosoc.org ). Many organisations also exist for those interested in individual fossil groups, amongst them the International Bryozoology Association (bryozoans), the Pander Society (conodonts), and Commission Internationale de Microflore du Paléozoique (palynology and spores). There are many specialist journals that publish research on fossils, including Acta Palaeontologia Polonica, Alchingera, Journal of Paleontology, Lethaia, Palaeontology, Palaios, and Paleobiology. The former two concentrate largely on systematics and taxonomy, while the latter two focus on functional morphology, ecology, and interactions between fossils and their environment. Ichnos publishes research on trace fossils. The Palaeontographical Society has since 1847 published monographs on the palaeontology of Britain and Ireland and these remain standards for the identification of many fossils. Many geological surveys, as well as local scientific societies and groups, publish valuable guides to local geology and palaeontology. Of these, the Fossil Focus leaflets published by the British Geological Survey are most attractive. National and local geological museums can also provide assistance to collectors and students alike.

Note to the second edition
The text has been revised and updated taking into account the comments of reviewers and colleagues. New or augmented sections highlight recent findings on early life, colour in fossils, the molecular timescale, and virtual imaging of fossils. The geological timescale has been updated according to the 2018 International Chronostratigraphic Chart published by the International Commission on Stratigraphy.
Part 1
The science of palaeontology

1.1 Preface: the fascination of fossils
Fossils are the remains of plants and animals that lived in the past, and which are now frequently, but not necessarily always, preserved in stone. They may be found either as body fossils ( Figure 1 ) which represent all or parts of the organism, or as trace fossils ( Figure 2 ) which indicate the activities of the past organisms. Many years ago the term ‘fossil’ referred to anything that had been dug up, but now it is restricted to the remains of ancient organisms. Roman coins, old leather boots, and deposits of lead and zinc are not fossils, but trilobites and dinosaur eggs are. The study of fossils is called palaeontology and scientists who study fossils are called palaeontologists. The subject is generally studied as part of geology, the science that investigates the structure and history of the Earth and now adjacent planets.
This book has been written with two groups of readers in mind. Many members of the general public will be aware of fossils; those of Missouri in the USA are proud that crinoids are their State Fossil, but I suspect few residents of that State have a real grasp of the significance and nature of fossils. It is hoped that this book will develop and enhance the fascination of fossils amongst the general public. The book is also intended for first and second-year university students taking courses in geology, biology and palaeontology.

Figure 1 The ammonites Promicroceras planicosta and Asteroceras obtusum from the Low