"Paleoclimatology: Reconstructing Climates of the Quaternary, Third Edition," provides a thorough overview of the methods of paleoclimatic reconstruction and of the historical changes in climate during the past three million years.

This thoroughly updated and revised edition systematically examines each type of proxy and elucidates the major attributes and the limitations of each. "Paleoclimatology, Third Edition" provides necessary context for those interested in understanding climate changes at present and how current trends in climate compare with changes that have occurred in the past. The text is richly illustrated and includes an extensive bibliography for further research.
A comprehensive overview of the methods of paleoclimate reconstruction, and the record of past changes in climate during the last 3 million yearsAddresses all the techniques used in paleoclimatic reconstruction from climate proxiesWith full-color throughout, and thoroughly revised chapters on dating methods, climate forcing, ice cores, marine sediments, pollen analysis, dendroclimatology, and historical recordsIncludes new chapters on speleothems, loess, and lake sedimentsMore than 1,000 new references and 190 new figures Essential reading for those interested in how present trends in climate compare with changes that have occurred in the past

Integration of ichnological information into sedimentological models, and vice versa, is one of the main means by which we can improve our understanding of ancient depositional environments. Mainly intended for sedimentologists, this book aims to make ichnological methods as part of facies interpretation more popular, providing an analytical review of the ichnology of all major depositional environments and the use of ichnology in biostratigraphic and sequence stratigraphic analysis.

It starts with an introduction to the historical aspect of ichnology, introducing common concepts and methods, and then continues with parts treating the main depositional systems from continental, shallow-marine and deep-marine siliciclastics, and marine carbonates. The last part is dedicated to the ichnology in hydrocarbon reservoir and aquifer characterization.
First overview in 25 years of the status of ichnological studies in facies reconstructions of all major depositional environmentsWritten by a selected, well-experienced and specialized international authorshipProvides easy access to the comprehensive and widespread literature

Provides an up-to-date account of evolution of vertebrates Includes numerous beautiful color reconstructions of prehistoric vertebrates Describes extinct vertebrates and their evolutionary history Discusses and illustrates the first vertebrates, as well as familiar lineages of fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals Reviews mass extinctions and other important events in the diversification of vertebrates

Evolution is the single unifying principle of biology and core to everything in the life sciences. More than a century of work by scientists from across the biological spectrum has produced a detailed history of life across the phyla and explained the mechanisms by which new species form. This textbook covers both this history and the mechanisms of speciation; it also aims to provide students with the background needed to read the research literature on evolution. Students will therefore learn about cladistics, molecular phylogenies, the molecular-genetical basis of evolutionary change including the important role of protein networks, symbionts and holobionts, together with the core principles of developmental biology. The book also includes introductory appendices that provide background knowledge on, for example, the diversity of life today, fossils, the geology of Earth and the history of evolutionary thought. Key Features Summarizes the origins of life and the evolution of the eukaryotic cell and of Urbilateria, the last common ancestor of invertebrates and vertebrates. Reviews the history of life across the phyla based on the fossil record and computational phylogenetics. Explains evo-devo and the generation of anatomical novelties. Illustrates the roles of small populations, genetic drift, mutation and selection in speciation. Documents human evolution using the fossil record and evidence of dispersal across the world leading to the emergence of modern humans.

Paleontologists and geologists struggle with research questions often complicated by the loss or even absence of key paleobiological and paleoenvironmental information. Insight into this missing data can be gained through direct exploration of analogous living organisms and modern environments. Creative, experimental and interdisciplinary treatments of such ancient-Earth analogs form the basis of Lessons from the Living. This volume unites a diverse range of expert paleontologists, neontologists and geologists presenting case studies that cover a spectrum of topics, including functional morphology, taphonomy, environments and organism-substrate interactions.

'Truth and courage are what memoirs need and this one has them both in spades … The unforgotten boy: that is what makes this a book a revelation' ADAM NICOLSON ‘Wonderful, absolutely beguiling … I learnt a lot and really loved it’ RICHARD HOLMES ‘Gloriously evocative’ DAILY MAIL What makes a scientist? Charming, funny and wise, in this memoir Richard Fortey shows how restless curiosity about the natural world led him to become a leading scientist and writer, with adventures and misadventures along the way. From a garden shed laboratory where he manufactured the greatest stink in the world to a tent high in the Arctic in pursuit of fossils, this is a story of obsession and love of nature, flavoured with the peculiarities and restrictions of post-war Britain. Fortey tells the story of following his father down riverbanks to fish for trout, and also of his father's shocking death. He unfolds his early passions – fungi, ammonite hunting and eyeing up bird's eggs. He evokes with warmth and wit how the natural world started out as his playground and refuge, then became his life's work. Much more than a story about science alone, this memoir gives an unforgettable portrait of a young, curious mind, and shows how luck and enthusiasm can create a special life.

The plant fossil record provides evidence that the genus Metasequoia was widely distributed and experienced a wide range of climatic and environmental conditions throughout the Northern Hemisphere from the early Late Cretaceous to the Plio-Pleistocene. Today the genus is limited to one species with approximately 5,000 mature individuals growing in the Xiahoe Valley in southeastern China. This book is a distillation of the collective efforts and results of the worlda (TM)s Metasequoia specialists and enthusiasts. It is the most up-to-date and comprehensive reference source for the genus and the authors have sought to incorporate obscure, hard-to-get and non-English reference sources. The book reviews what is known about the biology, ecology and physiology of fossil and living Metasequoia, current research directions and problems that remain unresolved.

This book presents a definitive overview of fossil and living Metasequoia and was written by sixteen of the worlda (TM)s experts on this important genus. Given the reality of increasing human pressure and the inevitability of global change, efforts to conserve this ancient genus are underway. This book will be of interest to botanists, geologists, paleobotanists, biogeographers, foresters, ecologists, paleoecologists, ecophysiologists, geochemists, climate modelers, geneticists, naturalists, science historians, and gardeners and will be useful as a supplemental text for advanced undergraduate and graduate level courses in paleoecology.

This volume provides individual treatments of the major molluscan taxa. Each chapter provides an overview of the evolution, phylogeny and classification of a group of molluscs, as well as more specific and detailed coverage of their biology (reproduction, feeding and digestion, excretion, respiration etc.), their long fossil record and aspects of their natural history. The book is illustrated with hundreds of colour figures. In both volumes, concepts are summarised in colour-coded illustrations. Key selling features: Comprehensively reviews molluscan biology and evolutionary history Includes a description the anatomy and physiology of anatomical systems Up to date treatment with a comprehensive bibliography Reviews the phylogenetic history of the major molluscan lineages

Although it is generally accepted that the Arctic Ocean is a very sensitive and important region for changes in the global climate, this region is the last major physiographic province of the earth whose short-and long-term geological history is much less known in comparison to other ocean regions. This lack of knowledge is mainly caused by the major technological/logistic problems in reaching this harsh, ice-covered region with normal research vessels and in retrieving long and undisturbed sediment cores. During the the last about 20 years, however, several international and multidisciplinary ship expeditions, including the first scientific drilling on Lomonosov Ridge in 2004, a break-through in Arctic research, were carried out into the central Artic and its surrounding shelf seas. Results from these expeditions have greatly advanced our knowledge on Arctic Ocean paleoenvironments.
Published syntheses about the knowledge on Arctic Ocean geology, on the other hand, are based on data available prior to 1990. A comprehensive compilation of data on Arctic Ocean paleoenvironment and its short-and long-term variability based on the huge amount of new data including the ACEX drilling data, has not been available yet. With this book, presenting (1) detailed information on glacio-marine sedimentary processes and geological proxies used for paleoenvironmental reconstructions, and (2) detailed geological data on modern environments, Quaternary variability on different time scales as well as the long-term climate history during Mesozoic-Tertiary times, this gap in knowledge will be filled.
*Aimed at specialists and graduates
*Presents background research, recent developments, and future trends
*Written by a leading scholar and industry expert

Every day, in natural history museums all across the country, colonies of dermestid beetles diligently devour the decaying flesh off of animal skeletons that are destined for the museum's specimen collection. That time-saving process was developed and perfected at the University of Kansas Natural History Museum by Charles D. Bunker, a lowly assistant taxidermist who would rise to become the curator of recent vertebrates and who made an indelible mark on his field. That innovative breakthrough serves as a testament to the tenacity of a quietly determined naturalist. Bunker was part of the small team of men who constructed and installed the famous Panorama of North American Mammals, the centerpiece exhibit of the KU Natural History Museum located in Dyche Hall. That iconic building on the KU campus was expressly built to house the collection of mounted animals that impressed the world a decade earlier at the 1893 Chicago Columbian Exposition and World's Fair. Once the panorama was completed, Bunker turned his attention to field collecting. Bunker's field notes provide an accurate, authentic account of several expeditions to collect such specimens as well as a rare view of the extreme hardships of fieldwork in those early days. Perhaps most notable is “Bunk's” 1911 expedition to western Kansas, where he discovered the fossil remains of a forty-five-foot-long sea serpent—later identified as Tylosaurus proriger, an aquatic reptile from the mosasaur genus and the largest example of the species found in North America. In 2014, Tylosaurus was named the marine fossil of the state of Kansas. Birds, Bones, and Beetles tells the story of a man whose passion for learning led to remarkable discoveries, extraordinary exhibits, and the prestigious careers of many students he mentored in the natural sciences.

All of man's life is in some way associated with the plant world, from his food and shelter to his art, religion and language. The study of this all-pervading relationship between man and the plant world is called "ethnobotany." This book provides a systematic reconstruction of the ethnobotany of one of the hearths of American civilization, in the prehistoric cultures of the Peruvian Central Andes.

As we learn more about the rise and spread of New World agriculture, it becomes evident that Peru was one of the sources of its development. Plants were cultivated here at least 2,000 years before the beginning of the Christian era. Village life was intimately bound up with this cultivation, later civilizations rested upon it as a foundation, and from Peru agriculture was diffused to other parts of the Americas.

Towle bases her work on the evidence of plant remains found in archeological sites, surveys of botanical and ethnological literature, and field studies of modern plant utilization. After a methodological and historical introduction, she proceeds to a systematic listing of plant species, each fully described. She then presents the ethnobotanical data for each of the cultural-geographic divisions of the area, giving a chronological picture of the use of wild and cultivated plants against a background of the cultures of which they were part. A summary of the evolutionary trends in the region as a whole is followed by a full bibliography and index. The book contains fifteen pages of plates.

"Margaret A. Towle" (1902-1985) received her doctorate from Columbia University in 1958 and was research fellow in ethnobotany in the Botanical Museum of Harvard University.

Marine biogeography, the study of the spatial distribution of organisms in the world's oceans, is one of the most fascinating branches of oceanography. This book continues the pioneering research into the distributions of molluscan faunas, first studied by biologists over 160 years ago. It illustrates 1778 species of gastropods in full color, many of which are extremely rare and poorly known endemic species that are illustrated for the first time outside of their original descriptions. The spatial arrangements of malacofaunas shown in this book can be considered proxies for worldwide oceanic conditions and used as tools for determining patterns of global climate change. The book's documentation of evolutionary "hot spots" and geographically restricted endemic faunas can also be used as a base line for future studies on patterns of environmental deterioration and extinction in the marine biosphere. Documenting the evolution of the amazingly rich worldwide gastropod fauna, this book will appeal to physical and chemical oceanographers, systematic and evolutionary biologists, historical geologists, paleontologists, climatologists, geomorphologists, and physical geographers. The authors incorporate aspects of all of these disciplines into a new classification system for the nomenclature of biogeographical spatial units found in tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate seas.

This illustrated introduction to Central American Chironomidae offers extensive photographic material, as well as detailed morphological and ecological descriptions of chironomid subfossils found in Central American lake sediments. The book uniquely provides two identification keys: one for living larvae occurring (or potentially being present) in Central America and one for the recorded subfossil remains, using limited morphological characters. Paleolimnological investigations using chironomid remains have undergone a resurgence of interest, and this taxonomic guide will aid the thorough analysis of the diversity and distribution of the taxa encountered to date in Central America. Out of the total 64 described genera, the book brings 20 endemic genera, and more than half of the presented morphotypes are new. Plates are included for each taxon with generic characters and also provide a key to morphotypes, if present, their specific characters, distribution, and ecology. Authored by a (paleo)limnologist and a taxonomist, the guide draws on a thorough taxonomical knowledge of the region's recent chironomid fauna. It uses a paleolimnological approach to transmit this information to morphotypes that can be linked with ecology and used to reconstruct the past development of nature. The book thus helps paleo-workers and taxonomists to learn more about these fascinating insects and, through them, to discover the world around us. Providing a comprehensive reference for aquatic ecologists, paleolimnologists, students, and researchers, the guide will also be of interest to non-academic professionals working on applied research and biomonitoring of lakes. It will be useful for people studying both recent and subfossil material, not only in Central America, but in the whole Neotropical region.

This illustrated introduction to Central American Chironomidae offers extensive photographic material, as well as detailed morphological and ecological descriptions of chironomid subfossils found in Central American lake sediments. The book uniquely provides two identification keys: one for living larvae occurring (or potentially being present) in Central America and one for the recorded subfossil remains, using limited morphological characters. Paleolimnological investigations using chironomid remains have undergone a resurgence of interest, and this taxonomic guide will aid the thorough analysis of the diversity and distribution of the taxa encountered to date in Central America. Out of the total 64 described genera, the book brings 20 endemic genera, and more than half of the presented morphotypes are new. Plates are included for each taxon with generic characters and also provide a key to morphotypes, if present, their specific characters, distribution, and ecology. Authored by a (paleo)limnologist and a taxonomist, the guide draws on a thorough taxonomical knowledge of the region's recent chironomid fauna. It uses a paleolimnological approach to transmit this information to morphotypes that can be linked with ecology and used to reconstruct the past development of nature. The book thus helps paleo-workers and taxonomists to learn more about these fascinating insects and, through them, to discover the world around us. Providing a comprehensive reference for aquatic ecologists, paleolimnologists, students, and researchers, the guide will also be of interest to non-academic professionals working on applied research and biomonitoring of lakes. It will be useful for people studying both recent and subfossil material, not only in Central America, but in the whole Neotropical region.

This book presents the multidisciplinary results of an extensive underwater excavation in north Florida which yields the most complete results of interactions between early Paleoindians and late Pleistocene megafauna, especially Mammut americanum (American Mastodon), in a rich environmental context in eastern North America. It provides fundamental insights into two urgent issues: "The Peopling of the Americas"; and "The Extinction of the Megafauna."

The authors describe and illustrate their unique methods of precise underwater excavations. They show how these techniques allowed them to collect a diversity of zoological, botanical and cultural material with outstanding organic preservation.

This wealth of prehistoric evidence was recovered during twenty years of delving into an ancient sinkhole in the bottom of the Aucilla River. The nearly continuous sequence of fine-grained sediments, with an abundance of carbon dates, place the climatic and environmental history of this area in a global context of late glacial climatic cycles. The deepest strata produce clear evidence that the first Floridians lived and hunted here some 14,000 years ago, indicating that this southeastern culture preceded classic Clovis culture in western North America.

Clever studies of stable isotopes tell that the Mastodons migrated north out of Florida into glacial terrain during the winter and spring and their digesta, which also contain steroids and epithelial cells, display a rich summer diet.

The last section of the book provides a wealth of new evidence from the early Holocene about the flora and climate and how early Archaic people subsisted after the megafauna became extinct.

An excellentcolor photo section expresses the unique setting and adventure of this project, extensively supported by National Geographic Society.

"A monument of interdisciplinary scientific analysis and reporting, and absolutely essential reading for anyone interested in the early human settlement of the Americas." David G. Anderson, Department of Anthropology, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA.

"An excellent array of interdisciplinary studies conducted at an important site offering new and exciting clues on the origins of the First Americans" Dr. Stanford, Department of Archeology, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA

This textbook introduces research on dinosaurs by describing the science behind how we know what we know about dinosaurs. A wide range of topics is covered, from fossils and taphonomy to dinosaur physiology, evolution, and extinction. In addition, sedimentology, paleo-tectonics, and non-dinosaurian Mesozoic life are discussed. There is a special opportunity to capitalize on the enthusiasm for dinosaurs that students bring to classrooms to foster a deeper engagement in all sciences. Students are encouraged to synthesize information, employ critical thinking, construct hypotheses, devise methods to test these hypotheses, and come to new defensible conclusions, just as paleontologists do. Key Features Clear and easy to read dinosaur text with well-defined terminology Over 600 images and diagrams to illustrate concepts and aid learning Reading objectives for each chapter section to guide conceptual learning and encourage active reading Companion website (teachingdinosaurs.com) that includes supporting materials such as in-class activities, question banks, lists of suggested specimens, and more to encourage student participation and active learning Ending each chapter with a specific "What We Don't Know" section to encourage student curiosity Related Titles Singer, R. Encyclopedia of Paleontology (ISBN 978-1-884964-96-1) Fiorillo, A. R. Alaska Dinosaurs: An Ancient Arctic World (ISBN 978-1-138-06087-6) Caldwell, M. W. The Origin of Snakes: Morphology and the Fossil Record (ISBN 978-1-4822-5134-0)

The extended continental South American turtle record (Norian to Lujanian) allows us to follow the evolution of this reptile clade from its origins. Several significant stem turtle taxa such as: Palaeochersis talampayensis and Condorchelys antiqua provide information on the first steps of turtle evolution. Others such as: Chubutemys copelloi or Patagoniaemys gasparinae provide clues to the origin of the bizarre horned tortoises of the clade Meiolaniidae. The panpleurodiran species such as Notoemys laticentralis or Notoemys zapatocaensis shed light on the origin of modern pleurodiran turtles. This book explores aquatic and terrestrial cryptodiran turtles, South Gondwana pleurodiran turtles, North Gondwana pleurodiran turtles; Meiolaniforms and early differentiation of Mesozoic turtles.

This book has been developed from a core of papers selected for the paleodemographic session of the 25th World Population Congress (July 2005, Tours, France). It covers recent paleodemographic innovations, in terms of data, techniques and the detection of patterns making it possible to highlight hitherto unknown prehistoric demographic processes.

Humans are the only mammals to walk on two, rather than four, legs. From an evolutionary perspective, this is an illogical development, as it slows us down. But here we are, suggesting there must have been something tremendous to gain from bipedalism. First Steps takes our ordinary, everyday walking experience and reveals how unusual and extraordinary it truly is. The seven-million-year-long journey through the origins of upright walking shows how it was in fact a gateway to many of the other attributes that make us human-from our technological skills and sociality to our thirst for exploration. DeSilva uses early human evolution to explain the instinct that propels a crawling infant to toddle onto two feet, differences between how men and women tend to walk, physical costs of upright walking, including hernias, varicose veins and backache, and the challenges of childbirth imposed by a bipedal pelvis. And he theorises that upright walking may have laid the foundation for the traits of compassion, empathy and altruism that characterise our species today and helped us become the dominant species on this planet.

Contents:
1. Molecular Clocks: Whence and Whither 2. Molecular Clocks and a Biological Trigger for Neoproterozoic Snowball Earth Events and the Cambrian Explosion 3. Phylogenetic Fuses and Evolutionary 'Explosions': Conflicting Evidence and Critical Tests 4. The Quality of the Fossil record 5. Ghost Ranges 6. Episodic Evolution of Nuclear Small Subunit Ribosomal RNA Gene in the Stem-lineage of Foraminifera 7. Dating the Origin of Land Plants 8. Angiosperm Divergence Times: Congruence and Incongruence Between Fossils and Sequence Divergence Estimates 9. The Limitations of the Fossil Record and the Dating of the Origin of the Bilateria 10. The Origin and Early Evolution of Chordates: Molecular Clocks and the Fossil Record 11. Bones, Molecules and Crown-tetrapod Origins 12. The Fossil record and Molecular Clocks: Basal Radiations Within the Neornithes

Owen was the founder of the Natural History Museum, bringing the collections over from the British Museum. Although he was a supporter of evolutionary theory, he was reluctant to accept Darwin's version of evolution. This volume examines fossil evidence for change in species over time.

ANOXIA defines the lack of free molecular oxygen in an environment. In the presence of organic matter, anaerobic prokaryotes produce compounds such as free radicals, hydrogen sulfide, or methane that are typically toxic to aerobes. The concomitance of suppressed respiration and presence of toxic substances suggests these habitats are inhospitable to Eukaryota. Ecologists sometimes term such environments 'Death Zones'. This book presents, however, a collection of remarkable adaptations to anoxia, observed in Eukaryotes such as protists, animals, plants and fungi. Case studies provide evidence for controlled beneficial use of anoxia by, for example, modification of free radicals, use of alternative electron donors for anaerobic metabolic pathways, and employment of anaerobic symbionts. The complex, interwoven existence of oxic and anoxic conditions in space and time is also highlighted as is the idea that eukaryotic inhabitation of anoxic habitats was established early in Earth history.

This volume is an outcome of the 12th international conference of the international bryozoology association in Dublin. It consists of 85 oral and 16 poster presentations which cover all aspects of bryozoological research.