Paleobiology

Brachiopodsand bryozoansin an Ordovicianlimestone, southern Minnesota

Paleobiology(orpalaeobiology) is aninterdisciplinary fieldthat combines the methods and findings found in both theearth sciencesand thelife sciences. Paleobiology is not to be confused withgeobiology, which focuses more on the interactions between thebiosphereand thephysical Earth.

Paleobiologicalresearchuses biologicalfield researchof currentbiotaand offossilsmillions of years old to answer questions about themolecular evolutionand theevolutionary history of life. In thisscientificquest,macrofossils,microfossilsandtrace fossilsare typically analyzed. However, the 21st-centurybiochemicalanalysis ofDNAandRNAsamples offers much promise, as does thebiometricconstruction ofphylogenetic trees.

An investigator in this field is known as apaleobiologist.

Important research areas

Paleobotanyapplies the principles and methods of paleobiology toflora, especiallygreen land plants, but also including thefungiandseaweeds(algae). See alsomycology,phycologyanddendrochronology.
Paleozoologyuses the methods and principles of paleobiology to understandfauna, bothvertebratesandinvertebrates. See alsovertebrateandinvertebrate paleontology, as well aspaleoanthropology.
Micropaleontologyapplies paleobiologic principles and methods toarchaea,bacteria,protistsandmicroscopic pollen/spores. See alsomicrofossilsandpalynology.
Paleovirologyexamines the evolutionary history of viruses on paleobiological timescales.
Paleobiochemistryuses the methods and principles oforganic chemistryto detect and analyzemolecular-level evidenceof ancient life, bothmicroscopicandmacroscopic.
Paleoecologyexamines pastecosystems,climates, andgeographiesso as to better comprehendprehistoric life.
Taphonomyanalyzes thepost-mortemhistory (for example, decay anddecomposition) of an individual organism in order to gain insight on thebehavior,deathandenvironmentof thefossilizedorganism.
Paleoichnologyanalyzes thetracks,borings, trails,burrows, impressions, and othertrace fossilsleft by ancient organisms in order to gain insight into their behavior andecology.
Stratigraphic paleobiologystudieslong-term secularchanges, as well as the (short-term)bed-by-bed sequenceof changes, inorganismal characteristicsand behaviors. See alsostratification,sedimentary rocksand thegeologic time scale.
Evolutionary developmental paleobiologyexamines theevolutionaryaspects of the modes and trajectories of growth and development in theevolution of life–cladesbothextinctandextant. See alsoadaptive radiation,cladistics,evolutionary biology,developmental biologyandphylogenetic tree.

Paleobiologists

The founder or "father" of modern paleobiology was BaronFranz Nopcsa(1877 to 1933), a Hungarian scientist trained at the University of Vienna. He initially termed the discipline "paleophysiology".

However, credit for coining the wordpaleobiologyitself should go to ProfessorCharles Schuchert. He proposed the term in 1904 so as to initiate "a broad new science" joining "traditional paleontology with the evidence and insights of geology and isotopic chemistry."^[1]

On the other hand,Charles Doolittle Walcott, aSmithsonianadventurer, has been cited as the "founder ofPrecambrianpaleobiology". Although best known as the discoverer of the mid-Cambrian Burgess shaleanimal fossils, in 1883 this American curator found the "first Precambrian fossil cells known to science" – astromatolitereef then known asCryptozoonalgae. In 1899 he discovered the firstacritarchfossil cells, a Precambrianalgal phytoplanktonhe namedChuaria. Lastly, in 1914, Walcott reported "minute cells and chains of cell-like bodies" belonging to Precambrianpurple bacteria.^[2]

Later 20th-century paleobiologists have also figured prominently in findingArchaeanandProterozoiceonmicrofossils: In 1954,Stanley A. TylerandElso S. Barghoorndescribed 2.1 billion-year-oldcyanobacteriaandfungi-likemicrofloraat theirGunflint Chertfossil site. Eleven years later, Barghoorn andJ. William Schopfreported finely-preserved Precambrian microflora at their Bitter Springs site of theAmadeus Basin, Central Australia.^[3]

In 1993, Schopf discovered O₂-producingblue-green bacteriaat his 3.5 billion-year-oldApex Chertsite inPilbara Craton,Marble Bar, in the northwestern part ofWestern Australia. So paleobiologists were at last homing in on the origins of the Precambrian "Oxygen catastrophe".^[4]

During the early part of the 21st-century, two paleobiologistsAnjali Goswamiand Thomas Halliday, studied the evolution of mammaliaforms during the Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras (between 299 million to 12,000 years ago).^[5]Additionally, they uncovered and studied the morphological disparity and rapid evolutionary rates of living organisms near the end and in the aftermath of the Cretaceous mass extinction (145 million to 66 million years ago).^[6]^[7]

Paleobiologic journals

Acta Palaeontologica Polonica
Biology and Geology
Historical Biology
PALAIOS
Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology
Paleobiology (journal)
Paleoceanography

Paleobiology in the general press

Books written for the general public on this topic include the following:

The Rise and Reign of the Mammals: A New History, from the Shadow of the Dinosaurs^[8]to Us written by Steve Brusatte
Otherlands: A Journey Through Earth's Extinct Worlds^[9]written by Thomas Halliday
Introduction to Paleobiology and the Fossil Record – 22 April 2020 by Michael J. Benton (Author), David A. T. Harper (Author)

Footnotes

^Schuchert is cited on page 170 ofCradle of Life: The Discovery of Earth's Earliest Fossils(Princeton:Princeton University Press) byJ. William Schopf(1999).ISBN 0-691-00230-4.
^Walcott's contributions are described by J. William Schopf (1999) on pages 23 to 31. Another good source is E. L. Yochelson (1997),Charles Doolittle Walcott: Paleontologist(Kent, Ohio:Kent State University Press).
^The paleobiologic discoveries of Tyler, Barghoorn and Schopf are related on pages 35 to 70 of Schopf (1999).
^The Apex chert microflora is related by Schopf (1999) himself on pages 71 to 100.
^Halliday, Thomas (April 8, 2013)."Testing the inhibitory cascade model in Mesozoic and Cenozoic mammaliaforms".BMC Ecology and Evolution.13(79): 79.doi:10.1186/1471-2148-13-79.PMC3626779.PMID 23565593.
^Halliday, Thomas (March 28, 2016)."Eutherian morphological disparity across the end-Cretaceous mass extinction".Biological Journal of the Linnean Society.118(1): 152–168.doi:10.1111/bij.12731.
^Halliday, Thomas (June 29, 2016)."Eutherians experienced elevated evolutionary rates in the immediate aftermath of the Cretaceous–Palaeogene mass extinction".Proceedings of the Royal Society B.283(1833).doi:10.1098/rspb.2015.3026.PMC4936024.PMID 27358361.
^Brusatte, Steve (2022).The Rise and Reign of the Mammals: A New History, from the Shadow of the Dinosaurs to Us(1st ed.). United States: Mariner Books.ISBN 978-0062951519.
^Halliday, Thomas (2022).Otherlands: A Journey Through Earth's Extinct Worlds(1st ed.). United States: Random House.ISBN 978-0593132883.

Derek E.G. Briggsand Peter R. Crowther, eds. (2003).Palaeobiology II. Malden, Massachusetts:Blackwell Publishing.ISBN 0-632-05147-7andISBN 0-632-05149-3. The second edition of an acclaimed British textbook.
Robert L. Carroll(1998).Patterns and Processes of Vertebrate Evolution. Cambridge Paleobiology Series. Cambridge, England:Cambridge University Press.ISBN 978-0-521-47809-0andISBN 0-521-47809-X. Applies paleobiology to the adaptive radiation offishesandquadrupeds.
Matthew T. Carrano, Timothy Gaudin, Richard Blob, and John Wible, eds. (2006).Amniote Paleobiology: Perspectives on the Evolution of Mammals, Birds and Reptiles. Chicago:University of Chicago Press.ISBN 0-226-09478-2andISBN 978-0-226-09478-6. This new book describes paleobiological research intoland vertebratesof theMesozoicandCenozoiceras.
Robert B. Eckhardt (2000).Human Paleobiology. Cambridge Studies in Biology and Evolutionary Anthropology. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.ISBN 0-521-45160-4andISBN 978-0-521-45160-4. This book connects paleoanthropology andarcheologyto the field of paleobiology.
Douglas H. Erwin (2006).Extinction: How Life on Earth Nearly Ended 250 Million Years Ago.Princeton:Princeton University Press.ISBN 978-0-691-00524-9. An investigation by a paleobiologist into the many theories as to what happened during the catastrophic Permian-Triassic transition.
Brian Keith Hall and Wendy M. Olson, eds. (2003).Keywords and Concepts in Evolutionary Biology. Cambridge, Massachusetts:Harvard University Press.ISBN 0-674-00904-5andISBN 978-0-674-00904-2.
David Jablonski, Douglas H. Erwin, andJere H. Lipps(1996).Evolutionary Paleobiology. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 492 pages.ISBN 0-226-38911-1andISBN 0-226-38913-8. A fine American textbook.
Masatoshi Neiand Sudhir Kumar (2000).Molecular Evolution and Phylogenetics. Oxford, England:Oxford University Press.ISBN 0-19-513585-7andISBN 978-0-19-513585-5. This text linksDNA/RNA analysisto the evolutionary "tree of life" in paleobiology.
Donald R. Prothero (2004).Bringing Fossils to Life: An Introduction to Paleobiology. New York:McGraw Hill.ISBN 0-07-366170-8andISBN 978-0-07-366170-4. An acclaimed book for the novice fossil-hunter and young adults.
Mark Ridley, ed. (2004).Evolution.Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.ISBN 0-19-926794-4andISBN 978-1-4051-0345-9. An anthology of analytical studies in paleobiology.
Raymond Rogers, David Eberth, and Tony Fiorillo (2007).Bonebeds: Genesis, Analysis and Paleobiological Significance. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.ISBN 0-226-72370-4andISBN 978-0-226-72370-9. A new book regarding thefossils of vertebrates, especiallytetrapodson land during the Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras.
Thomas J. M. Schopf, ed. (1972).Models in Paleobiology. San Francisco: Freeman, Cooper.ISBN 0-87735-325-5andISBN 978-0-87735-325-6. A much-cited, seminal classic in the field discussingmethodologyandquantitative analysis.
Thomas J.M. Schopf (1980).Paleoceanography. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.ISBN 0-674-65215-0andISBN 978-0-674-65215-6. A later book by the notedpaleobiologist. This text discussesancient marine ecology.
J. William Schopf (2001).Cradle of Life: The Discovery of Earth's Earliest Fossils. Princeton:Princeton University Press.ISBN 0-691-08864-0. The use ofbiochemicalandultramicroscopic analysisto analyze microfossils of bacteria and archaea.
Paul Selden and John Nudds (2005).Evolution of Fossil Ecosystems. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.ISBN 978-0-226-74641-8andISBN 0-226-74641-0. A recent analysis and discussion ofpaleoecology.
David Sepkoski.Rereading the Fossil Record: The Growth of Paleobiology as an Evolutionary Discipline(University of Chicago Press; 2012) 432 pages; A history since the mid-19th century, with a focus on the "revolutionary" era of the 1970s and early 1980s and the work of Stephen Jay Gould and David Raup.
Paul Tasch (1980).Paleobiology of the Invertebrates. New York:John Wiley & Sons.ISBN 0-471-05272-8andISBN 978-0-471-05272-2. Appliesstatisticsto the evolution ofsponges,cnidarians,worms,brachiopods,bryozoa,mollusks, andarthropods.
Shuhai Xiao and Alan J. Kaufman, eds. (2006).Neoproterozoic Geobiology and Paleobiology. New York:Springer Science+Business Media.ISBN 978-1-4020-5201-9. This new book describes research into thefossilsof theearliest multicellular animalsandplants, especially theEdiacaran periodinvertebrates and algae.
Bernard Ziegler and R. O. Muir (1983).Introduction to Palaeobiology. Chichester, England: E. Horwood.ISBN 0-470-27552-9andISBN 978-0-470-27552-8. A classic, British introductory textbook.

External links

Paleobiology website of the National Museum of Natural History (Smithsonian) in Washington, D.C.(archived 11 March 2007)
The Paleobiology Database

[1] Schuchert is cited on page 170 ofCradle of Life: The Discovery of Earth's Earliest Fossils(Princeton:Princeton University Press) byJ. William Schopf(1999).ISBN 0-691-00230-4.

[2] Walcott's contributions are described by J. William Schopf (1999) on pages 23 to 31. Another good source is E. L. Yochelson (1997),Charles Doolittle Walcott: Paleontologist(Kent, Ohio:Kent State University Press).

[3] The paleobiologic discoveries of Tyler, Barghoorn and Schopf are related on pages 35 to 70 of Schopf (1999).

[4] The Apex chert microflora is related by Schopf (1999) himself on pages 71 to 100.

[5] Halliday, Thomas (April 8, 2013)."Testing the inhibitory cascade model in Mesozoic and Cenozoic mammaliaforms".BMC Ecology and Evolution.13(79): 79.doi:10.1186/1471-2148-13-79.PMC3626779.PMID 23565593.

[6] Halliday, Thomas (March 28, 2016)."Eutherian morphological disparity across the end-Cretaceous mass extinction".Biological Journal of the Linnean Society.118(1): 152–168.doi:10.1111/bij.12731.

[7] Halliday, Thomas (June 29, 2016)."Eutherians experienced elevated evolutionary rates in the immediate aftermath of the Cretaceous–Palaeogene mass extinction".Proceedings of the Royal Society B.283(1833).doi:10.1098/rspb.2015.3026.PMC4936024.PMID 27358361.

[8] Brusatte, Steve (2022).The Rise and Reign of the Mammals: A New History, from the Shadow of the Dinosaurs to Us(1st ed.). United States: Mariner Books.ISBN 978-0062951519.

[9] Halliday, Thomas (2022).Otherlands: A Journey Through Earth's Extinct Worlds(1st ed.). United States: Random House.ISBN 978-0593132883.

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v t e Origin of life
History of research	Panspermia(5th century BC) Spontaneous generation(4th century BC) Primordial soup(19th century)
Prebiotic synthesis	Pseudo-panspermia Miller–Urey experiment Formamide-based prebiotic chemistry Alternative abiogenesis scenarios
Protocells	GADV-protein world Clay hypothesis Iron–sulfur world Primordial sandwich PAH world Peptide-RNA world Quasispecies model RNA world
Earliest organisms	Earliest known life forms Last universal common ancestor(LUCA)
Research	Astrobiology Paleobiology