Instructor: Dr. Gregory J. Retallack, 310G Cascade, gregr@darkwing.uoregon.edu
Office Hours: M, W, 1200 - 1300

Teaching Assistant and Lab Instructor: Jonathan G. Wynn, 310D Cascade, jgwynn@darkwing.uoregon.edu
Office Hours: M, W, 2:00 - 3:00 pm

Class Time and Location: Lectures: 1230-1350 UH Leacture in 202 CAS, Lab: 1200-1450 F/254 COL

Textbooks:

	Stewart, W.N. and Rothwell, G.W. 1989. Paleobotany and the evolution of plants. Cambridge University Press, New York, 521 pp.
	Benton, M. 1990. Vertebrate paleontology. Unwin-Hyman, London, 434 pp.
	Retallack, G.J. 1985. Laboratory exercises in paleobotany and vertebrate paleontology. (available from EMU print shop)

Lectures and Tests:

PART I - PALEOBOTANY
	Mar 28 Introduction Stewart & Rothwell Ch. 1-2  30  The transition to land 5-9, 12 April 4 Ancestors of clubmosses and horsetails 10-11, 13-15 6 Evolution of fern leaves 16-18  11 Origin of seeds 19-20 13 Ecology of seed ferns 21-23 18 Ginkgos, cycads and allied plants  22-24 20 Declining fortunes of conifers  25-26 25 Early evolution of angiosperms 27 27 Mid-term examination: 1 hr short answer & multiple choice on paleobotany
PART II -VERTEBRATE PALEONTOLOGY
	May 2 The earliest vertebrates Benton, Ch 1-2 4 Emphasis on agility in fish 6 9 Ecology and amphibians & reptiles 3-4 11 Dinosaurs and their kin 5-7 16 Diversity of other reptiles & birds 7-8 18 Dinosaurian physiology & extinction 7 23 Origin and early evolution of mammals 9 25 Mammalian grazers and hunters 9 June 1 Mammalian adaptive radiation 9  9  Final examination: Friday 800, 1 hr of short answer and multiple choice & 1 hr comprehensive essays

Assessment:

Mid-term examination	10%
Final examination	20%
Laboratory exercises	40%
Term project	30%

Term Project:

A report some 10-15 pages long is expected as a result of your fieldwork, either from the organized excursion or from your independent observations of fossil plants or vertebrates. It is important that this report contains up-to-date information and is written in the form of a scientific paper, complete with abstract, acknowledgements and all cited references. Consult bibliographies of geology and biology, such as Biological Abstracts or Science Citation Index, in the Science Library to be sure you have seen the latest published work on your topic. Follow the format of the Journal of Paleontology. Appropriate topics include the following.

1. Sketch, describe and identify some fossils (at least five plant fossils or one vertebrate fossil).

2. Describe and identify a piece of fossil wood by making three appropriately oriented petrographic thin sections.

3. Make a large collection of fossil angiosperm leaves, and by considering their size, marginal morphology and other features, try to interpret the climate in which they grew.

4. By measuring a short (1-2 m) stratigraphic section and making observations on sedimentary structures at a locality, and on the mode of preservation of plant or vertebrate fossils, try to reconstruct the circumstances of their fossilization.

5. By careful comparison with allied modern forms and by a consideration of the degree to which morphological features may have been adapted for a specific purpose, attempt to reconstruct the life style of a fossil species.

Excursion:

A two-day field trip to look at Neogene fossil plants and vertebrates near Madras and Christmas Lake, central Oregon will leave on Friday, April 21 at 6:00 p.m. and return late Sunday night, April 23. There will be a compulsory charge for transport in state-owned vans. Camping will be free, but you can contribute money to a group dinner.

Laboratories:

Photo	Date	Subject
	Mar 31	Preservation of land plant and animal fossils
	April 7	Vegetative structure of algae, bryophytes and early land plants
	April 14	Growth of lycopods and equisetaleans
	April 21	Classification of ferns
	April 28	Description and reconstruction of gymnosperms
	May 5	Reproduction of angiosperms
	May 12	Populations of fish
	May 19	Bone structure of amphibians, birds and reptiles
	May 26	Functional morphology of mammalian teeth
	June 2	Review

last modified: 2-23-2000

Photo credits to:
White, M. E., 1986, The Greening of Gondwana, Reed, Australia,
Long, J. A., 1998, Dinosaurs of Australia and New Zealand, Harvard University Press, Cambridge,
Czerkas, S. J., and Czerkas, S. A, 1990, Dinosaurs, A Global View, Barnes and Noble.

accesses since Feb 23, 2000

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