This course on invertebrate paleobiology aims to teach students about taphonomy, species composition, functional morphology, species concepts, phenetics, cladistics, biostratigraphy, biogeography, evolutionary patterns, extinction, diversity trends, guilds, environmental preferences, and suspension-feeding. The teaching method includes video lectures, and the course is intended for students interested in earth sciences and paleobiology.
Earth 101 - Invertebrate Paleobiology
Matthew E. Clapham and University of California, Santa Cruz via YouTube
Overview
Syllabus
Taphonomy (time averaging).
Species composition and diversity.
Substrate Adaptations.
Functional morphology: reef-building.
Species concepts and classification.
Phenetics and cladistics.
Ontogeny and heterochrony.
Landmark morphometrics.
Biostratigraphy.
Biogeography.
Biogeography: vicariance and dispersal.
Evolutionary pattern and process.
Evolutionary trends vs. random walks.
Extinction and origination.
Diversity trends and biases.
Diversity: spatial and environmental patterns.
Guilds and evolutionary faunas.
Environmental preferences of marine organisms.
Functional Morphology: Suspension-Feeding.
Taught by
Matthew E. Clapham
