Unit information: Palaeobiology in 2018/19

Unit name	Palaeobiology
Unit code	EASC20044
Credit points	10
Level of study	I/5
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 2C (weeks 13 - 18)
Unit director	Dr. Cunningham
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	EASC10001 Geology 1 and BIOL20001 Quantitative Methods in Biology
Co-requisites	BIOL20018 Computational Methods in Biology
School/department	School of Earth Sciences
Faculty	Faculty of Science

Description including Unit Aims

The aim of this unit it to introduce students to standard and advanced methods in palaeobiological analysis. Each week a different methodology and its practical application will be introduced. Practical classes will support the delivery of lecture material and allow students to undertake their own analyses. The students will undertake fossil and other types of data collection in the field This exercise will introduce students to concepts of palaeoecology in the field and allow them to collect and analyse their own data integrating statistical knowledge via mandatory unit BIOL20001 Quantitative Methods in Biology and applying knowledge of R programming via mandatory unit BIOL20018 Computational Methods in Biology and integrating palaeoecological and other methods taught during the new unit.

Specific topics to be covered include:

Systematics; taxonomy and the reconstruction of evolutionary relationships – phylogenies, cladistics

The nature of the fossil record – sample, preservational bias

Taphonomy – preservational mechanisms, controlling factors, experimental taphonomy

Palaeoecology – the nature of palaeoecological data and the analysis of palaeocommunities

Evolutionary morphology – characterising form, morphometric approaches.

Intended Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of the unit the student should be able to:

• Understand how fossil organisms are classified and their evolutionary relationships can be deduced.
• Identify sources of bias in the fossil record, methods employed to account for sampling bias and their impact on our understanding of the diversity and evolution of life.
• Identify temporal, lithological and tissue-related biases involved in fossil preservation; the various biological and environmental factors that control exceptional preservation of fossils and describe appropriate techniques for analysing fossil soft tissues preserved via different mechanisms
• Understand the nature and limitations of palaeoecological data; describe how this data has been used to construct palaeocommunities, and how these communities are perceived to evolve through time.
• Understand the relevance of characterising morphology and demonstrate competence in methods employed to quantify variation in form and their applicability to fossils.

Teaching Information

15 Lectures, 15 practicals and a one-day fieldtrip

Assessment Information

100% coursework.

Coursework will involve fossil and other types of data collection in the field followed by a detailed palaeoecological and statistical analysis of the material written up as a scientific report (2,000 words).

Formative feedback will be given on an outline of the report.

Reading and References

References for each topic will be provided at the start of each week.

Recommended texts include:

• Briggs DEG & Crowther PR. 2001. Palaeobiology II. Blackwell Publishing, Oxford. 583pp.
• Foote M & Miller AI. 2007. Principles of Paleontology. W. H. Freeman & Co., New York. 354pp.