(from Larry Gonick's Cartoon History of the Universe, Vol. 1. The Evolution of Everything. Ripoff Press)

Why learn about fossils? Some more-or-less practical reasons: (1) Fossils can reveal when, and how fast, organisms appeared, evolved, and became extinct; (2) Fossils are reliable indicators of the age of sedimentary rocks; and (3) Fossils are indicators of past environments. Non-practical reasons include the pleasure of discovery, reconstructing the life of the past, and being able to critique the entire Jurassic Park series.

The lecture part of this course will cover the principles of paleontology, the basic morphology and geological significance of important fossil groups, the use of fossils in dating and in deciphering ancient environments, and the major features of evolution as seen in the fossil record.

The laboratory part of the course will illustrate the concepts discussed in lecture, introduce you to important groups of fossils, provide field experience in collecting and analyzing fossils, and develop research and writing skills.

There is a REQUIRED FIELD TRIP in this course. The field trip is scheduled for all day Saturday, November 3 and will go to some outcrops between Bisbee and Douglas in order to map the distribution of environments in a Cretaceous reef. Mark this date on your calendar now! This trip will form the basis of a lab report that will constitute 25% of your lab grade.

BOOKS AND SUCH

A. Required text

Benton, M.J. and Harper, D.A.T., 1997. Basic Palaeontology, Longman. (required textbook -

available in the UA bookstore). I’m trying this book out for the first time. Let me know what you think of it.

B. Required readings

Fastovsky, D.E. and Weishampel, D.B., 1996. The Evolution and Extinction of Dinosaurs. Cambridge University Press (Chapter 14 on electronic reserve).

Gould, S.J., 1983. Hen’s Teeth and Horse’s Toes. Norton (pp. 253-262, “Evolution as fact and theory” on electronic reserve.)

C. Optional

You may find copies of other paleontology texts around and you might find some of interest and use. Here are six pretty good ones:

Boardman, R.S., Cheetham, A.H., and Rowell, A.J., eds., 1987. Fossil Invertebrates. Blackwell. Excruciating detail.

Clarkson, E.N.K., 1986. Invertebrate Paleontology and Evolution, 2nd ed., Allen & Unwin. Another classic textbook from the U.K.

Cowen, R., 2000. History of Life, 3nd ed. Blackwell. Breezy, informal, and terrible limericks.

Levin, H. J., 1999. Ancient Invertebrates and Their Living Relatives. Prentice Hall. Low level.

Prothero, D.R., 1998. Bringing Fossils to Life. An Introduction to Paleontology. WCB McGraw-Hill. Last year’s text proved unpopular.

Stearn, C. and Carroll, R., 1989. Paleontology: The Record of Life. John Wiley & Sons.

Traditional and conservative approach

LECTURE SCHEDULE AND READINGS

Date Lecture topic Reading

Aug 21 The usual introductory stuff

Aug 22 Taphonomy and preservation p. 8-17

LAB: No labs this week

Aug 28 Taphonomy and preservation

Aug 30 Trace fossils p. 273-289

LAB: Fossilization, taphonomy & traces

Sept 4 Variation p. 55-61; Box 1.3

Sept 6 Taxonomy and systematics p. 46-49

LAB: Classification & systematics

Sept 11 No Class

Sept 13 Taxonomy and systematics

LAB: Mollusks p. 170-193

Sept 18 Interpreting fossils

Sept 20 Interpreting fossils

LAB: Brachiopods p. 110-129

Sept 25 FIRST EXAM

Sept 27 The diversity of marine life p. 64-83

LAB: Echinoderms p. 132-144

Oct 2 The diversity of marine life

Oct 4 Fossil plants p. 223-241

LAB: Arthropods p. 158-170

Oct 9 Vertebrates p. 195-221

Oct 11 Dinosaurs “Dinosaur endothermy: Some like it hot” Chapter 14 in Fastovsky

&Weishampel

LAB: Vertebrate anatomy and DinoSpeed

Oct 16 Dinosaurs

Oct 18 Biostratigraphy p. 20-27

LAB: Fossils in the field – 3 hr lab!

Oct 23 Direct-dating fossils

Oct 25 SECOND EXAM STUDY GUIDE

LAB: Graphic correlation

Oct 30 Paleoecology p. 27-40

Nov 1 Paleoecology

LAB: Corals and reefs p. 96-110

FIELD TRIP, SATURDAY NOV 3, CRETACEOUS REEF

Nov 6 Historical ecology

Nov 8 Direct Dating with young fossils p. 49-55

LAB: Analysis of field trip results

Nov 13 Correlation and Biostratigraphy p. 291-297

Nov 15 Microevolution

LAB: Analysis of field trip results

Nov 20 Microevolution

Deadline for signing up for extra-credit paper: Nov 20

Field trip reports due in class Nov 20

Nov 22 Thanksgiving – no class

Lab: No labs

Nov 27

Nov 29 Extinction p. 297-306

LAB: No labs

Dec 4 Creationism and the fossil record “Evolution as fact and theory” pp. 253-262 in

(last day of class) Gould, 1983. Hen’s teeth and horse’s toes.

Tips for extra-credit paper

Extra-credit paper due Dec 4

Dec 13 (Thursday), 11-1 FINAL EXAM

Study Guide for Final Exam

Extra readings:

Fastovsky, D.E. and Weishampel, D.B., 1996. The Evolution and Extinction of Dinosaurs. Cambridge University Press (Chapter 14 on electronic reserve)

Gould, S.J., 1983. Hen’s Teeth and Horse’s Toes. Norton (pp. 253-262, “Evolution as fact and theory” on electronic reserve.)

These readings can be found via electronic reserves.

The password for the electronic reserve readings is: "paleo"

GRADES

The course grade is based on two hour exams (each worth 20%), the final exam (40%), and the lab grade (20%). The final exam will be semi-cumulative, that is, it will emphasize the last third of the course.

Extra credit is available. A review and analysis of a scientific paper from the published literature can add up to 5% to your lecture grade.

REVIEW AND ANALYSIS EXTRA CREDIT

This paper is to be a review and analysis of one of the articles from the following list. You must choose your article by Nov. 20. No more than three people may work on the same one, so picking an article early is the best way to get one that you want. All of the articles are probably available in the Science-Engineering Library (if you really can't find it, ask me, I may have a copy), but they are not on reserve. Pick several to look at--based on the titles--then choose the one that interests you the most. Don't assume that shorter articles are easier than longer ones. Sign up for your chosen article on -- or before, if you want to get your first choice -- Nov 20.

Your review and analysis paper should include (1) a summary (about one page) of the article's contents--in your own words, of course, (2) a discussion of the evidence and principal conclusions (does the evidence support the conclusions, is this the only conclusion that the evidence points to, do you agree--why or why not?), and (3) a brief discussion of at least one important unresolved issue that deserves additional research. Your review and analysis paper must not exceed four double-spaced pages in length, and it must be typed.

Choose one by Nov 20; your paper is due Dec 4.

1. Farlow, J.O., 1981. Estimates of dinosaur speed from a new trckway site in texas. Nature 294: 747-748.

2. Breining, G., 1991. Buying time. Audubon v. 93 (Nov.-Dec.): 60-69.

3. Burnham, R.J. and Spicer, R.A. , 1986. Forest litter preserved by volcanic activity at El Chichón, Mexico: A potentially accurate record of the pre-eruption vegetation. Palaios, v. 1: 158-161.

4. Dodson, P., 1990. Counting dinosaurs: How many kinds were there? Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, v. 87: 7608-7612

5. Flessa, K.W., 1998. Well-traveled cockles: Shell transport during the Holocene transgression of the southern North Sea. Geology, v. 26: 187-190.

6. Hayward, J.L., Zelenitsky, D.K., Smith, D.L., Zaft, D.M. and Clayburn, J.K., 2000. Eggshell taphonomy at modern gull colonies and a dinosaur clutch site. Palaios, v. 15: 343-355.

7. Hoppe, K.A., Koch, P.L., Carlson, R.W. and Webb, S.D., 1999. Tracing mammoths and mastodons: Reconstruction of migratory behavior using strontium isotope ratios. Geology, v. 27: 439-442.

8. Kowalewski, M., Dulai, A., and Fürsich, F.T., 1998. A fossil record full of holes: The Phanerozoic history of drilling predation. Geology, v. 26: 1084-1089.

9. Larson, P.L. 1994. Tyrannosaurus sex. in Rosenberg, G.D. and Wolberg, D.L., eds., DinoFest. Paleontological Society Special Publication No. 7, pp. 139-155.

10. Purton, L.M.A. and Brasier, M.D., 1999. Giant protist Nummulites and its Eocene environment: Life span and habitat insights from 18O and 13C data from Nummulites and Venericardia, Hampshire basin, U.K. Geology, v. 27: 711-714.

11. Rigby, J.K., Jr., Newman, K.R., Smit, J., van der Kaars, W.A., Sloan, R.E. and Rigby, J.K., 1987. Dinosaurs from the Paleocene part of the Hell Creek Formation, McCone County, Montana. Palaios, v. 2: 296-302.

12. Norell, M.A., Clark, J.M., Chiappe, L.M. and Dashzeveg, D., 1995. A nesting dinosaur. Nature 378: 774-776.

13. Sheehan, P.M., Fastovsky, D.E., Barreto, C., and Hoffmann, R.G., 2000. Dinosaur abundance was not declining in a “3 m gap” at the top of the Hell Creek Formation, Montana and North Dakota. Geology, v. 28: 523-526.

14. Smith, D.M., 2000. Beetle taphonomy in a recent ephemeral lake, southeastern Arizona. Palaios, v. 15: 152-160.

15. Speyer, S.E. and Brett, C.E., 1985. Clustered trilobite assemblages in the Middle Devonian Hamilton Group. Lethaia, v. 18: 85-103.

16. Miller, A.I. and others., 1992. Effect of Hurricane Hugo on molluscan skeletal distributions, Salt

River Bay, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. Geology, v. 20: 23-26.

17. Paul, C.R.C., 1994. Is famine a common factor in mass extinctions? Geology v. 22, 679-682.

18. Witmer, L. M., 2001. Nostril position in dinosaurs and other vertebrates and its significance for nasal function. Science 293: 850-853.

19. Ruben, J.A., Hillenius, W. J., Geist, N. R. Leitch, A., Jones, T. D., Currie, P. J., Horner, J. R. And Espe, G., III., 1996. The metabolic state of some Late Cretaceous dinosaurs. Science 273: 1201-1207.

20. Barrick, R.E. and Showers, W. J., 1994. Thermophysiology of Tyrannosaurus rex: Evidence from oxygen isotopes. Science 265: 222-224.

21. Gingerich, P. D., ul Haq, M. Zalmout, I. S., Khan, I.H., and Malkani, M.S., 2001. Origin of whales from early artiodactlys: Hands and feet of Eocene procetidae from Pakistan. Science 293: 2239-2242.

I expect you to be aware of and adhere to the University of Arizona's Code of Academic Integrity. If you do not have a copy of this code, you may pick one up in the Dean's Office or consult it at http://catalog.arizona.edu/2000‑01/policies/acacode.htm. Among other things, this means that you may not represent someone else's work as your own. Cheating, copying and/or paraphrasing from the work of others is a violation of the Code.

You are responsible for all material covered in class. This includes any announcements of changes in the class schedule or class requirements. I usually make such announcements at the beginning of lecture, so arriving 5 minutes late may be too late.

Late assignments are assessed a penalty of -10% per day or any part of a day. Make-ups of missed exams are not available. If you are going to miss an exam, you must inform me ahead of time (in person, e-mail or phone) and have a mighty good, well-documented reason.

If you require accommodation in testing or notetaking, you must notify me and you must give me the Disability Resource Center faculty letter within the first week of class.
KNOW THIS (or else):

-----------------------------K/T boundary 65 Ma----------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------P/Tr boundary 245 Ma---------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------pC/C boundary 540 Ma--------------------------------------------------------------