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247 afleveringen, van nieuw naar oud
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Episode 109: Early Tetrapod Feeding Mechanics
1 mei 2020 · 46 min
Early tetrapods include the earliest animals to grow legs, and their closest ancestors. Moving from the water to land required a number of changes within the skeleton and muscular system, related to moving from swimming to crawling, greater pressure on the body after experiencing further effects of gravity without buoyancy, and the difference in feeding with and without water. This transition is commonly referred to as the 'water-to-land' transition. While a significant amount of work has been done on the anatomical changes through this period, there has been less study on the biomechanics. What has been looked at tends to relate to the mechanical changes related to walking on land and the limbs. However, less has been done looking at the skull mechanics and feeding. Lees meer
Early tetrapod work was pioneered by Professor Jenny Clack. She did a lot of early field work and description, understanding this transition better than anyone. Sadly, Professor Clack passed away in March, but has left behind a legacy of other professors, post docs and students around the globe which she inspired. In this episode, we talk to Dr Laura Porro from University College London about her work on early tetrapod feeding and skull mechanics, and how the skull changed over the water-to-land transition, work which was done with and inspired by Jenny.
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04/20 Announcement
18 april 2020 · 2 min
Updates about the show and discussion of recent events
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Episode 108: Plesiosaurs
1 maart 2020 · 54 min
Plesiosaurs are some of the most easily recognisable animals in the fossil record. Simply uttering the words 'Loch Ness Monster' can conjure a reasonably accurate image of what they look like. Thanks to palaeoart, it's also fairly easy to envision how they lived: swimming through the open Jurassic seas, picking fish, ammonites and belemnites out of the water. Lees meer
What we don't imagine are plesiosaurs at the South Pole, nor would we ever picture them swimming amongst icebergs or poking their heads out of holes in the ice to breathe. We'd never think to find them in freshwater either. Even more surprising is that the evidence for this radical vision of polar plesiosaurs is found preserved in the precious mineral opal.
In this interview, we're joined by Dr Benjamin Kear, Curator of Vertebrate Palaeontology at the Museum of Evolution, Uppsala University in Sweden. He paints for us a picture of life at the South Pole and the importance of polar habitats in driving the evolution of the plesiosaurs.
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Episode 107b: Nomenclature
2 februari 2020 · 36 min
Part 2. Lees meer
Names can provide a large amount of information about the heritage of an individual, the purpose of a product or even the characteristics of an organism. With so much in a name, are there rules governing what you can and can't name an animal? Can you name an animal after yourself or a celebrity? Can you sell the rights to a name? Which names are forbidden?
Every year 2,000 genera and some 15,000 species are added to scientific literature and providing the guidelines as to how these animals are named is the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN). We invited one of the ICZN's commissioners, Dr Markus Bertling (Universität Münster), on to the show to discuss how the organisation functions and how its code applies to Palaeontology.
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Episode 107a: Nomenclature
20 januari 2020 · 39 min
Names can provide a large amount of information about the heritage of an individual, the purpose of a product or even the characteristics of an organism. With so much in a name, are there rules governing what you can and can't name an animal? Can you name an animal after yourself or a celebrity? Can you sell the rights to a name? Which names are forbidden? Lees meer
Every year 2,000 genera and some 15,000 species are added to scientific literature and providing the guidelines as to how these animals are named is the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN). We invited one of the ICZN's commissioners, Dr Markus Bertling (Universität Münster), on to the show to discuss how the organisation functions and how its code applies to Palaeontology.
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Episode 106: Herpetology
1 januari 2020 · 58 min
Herpetology is the study of reptiles, amphibians and caecilians. This includes frogs, salamanders, crocodiles, snakes, lizards and tuatara, to name just a few. These cold-blooded tetrapods have an evolutionary history that reaches back to the Carboniferous. For many of these groups, questions remain about their evolutionary relationships and patterns of diversity through major extinction events. New fossil discoveries are helping address some of these outstanding mysteries. Lees meer
Prof. Susan Evans studies the evolution of 'herps' at University College London. She joins us in this episode to give an overview of the field, and the research she is carrying out with colleagues around the world. We explore the elusive origins of crown amphibians, and what recent fieldwork in Scotland could reveal about their emergence in the Jurassic.
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Episode 106: Herpetology
1 januari 2020 · 58 min
Herpetology is the study of reptiles, amphibians and caecilians. This includes frogs, salamanders, crocodiles, snakes, lizards and tuatara, to name just a few. These cold-blooded tetrapods have an evolutionary history that reaches back to the Carboniferous. For many of these groups, questions remain about their evolutionary relationships and patterns of diversity through major extinction events. New fossil discoveries are helping address some of these outstanding mysteries. Lees meer
Prof. Susan Evans studies the evolution of 'herps' at University College London. She joins us in this episode to give an overview of the field, and the research she is carrying out with colleagues around the world. We explore the elusive origins of crown amphibians, and what recent fieldwork in Scotland could reveal about their emergence in the Jurassic.
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Episode 105: Ferrodraco
15 november 2019 · 32 min
Australia has many fossils from all ages, including several dinosaurs known exclusively from this time and place. However, they are not well known for their pterosaur fossils, having only a handful of specimens, and up to now just two named species from this large continent. Last month, the most complete pterosaur from Australia was described, a new species called Ferrodraco lentoni. Lees meer
At the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology in Brisbane, Australia, we were able to sit down with Adele Pentland, lead author on the study published in Scientific Reports, to talk about this exciting new find. Adele is a PhD student at Swinburne University of Technology in Australia, and Research Associate at the Australian Age of Dinosaurs Natural History Museum.
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Episode 104: Ediacaran Developmental Biology
15 oktober 2019 · 56 min
The Ediacaran Period is host to the first large and complex multicellular organisms known in the fossil record. This 'Ediacaran Biota' has long eluded definitive placement on the tree of life, seemingly falling between even the most fundamental of its branches. At the core of this taxonomic issue are their unique body plans, not seen replicated in any other kingdom. Lees meer
Amongst the researchers trying to unravel the mystery of these organisms is Dr Frances Dunn of the University of Oxford. Frankie has been researching the developmental biology of the Ediacaran Biota in the hope that we can learn more from how these forms grew, as opposed to what they eventually grew into.
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Episode 103: Terror Birds
15 september 2019 · 41 min
Terror birds, or phorusrhacids as they are known scientifically, are a group of large, flightless birds that lived during the Cenozoic, and truly lived up to their name. Known for their large, powerful skulls, and enormous beaks, these birds are unlike the flightless birds we have alive today. Despite their strange appearance and unique morphology, terror birds aren't well known in popular culture. What were they doing? How big did they get? What did they eat? Lees meer
In this episode, we talk to a leading terror bird expert, Dr Federico "Dino" Degrange from the Centro de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Tierra (CICTERRA) in Córdoba, Argentina to get answers to these questions. We discuss some of his recent research, and what we know (and don't know) about phorusrhacids today.
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Episode 102b: Small Shelly Fossils
1 september 2019 · 34 min
Between the weird and wonderful rangeomorphs of the Ediacaran Period and the world-famous palaeocommunities of the Burgess Shale, the 'Early Cambrian' is host to a 'waste basket' of fossils untied by their small size and shelly construction. Lees meer
These small shelly fossils (SSFs) aren't just a single group of animals, but represent several different invertebrate phyla. Further compounding the difficulty of their identification, each SSF, termed a 'sclerite', is part of a larger composite skeleton known as a 'sclerotome'. Whilst some complete sclerotomes have been preserved, many SSFs still represent multiple jigsaws thrown together and the pictures lost.
Piecing the SSFs back together and building a picture of the Earliest Cambrian is Dr Marissa Betts of the University of New England, Australia. Her work on the SSFs have provided a new framework for the regional stratigraphy of Australia and in this interview, we discuss why this was necessary, how she went about it and finally, what we know about the animals themselves.
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Episode 102a: Small Shelly Fossils
14 augustus 2019 · 42 min
Between the weird and wonderful rangeomorphs of the Ediacaran Period and the world-famous palaeocommunities of the Burgess Shale, the 'Early Cambrian' is host to a 'waste basket' of fossils untied by their small size and shelly construction. Lees meer
These small shelly fossils (SSFs) aren't just a single group of animals, but represent several different invertebrate phyla. Further compounding the difficulty of their identification, each SSF, termed a 'sclerite', is part of a larger composite skeleton known as a 'sclerotome'. Whilst some complete sclerotomes have been preserved, many SSFs still represent multiple jigsaws thrown together and the pictures lost.
Piecing the SSFs back together and building a picture of the Earliest Cambrian is Dr Marissa Betts of the University of New England, Australia. Her work on the SSFs have provided a new framework for the regional stratigraphy of Australia and in this interview, we discuss why this was necessary, how she went about it and finally, what we know about the animals themselves.
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Episode 101: Organic Preservation of Dinosaur Bone
1 juli 2019 · 1 uur 10 min
Fossilisation of organic material was long thought to result in the complete loss of original content. However in the last 20 years, several high-profile publications reported the discovery of proteins, blood vessels, blood cells and even DNA. But for as long as these arguments have existed, so too has a counterargument as to the validity of the discoveries. Lees meer
In this episode, we're joined by Dr Evan Saitta of the Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, lead author of a recent paper seeking to discover and evaluate the preservation of putative original organic materials within dinosaur bones.
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Episode 100: Tiktaalik
24 mei 2019 · 40 min
One of palaeontology's great themes of questioning is the rise of novelty: how new structures and functions arise in specific lineages. In this episode we speak with Neil Shubin, Professor of Organismal Biology at the University of Chicago, who has been studying novelty in the context of the vertebrate transition from water to land. Lees meer
Neil studies the fossil record of early tetrapods, the first vertebrates with limbs, to understand what changes underpinned this great transition. The other half his lab uses molecular techniques on living organisms to see how changes to the development of appendages (and their underlying genetic architecture) effected the shift from a fin to a limb.
In this interview, we hear about his fieldwork in the Arctic and Antarctic, how palaeontologists decide where to look for key fossils, why development matters, and about his deep involvement in science communication.
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Episode 99: Megalodon and Marine Megafauna
15 april 2019 · 40 min
Undoubtedly, Megalodon is the world's most famous extinct shark is and in this episode, we hear everything we know about this taxon, its ecology and how it got to be so big. Its ultimate extinction is also considered, not in isolation, but placed in the wider context of the entire marine ecosystem. Lees meer
Joining us is Dr Catalina Pimiento of Swansea University.
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Episode 98: 10 Tons
15 maart 2019 · 46 min
From 1:1 scale whales to microfossils scaled up to the size of a house, there are few model-building projects that 10 Tons are afraid to take on. At the helm of this business is Esben Horn and in this episode, he joins us to discuss the process of model building, from concept to museum display. Lees meer
We also talk about some of the exhibitions 10 Tons have led themselves, including the successful 'Rock Fossils on Tour' which showcases some of the different fossils named in honour of rock/metal musicians.
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Episode 97: Opsins
1 maart 2019 · 52 min
Opsins are the photosensitive proteins in the eye, responsible for converting a photons of light into an electro-chemical signals. Different opsins react to different wavelengths of light, each corresponding to a different band of colour. In humans, the 'visible spectrum' of light (a very anthropocentric term) is covered by three opsins, receptive to red, green and blue wavelengths. Other animals have opsins that are capable of subdividing the 'visible spectrum' and responding to a large number of very specific wavelengths of interest. All in all, the ability to detect light and recognise colour is not the same throughout the animal kingdom. Lees meer
In this episode, we are joined by Dr James Fleming of Keio University, Japan to discuss the evolution of opsins in the ecdysozoa (the group containing arthropods and a fair few worms). We talk about the fundamentals of light detection and how, using phylogenetics, we are able to tell which colours certain extinct animals were capable of detecting.
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Episode 96: Decapods
1 januari 2019 · 52 min
Decapods are a group of crustaceans that include such well-known families as crabs, lobsters and shrimp. Whilst crustaceans are known from as early as the Cambrian, we don't see the first decapods until Devonian. Over the course of their evolutionary history, decapods have remained relatively conservative in their morphology with the exception of some interesting forms in the Mesozoic. Lees meer
In this episode, Dr Carrie Schweitzer, Kent State University, gives us a run-down of the taxonomy and evolutionary history of the decapods and we explore the Middle Triassic Luoping Biota.
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Episode 95: Plants and Atmosphere
16 oktober 2018 · 28 min
The interaction between plants and atmosphere forms the basis of the carbon cycle and is amongst the most important processes for maintaining life on the planet today. Photosynthesis removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and in return forms the base of the food chain and produces the oxygen we, as animals, need to breathe. Equally, the composition of the atmosphere influences the climate and thus the availability of resources, governing where plants are able to survive. Lees meer
The relationship between the two can be committed to the fossil record by such physical proxies as the number of stomata in leaves and by the palaeolattitude of different species. Other chemical proxies, such as isotopic ratios, can also help elucidate what the atmosphere was like at the time a plant was preserved. Similarly, atmospheric proxies can also be used to make inferences about past plant life in the absence of fossil remains.
Joining us to discuss the link between plants and atmosphere is Prof. Jennifer McElwain of Trinity College Dublin, Ireland.
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Episode 94: Joggins Fossil Cliffs
17 september 2018 · 39 min
The Carboniferous was a time of huge swampy forests, big trees, and lots of life both on land and in the ocean. One world-renowned fossil site from approximately 300 million years ago is the Joggins Fossil Cliffs, located on the Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia Canada. Joggins is one of Canada's five palaeontology-based UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and is one of the best places in this world to find fossils from this time period. Lees meer
Why are the Joggins Fossil Cliffs so important? What makes this locality unique?
In this episode, Liz speaks with Dr. Melissa Grey, the curator at the Joggins Fossil Centre to learn more about why this region is so important. We discuss the variety of fossils, from plants to invertebrates to vertebrates, and how the interesting preservation has resulted in virtually an entire ecosystem being preserved.
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Episode 93: The History of Palaeontological Outreach
12 augustus 2018 · 43 min
Palaeontology has an ability to grab the public's attention like no other subject. Perhaps it's the size and ferocity of something like a T. rex, or maybe it's the alien nature of something like Hallucigenia. Irrespective of whatever it is that makes the subject interesting to any given individual, it's important because palaeontology is a great gateway into STEM subjects and is, in itself, one of the few ways in which we can understand about the evolution of life and the planet. Lees meer
But how has the public's perception of palaeontology changed with the times? Was it more popular in its infancy, when huge questions were still left unanswered, or is it more popular now, in the era of Jurassic Park, where animatronics and CGI can bring fossils 'back to life'?
Joining us to discuss how palaeontological outreach has been conducted and received throughout its history is Dr Chris Manias, King's College London. Chris is a historian of palaeontology and founder of the 'Popularizing Palaeontology', a network of scholars, scientists, museum professionals, artists, etc. who reflect on trends in palaeontological communication and build future collaborations.
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The Expedition: Context
1 juli 2018 · 42 min
Welcome to this special series of podcasts relating to a fieldtrip that I have been invited on by Dr Martin Brazeau of Imperial College London. Lees meer
I'm being flown out as the Palaeozoic arthropod "expert" of the team and I'll be there to deal with all the eurypterids and phyllocaridids we come across, along as documenting the whole process for outreach and hopefully your enjoyment.
In all, this trip will last around 6 weeks, during which time I'll have no internet, electricity, running water or even any toilets. It's going to be a gruelling trip, but hopefully one that will give you an insight into what life is like in the field. You will join us as we discuss the science, prepare for the trip, arrive in the field, go out digging and finally wrap things up. You will experience all the highs of discovering new and exciting fossils and the lows of when we've just all had enough. This expedition is a unique opportunity to share with you a single research project from start to finish, rather than just the results.
In this first episode, we contextualise why we're going into the field. What is the current lay of the research landscape? What we already know? and what are we aiming to find out about the early evolution of the jawed vertebrates, a group to which we ourselves belong?
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The Expedition: Planning
1 juli 2018 · 39 min
Welcome to this special series of podcasts relating to a fieldtrip that I have been invited on by Dr Martin Brazeau of Imperial College London. Lees meer
I'm being flown out as the Palaeozoic arthropod "expert" of the team and I'll be there to deal with all the eurypterids and phyllocaridids we come across, along as documenting the whole process for outreach and hopefully your enjoyment.
In all, this trip will last around 6 weeks, during which time I'll have no internet, electricity, running water or even any toilets. It's going to be a gruelling trip, but hopefully one that will give you an insight into what life is like in the field. You will join us as we discuss the science, prepare for the trip, arrive in the field, go out digging and finally wrap things up. You will experience all the highs of discovering new and exciting fossils and the lows of when we've just all had enough. This expedition is a unique opportunity to share with you a single research project from start to finish, rather than just the results.
We now move on to discussing the logistics of the trip. How do you go about making this kind of expedition happen? What are some of the challenges we will face? What will life be like in the camp? and how will we get our priceless fossils home?
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Episode 92: Squamate Origins
30 mei 2018 · 49 min
Squamates are a group of reptiles that include lizards and snakes, with the earliest fossils occurring in the Jurassic, despite molecular studies dating the group back to the Triassic. The study of their origins has been contentious because of this gap, and the lack of fossils during this time period. Lees meer
However, a new look at a previously-known fossil has changed our view of squamate origins, and discussing this animal and what it means about reptile relationships and squamates is Dr. Tiago Simões of the University of Alberta. This episode is based on a new paper published in Nature by Dr. Simões and colleagues.
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Episode 91: Dinosaurs of Appalachia
24 mei 2018 · 45 min
The Appalachian mountains, span the Eastern margin of the United States of America. They are predominantly composed of Paleozoic rocks, but Mesozoic marine sediments (formed adjacent to the Appalachian continent at the time) can be found along the Eastern coast. It is within these deposits that the remains of a unique dinosaur fauna can be found. Lees meer
Joining us to paint a picture of the vertebrate faunas of Appalachia during the Mesozoic is Chase Brownstein, research associate at the Stamford Museum and Nature Centre.
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Episode 90: Ichthyornis
3 mei 2018 · 28 min
Bird evolution has long fascinated palaeontologists. Despite crown-group birds (birds giving rise to modern lineages today) evolving during the Cretaceous, there are relatively few fossils from this time, making it difficult to understand this key time period and just exactly how modern birds came to be. Lees meer
Dr Daniel Field, 50th Anniversary Prize Fellow from the University of Bath, studies bird evolution, particularly how crown-group birds evolved. In this episode, we discuss his recent paper on an exceptionally preserved Ichthyornis specimen, and it's significance in understanding how modern birds came to be.
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Episode 89: Teeth and herbivory in reptiles
17 april 2018 · 57 min
Tooth shape and arrangement is strongly linked with diet, and palaeontologists often use teeth to determine what kind of food an animal may have been eating. Carnivorous teeth are generally more simple, while herbivorous teeth are more complicated. We know that herbivory evolved later, but how did the dentition of herbivores evolve? What kind of variation exists in herbivorous dentition? Lees meer
In this episode, we speak with Dr Aaron LeBlanc, a Killam Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Alberta. His research focuses on the evolution and development of teeth in amniotes, including some of his PhD work on the development of the dental system in herbivores, which we discuss in detail here, as well as the evolution of the mammalian system, which earned him the Alfred S. Romer Student Prize at last year's SVP in Calgary.
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Episode 88: Bacula
6 april 2018 · 48 min
The buculum is a bone present in the head of the penis of most mammals. Whilst a few mammals, like us, don't possess a baculum, some have greatly reduced versions and many have very elaborate shapes. Despite this variety in expression of the baculum, its function remains elusive, though many theories exist. Lees meer
Investigating the function of this bone is Dr Charlotte Brassey, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK, and she joins us for this episode to give us a crash course on penile anatomy and to reveal to us how little we know about genitals.
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Episode 87: Archaeopteryx
17 maart 2018 · 41 min
Archaeopteryx is perhaps one of the most iconic taxa in the fossil record. Exclusively found in the Late Jurassic Solnhofen Lagerstätte in Bavaria, Germany, it is a crucial taxon for understanding the relationship between dinosaurs and birds. Furthermore, it is critically positioned to inform us how flight evolved in this group. Lees meer
Now, a new study published in Nature Communications, has been inferring how Archaeopteryx was able to fly by examining details of its bones. In this interview, we are joined by lead author Dennis Voeten, Palacký University, who shares with us his hypotheses, methods and results.
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Episode 86: Coal
1 februari 2018 · 47 min
The Carboniferous (Latin for 'coal-bearing') is a period of the Paleozoic named after the massive accumulations of coal that were formed globally during this time. These coal deposits were the fuel for the Industrial Revolution and continue to be an important economic resource to this day. Lees meer
For this interview, we asked Standford University's Prof. Kevin Boyce to introduce us to coal production and to tell us how it's formed and what it's made of. We then concentrate on determining why the Carboniferous was the period with the largest coal deposits when we know that forests existed in other periods too. Finally, we look at the impact that coal production and subsequent exploitation have had on the planet.
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Episode 85: Ichthyosaurs
7 januari 2018 · 1 uur 10 min
Ichthyosaurs are large marine reptiles that existed for most of the Mesozoic Era. The most familiar forms superficially represent dolphins, but some earlier ichthyosaurs were more eel like. They could attain huge proportions, with some genera reaching up to 21m long. They were active predators feeding on belemnite, fishes and even other marine reptiles! Lees meer
In this episode, we talk to Dr Ben Moon and Fiann Smithwick, researchers at the University of Bristol, UK. Both have recently been involved in producing a documentary with the BBC entitled 'Attenborough and the Sea Dragon', so we have used this as an opportunity to discuss in great detail what ichthyosaurs are and get insights into the kind of work required to produce such a documentary.
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Episode 84: Neoproterozoic Acritarchs
6 januari 2018 · 45 min
In this episode, we interview Dr Leigh Anne Riedman, University of California, about life during the Neoproterozoic Era, the most recent of the Precambrian Eon. This time interval is far from straight forward; not only were there changes in oceanic and atmospheric chemistry, but also dramatic shifts in climate and the formation and subsequent rifting of the supercontinent Rodinia. The Neoproterozoic also saw major biological innovations and ended with the appearance of the enigmatic Ediacaran Fauna. Lees meer
Leigh Anne studies acritarchs, relatively simple, single-celled walled microorganisms and by examining their diversity and abundance, she is able to comment on how life fared during this turbulent time.
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Episode 83: Gogo Fishes
1 december 2017 · 24 min
Professor John Long is an early vertebrate researcher at Flinders University, Australia. He is most famous for his work on the three-dimentionally-preserved fish from the Gogo Formation, North West Australia. Lees meer
In this interview, Dr Tom Fletcher (who you'll remember from Episode 76) got the chance to speak to Prof. Long during a field trip to the world-famous Burgess Shale.
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Episode 82: Dinosaurs of China
17 oktober 2017 · 1 uur 10 min
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Episode 81: Coccolithophores
1 oktober 2017 · 49 min
Coccolithophores are tiny unicellular eukaryotic phytoplankton (algae). Each is covered with even smaller calcium carbonate plates called coccoliths and it is these that are commonly preserved in the fossil record. In fact, coccoliths are so small, and can be so common, that they have been able to be employed in areas other than academia. Lees meer
Joining us is Dr Liam Gallagher, Director Network Stratigraphic Limited and a nannoplankton specialist. In this episode, he explains what coccolithophores are and we explore some case studies of how their coccoliths are being utilised.
This episode discusses details of recent and high-profile murder case. Whilst focus is placed on the scientific investigation, the latter part of this episode may not be suitable for all audiences.
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Episode 80: Paleocreations
1 september 2017 · 36 min
We've covered how palaeoart is made on Palaeocast before, but never what daily life is like for a professional palaeoartist. What does it take to get started, when can you say no to a commission and which factors come in to play when deciding how much to quote? Lees meer
Joining us for this episode is Bob Nicholls of Paleocreations
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Episode 79: Late Devonian Vertebrates
1 augustus 2017 · 28 min
The transition of fins to limbs is one of the most significant in the history of vertebrate evolution. These were the first steps that would eventually allow tetrapods to go on to dominate so many terrestrial ecosystems. Fossils that help fill the gaps in this crucial time are invaluable, so how do we go about finding them and what happens when we do discover one? Lees meer
Joining us to give an overview of some of the fossils involved in this transition, and to provide insights into the fieldwork that goes into finding them, is Dr Ted Daeschler, Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University.
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Episode 78: Japanese Palaeontology
30 juni 2017 · 57 min
When thinking of palaeontology in Asia, most people think of Mongolia and China, but there is actually a significant palaeontology community in Japan. Japan has many fossils, starting in the Ordovician, and ranging from everything from bivalves and trilobites to dinosaurs and mammals. In this episode, we speak with Dr. Makoto Manabe, the Director of the Centre for Collections and Centre for Molecular Biodiversity Research at the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo. Makoto introduces us to Japanese palaeontology by walking Liz through the Japan Gallery at the museum, starting from the earliest fossils found up to more recent cave deposits. Lees meer
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Episode 77: South American Gomphotheres
15 juni 2017 · 51 min
The proboscideans are a group of animals that contains the elephant and mastodont families. Many of us will be well-aware of these groups, but what of some of the lesser-known proboscideans? One such family are the gomphotheres and in this episode we're introduced to them by Dr Dimila Mothé, of the Federal University of the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Lees meer
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Episode 76: Hydrodynamics
15 mei 2017 · 32 min
The shape of an animal is a reflection of the way it interacts with the physical world around it. By studying the mechanical laws which influence the evolution of modern animals, we can better understand the lives of their ancestors. Hydrodynamics examines the movement of water in contact with an organism, and can include everything from body shape to blood flow. In this episode we spoke to Dr Tom Fletcher, University of Leicester, about hydrodynamics in palaeontology, and his research looking at fossil fishes and modern sharks. Tom and others have published a paper on the hydrodynamics of fossil fishes, and he continues to work on the biomechanics of fossil animals. Lees meer
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Episode 75: Laser-Stimulated Fluorescence
2 mei 2017 · 38 min
Palaeontology is a constantly evolving field; when new methods and techniques are invented, they allow us to revisit old fossils and test our previous observations and hypotheses. Recently, an exciting new method called 'Laser-Simulated Fluorescence' (LSF) has been gaining popularity in palaeontology and we speak to its inventor Tom Kaye during a visit to the University of Bristol, alongside Dr Michael Pittman, Research Assistant Professor, The University of Hong Kong. Lees meer
In this episode, we hear all about how LSF is allowing fossils to be seen under a completely new light. We discuss how the fluorescence is produced, how it's currently being used and what possible applications it might have in future.
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Episode 74: Early Archosaurs and Teleocrater
12 april 2017 · 30 min
We have a pretty good idea about how different dinosaur groups evolved, and how they are related (although anyone who has been following the recent dinosaur relationship shake-up knows this is not quite as clear as previously thought), but we don't have a good idea of how their ancestors, early dinosauromorphs and other early archosaurs, evolved. When did these groups first appear? What lead to their diversification? Lees meer
In this episode, we speak with (recently promoted!) Professor Richard Butler from the University of Birmingham and Academic Keeper of the Lapworth Museum of Geology about the evolution of this group, and early archosaurs in general. We also discuss a new, important species from the Middle Triassic of Tanzania described today in Nature by Nesbitt, Butler, and colleagues called Teleocrater rhadinus.
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Episode 73: Sensory Structures
15 maart 2017 · 27 min
Ask anyone to list all the senses and they'll probably stop at five. Touch, taste, sight, smell and hearing are all important to humans, but in the animal kingdom, there exist others. In this interview, Prof. Kenneth Catania, of Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, joins us to talk about some of the other ways in which some vertebrates sense their environment. Lees meer
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Episode 72b: Las Hoyas
1 februari 2017 · 32 min
Las Hoyas is a Early Cretaceous lagerstätte (site of special preservation) located close to the city of Cuenca, Spain. In this episode, we welcome Ángela Delgado Buscalioni and Francisco José Poyato-Ariza, both from the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, to discuss the details of this remarkable site. Angela and Francisco have recently edited a comprehensive overview of the Las Hoyas site. Lees meer
Like most lagerstätten, Las Hoyas is most famous for its vertebrate fossils, but what other taxa can we find there? What was the palaeoenvironment like? And which processes have governed the preservation of the fossils?
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Episode 72a: Las Hoyas
18 januari 2017 · 35 min
Las Hoyas is a Early Cretaceous lagerstätte (site of special preservation) located close to the city of Cuenca, Spain. In this episode, we welcome Ángela Delgado Buscalioni and Francisco José Poyato-Ariza, both from the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, to discuss the details of this remarkable site. Angela and Francisco have recently edited a comprehensive overview of the Las Hoyas site. Lees meer
Like most lagerstätten, Las Hoyas is most famous for its vertebrate fossils, but what other taxa can we find there? What was the palaeoenvironment like? And which processes have governed the preservation of the fossils?
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SVP2016 B
1 december 2016 · 39 min
This year, the 76th Annual Meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology was held in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. We sent Liz and Caitlin there to report on events at the conference.
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SVP2016 A
16 november 2016 · 33 min
This year, the 76th Annual Meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology was held in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. We sent Liz and Caitlin there to report on events at the conference.
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Episode 71: Graptolites
15 oktober 2016 · 37 min
Graptolites are small colonial organisms, each made up of many tiny, genetically identical zooids joined together by tubes. They've been around since the Cambrian and at times in Earth's history have been very morphologically and taxonomically diverse. Now there is just one living genus, but they are very common in the fossil record, often appearing as a 'sawtooth' pattern flattened on surfaces of deep sea sedimentary rocks. Lees meer
In this episode Laura talks to Dr David Bapst, a postdoctoral scholar at UC Davis and adjunct assistant professor at the South Dakota School of Mines, about extinct graptolites - the Graptoloidea - and how these animals have changed in the 520 million years since they originated. We find out about major events in their evolutionary history including the transition from sea-floor dwelling benthic species to plankton that floated in the water column, and the reduction through geological time of the number of branches from many branching dendritic forms to the single 'stick' monograptids.
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Episode 70: The Golden Age of Dinosaur Discovery
1 oktober 2016 · 47 min
The last 10 years has shown a large increase in the number of new species and new discoveries of dinosaurs, as well as the number of papers written. It seems that almost every week there is a new species or significant find in the news. Why is that? Is this likely to continue? What can we expect for the next 10 years? Lees meer
We sat down with Dr. David Evans, Temerity Chair in Palaeontology at the Royal Ontario Museum and Associate Professor at the University of Toronto to talk about this so-called 'Golden Age of Dinosaur Discovery'. Dr. Evans is a well known dinosaur palaeontologist who has worked on many groups all over the world, focusing particularly in southern Alberta and the US.
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Episode 69: Fungal Symbioses
16 augustus 2016 · 1 uur 1 min
Plants, Animals and fungi; these are all three of the Kingdoms of life we're all most familiar with, but what you might not know is that fungi are more closely related to animals than they are to plants. Stranger still is that the vast majority of terrestrial plants live in a symbiotically with fungi. Lees meer
In this episode, we interview Prof. Marc-André Selosse, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris. We discuss this symbiotic relationship and how it helped both groups overcome the massive challenge of adapting to life on land. We further go on to look at exquisitely-preserved fossils which display cellular details and reveal the first evidence of this relationship and discuss the potential identity of a particularly enigmatic giant fossil. We end the conversation theorising about what benefits a true understanding of this symbiosis could have on the future of agriculture.
This relationship between plants and fungi is something that has shaped the evolution of life on land and so this discussion is most definitely not one to be missed!