BIOL 3500 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Taphonomy, Palynology, Permafrost
Document Summary
Fossils the preserved traces or remains of animals, plants, and other organisms from the past. It is heavily based on the study of the fossil record. Paleoecology the study of the relationship between fossil organisms and their environment. Taphonomy the study of changes to fossils after the death of the organism. Factors enhancing likelihood of fossilization: hard body parts, rapid burial. Fossils are often poorly preserved, incomplete and must be pieced together (why taphonomy is important) Two types of sediment coring: surface sediment gravity coring, for more recent sediments, surface sediment gravity coring, for much older sediments. Extinctions of certain species (e. g. keystone spp. ) may have repercussions down the trophic cascade: e. g. If a highly-spe(cid:272)ialized predator"s food sour(cid:272)e goes e(cid:454)ti(cid:374)(cid:272)t, there is a high (cid:272)ha(cid:374)(cid:272)e the predator goes extinct: e. g. Extinction of mammoth may have resulted in extinction of smilodon (sabretooth tiger) and california condors (large scavenging birds)
