Bristol Palaeobiology

Graphical summary of Srinivas et al. 2025. Finite Element Analyses show that that modern crocodiles evolved flatter and weaker skulls from domed terrestrial ancestors to adapt to life in water, trading skull strength for streamlining.

A new paper by Ananth Srinivas and colleagues shows that modern crocodiles evolved flatter and weaker skulls from domed ancestors to adapt to life in water, trading skull strength for streamlining.

doi.org/10.1098/rspb...

Check out this article @davehone.bsky.social, Mike Habib and I wrote based on our ideas about pterosaurs as models for aircraft. Heavy lifting done by Dave Hone and very little by me while I’m on mat leave, but still appreciate being involved!

Uncertainty in the timing of diversification of flowering plants rests with equivocal interpretation of their fossil record | Royal Society Open Science The timing of the origin of crown-angiosperms exemplifies the impact of competing approaches to establishing evolutionary timescales. Fossils of unequivocal crown-angiosperms are not known from before...

Our latest, led by @jameswclark.bsky.social of @milnerevolution.bsky.social shows that the notorious mismatch between molecular and palaeontological estimates for the timing of origin of angiosperms is a consequence of equivocal interpretation of their fossil record @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social

Morphogenesis of Fractofusus andersoni and the nature of early animal development - Nature Communications Rangeomorphs are some of the oldest complex macroscopic fossil organisms. Here, the authors describe a population of rangeomorphs with two, spindle-shaped fronds from Mistaken Point, Newfoundland, mod...

The last bit of Frankie Dunn's PhD is finally published! @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Microvertebrates from a Rhaetian neptunian dyke at Holwell, Somerset: Dating the fissures Dating the Mesozoic-aged fissure deposits around Bristol and South Wales has been problematic, with ages of the older examples disputed as either Carn…

For #fossilfriday my first paper just dropped, published by @geolassoc.bsky.social with @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social.

We found a mixed terrestrial and marine fauna with complex ecological implications and a Rhaetian age for these Holwell fissures.

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Really pleased to be part of this project which shows that aerobic bacteria arose in the Archaean, long before the GOE - after which aerobes proliferated through HGT. Fun @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social collab including @tweethinking.bsky.social @sabifo4.bsky.social @emoody.bsky.social Davide Pisani

This weeks palaeo seminar @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social is by @cambriannelids.bsky.social on the Cambrian evolution of animal skeletons

This week’s palaeo seminar @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social was delivered by Rachel Wood (Edinburgh) on what triggered the Cambrian Explosion. Oxygen - not much, but just enough!

Job Alert: Senior Research Associate in Phylogenomics @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social researching timing, sequence and phenotypic consequences of rediploidisation following whole genome duplication - comparative genomics, molecular clock and phenotypic disparity methods, with @jameswclark.bsky.social

Persistence selection between simulated biogeochemical cycle variants for their distinct effects on the Earth system | PNAS The average long-term impact of Darwinian evolution on Earth’s habitability remains extremely uncertain. Recent attempts to reconcile this uncertai...

Our latest: a Richard Boyle (Exeter) production, using simulations to show how differential selection of biogeochemical cycles can lead to planetary homeostasis, with some empirical data from @emoody.bsky.social and @sabifo4.bsky.social @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social

New lab toy at @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social! We’ve inherited a Bruker Skyscan 1272 from another uni group and today I did my first scan on it, playing around with some microfossils. Not bad for a first attempt I think.

In friday’s palaeo seminar @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social we were treated to Microfossil evolution and morphological change through warm and cold climates by the amazing @bridgetwade.bsky.social

Beau is one of our 3rd year undergrads so make sure you check this out!

First week back to teaching in 2025 and for our palaeo seminar we have Prof Christine Janis telling us about her research into giant kangaroos and whether or not they could hop!

Very exciting day today setting up our new (old) CT scanner for @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social! Looking forward to training on it tomorrow and learning the tricks and seeing what we can do with our new toy…

Tahlia Pollock @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social has an amazing new study integrating 3D shape, biomechanics, and optimality modelling, helps explain why so many mammals evolve sabre teeth: functional optimality was a key driver behind the repeated evolution of extreme sabre-tooth morphologies.

Graphical abstract showing functional optimality of puncture & stress resistance performance across the canines of mammalian carnivores. Extreme sabretooth forms cluster on the left of the morphospace in an high optimality hotspot.

Cool functional morphology paper by Pollock et al. from @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social finds
functional optimality of puncture & stress resistance performance drove convergent #evolution of sabre-teeth in mammalian carnivores.

#Science #Paleontology #EvolutionaryBiology

www.cell.com/current-biol...

Yay! Our LUCA study shorturl.at/09YR8 made into @quantamagazine.bsky.social list of 2024's biggest breakthroughs! Thanks to @emoody.bsky.social @tweethinking.bsky.social Davide Pisani @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social and the rest of our amazing team!

Morphogenesis of pteraspid heterostracan oral plates and the evolutionary origin of teeth | Royal Society Open Science Teeth are a key vertebrate innovation; their evolution is generally associated with the origin of jawed vertebrates. However, tooth-like structures already occur in jawless stem-gnathostomes; heterost...

The indefatigable Madleen Grohganz has just published the third paper from her PhD thesis this year, showing that heterostracans did not have teeth but tooth-like structures evolved convergently in many stem-gnathostomes, coopted to a tooth function in jawed vertebrates @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social

How do organic soft tissues survive in exceptional fossils? with Jakob Vinther, Ian Bull and Matt Wills [NERC GW4+ Jan 13]

Total evidence approaches to clarify the early fossil record of sponges and the early evolution of animals with Davide Pisani @phil-donoghue.bsky.social [NERC GW4+ Jan 13]

The biology and palaeobiology of living and extinct small mammals with @emilyrayfield.bsky.social [NERC GW4+ Jan 13]

Taphonomy of organelles and the origin of eukaryotes with @phil-donoghue.bsky.social @jameswclark.bsky.social @tweethinking.bsky.social Davide Pisani, John Cunningham [NERC GW4+ Jan 13]

Ground-truthing the boron isotope-pH proxy in biogenic silica with @michaelhenehan.bsky.social [NERC GW4+ Jan 13]

Using machine learning to predict environmental and biosphere change with Lewis Alcott and @michaelhenehan.bsky.social [UoB Scholarship Jan 20]

Earth’s evolving oceans with Lewis Alcott, Alex Krause and @richardstockey.bsky.social [NERC GW4+ Jan 13]

Evaluating new data and methods to solve animal phylogeny with Davide Pisani and @phil-donoghue.bsky.social [UoB Scholarship Jan 20]

Climate change impacts on coastal systems with Daniela Schmidt and Matt Palmer [UoB Scholarship Jan 20]

Evolutionary origin and assembly of animal bodyplans with @phil-donoghue.bsky.social Davide Pisani & Frankie Dunn [UoB Scholarship Jan 20]

Mammals do the twist: Pelage, autogrooming, and the evolution of mammalian endothermy with Katrina Jones and @emilyrayfield.bsky.social [UoB Scholarship Jan 20]

We've got a number of PhD projects up for grabs with competitive funding, but apply asap because they have Jan 13 and Jan 20 application deadlines!!

Check out the list below......

www.bristol.ac.uk/earthscience...

Ecological drivers of jaw morphological evolution in lepidosaurs | Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences Ecology is a key driver of morphological evolution during adaptive radiations, but alternative factors like phylogeny and allometry can have a strong influence on morphology. Lepidosaurs, the most div...

Cool new paper by Ballell et al. from @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social on #lepidosaur (🦎&🐍) jaw #evolution using 3D morphometrics & phylogenetic comparative methods to show ecological adaptation is a prime driver of their extensive diversification.

Read here:
royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...

Congrats to Dani Schmidt and Mike Benton who won the President’s and Lapworth medals at #PalAss24 for their immense contributions to palaeontological science

and thanks for Wentao for taking such great pictures!

Thanks to Kirsten, Pablo, Tahlia and Wenqian for organising the Bristol Palaeo christmas party - so much amazing food and amazing people from around the world inc Australia, Canada, Chile, China, France, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Mexico, Scotland, Spain and Turkey. No one needs to eat for a week!