This course explores the impact of the K/Pg extinction event on the dominance shift from dinosaurs to mammals. By studying vertebrate localities, fossil sampling, and ecological diversification, learners will understand the aftermath of the extinction event. The course teaches skills such as placing fossil locations in a stratigraphic context, recording geology, and collecting fossiliferous sediment. The teaching method involves analyzing the anatomy of the mass extinction and studying dental complexity across the K/Pg boundary. This course is intended for individuals interested in paleontology, evolutionary biology, and the history of life on Earth.
Overview
Syllabus
Intro
The Ups and Downs of the last 600 m.y.
Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) mass extinction
K-Pg extraterrestrial impact
K-Pg Deccan volcanism Mahabaleshwar, India
K-Pg extinction hypotheses
Cretaceous terrestrial vertebrate localities
Paleocene terrestrial vertebrate localities
The Hell Creek Study System
Coastal lowland setting
K-Pg boundary layer (2 cm thick)
Temporal framework
Dinosaur icons
Prospect & surface collect
Place fossil locs in stratigraphic context
Record geology & collect fossiliferous sediment
Screen-wash fossiliferous sediment
New fossils show some ecological diversification
K-Pg: A watershed event for mammals taxonomic richness
K-Pg mammals of northeastern MT
Cranium-NDGS 431
Mammalian fossil sampling
The anatomy of the K-Pg mass extinction
Endangered species 3,600 Black rhinos
Ecological disturbance
or limping to the finish line ✓ Declining faunal evenness and relative abundances of metatherians implies ecological instability during the last 500 k.y of the Cretaceous
Who were the winners & losers?
Methodological Premise
Homology-free dental complexity
Modern Study Carnivorans & Rodents
Dental complexity across the K-Pg
Taught by
Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology
