#531: Palaeontology

Or without the 'a' in American sources... such as the one referenced here...

This University of Berkeley classification is useful in showing the different sub-disciplines.

Paleontology is traditionally divided into various sub-disciplines:

Micropaleontology: Study of generally microscopic fossils, regardless of the group to which they belong.

Paleobotany: Study of fossil plants; traditionally includes the study of fossil algae and fungi in addition to land plants.

Palynology: Study of pollen and spores, both living and fossil, produced by land plants and protists - this is very important in climate change research for reconstructing past climates from lake bed sediments etc.

Invertebrate Paleontology: Study of invertebrate animal fossils, such as mollusks, echinoderms, and others.

Vertebrate Paleontology: Study of vertebrate fossils, from primitive fishes to mammals.

Human Paleontology (Paleoanthropology): The study of prehistoric human and proto-human fossils.

Taphonomy: Study of the processes of decay, preservation, and the formation of fossils in general.

Ichnology: Study of fossil tracks, trails, and footprints.

Paleoecology: Study of the ecology and climate of the past, as revealed both by fossils and by other methods.

In short, palaeontology is the study of what fossils tell us about the ecologies of the past, about evolution, and about our place, as humans, in the world. Palaeontology incorporates knowledge from biology, geology, ecology, anthropology, archaeology, and even computer science to understand the processes that have led to the origination and eventual destruction of the different types of organisms since life arose.

A useful summary, and elements of these sub-disciplines would I imagine be included in any draft specification once it emerges.

Image: Fossil from Staithes cliffs, North Yorkshire - Alan Parkinson, shared on Flickr under CC license.

#340: Mary Anning

Mary Anning was an early palaeontologist. She was particularly linked with the town of Lyme Regis in Dorset. There is a museum largely dedicated to her life there, and she has also been a recent stamp release with images of her finds.

She knew far more than other learned gentlemen of the time, but her gender prevented her from being included in debates and other aspects of work at that time.

A few years ago, a fundraising campaign was successful in raising funds for a statue to be installed in Lyme Regis.

A statue of pioneering 19th-century fossil hunter and palaeontologist Mary Anning was unveiled in her home town of Lyme Regis on what would have been her 222nd birthday. A monument worthy of this monumental woman was revealed on Saturday 21 May 2022 by Professor Alice Roberts.

The installation of the statue marked the culmination of a four year campaign by the Mary Anning Rocks group which was started by schoolgirl Evie Swire, then aged 11 and her mother, Anya Pearson.

The statue is situated at the junction between Long Entry and Gun Cliff Walk.

I've been to pay my respects each time I've visited since it was unveiled. I shall be heading back there next month.

Image: Sam Parkinson

#312: Stamp Issue: Mary Anning

Stamps are often given designs which connect with Natural History, as well as historical figures,  A recent issue featured Mary Anning. She will be featured in a forthcoming post as young people deserve to learn about her pioneering work in an area which is likely to feature in the specification.

What other stamp issues have a Natural History theme?

I've previously used stamp design as a creative task. A blank outline of a stamp (although I need to find one with the King rather than the late Queen is a useful template for creative design work.

#159: Dinosaur Island

The result of the original consultation and published ideas to build subject criteria around was to include life in the early world: the evolution of life and the dinosaurs.

The Isle of Wight is one of the best places to go to find fossils and evidence of dinosaurs in the UK. It would make an excellent location for a fieldtrip with students for those schools that were able to make the journey - by ferry or hovercraft - an extra logistical consideration.

The Natural History Museum has created a useful video on the 'dinosaur island' as it calls it.

The Isle of Wight's tourist board also makes something of their status as the "dinosaur capital" of England.

There's a Dinosaur Isle museum with an impressive collection of fossils in Sandown.