Lab13_Paleogeography

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4200

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Geology

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Dec 6, 2023

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Name: __________________________________ GEOL 4200: Sedimentology and Stratigraphy Lab 13: An Introduction to Biostratigraphy and the Paleobiology Database Due 11/21 Revised from “Life Through Time: Investigating Biostratigraphy with the PBDB by Christian George, High Point University Open the PBDB Navigator and spend some time getting comfortable with how it works: https://paleobiodb.org/navigator/ This web app allows you to browse the contents of the Paleobiology Database. The map shows the localities of fossils that are entered into the database color - ­­ coded by age; the size of the dot corresponds to the number of collections (Figure 1). Figure 1 The Navigator consists of three parts: 1. Map ( CENTER ) showing continents with dots representing fossil occurrences. The color of these dots represents their geologic age. If you click on the dots, you can see all of the information on eachsite and the fossil species that occur there. If you click on the map it will zoom into that location. You can also use the plus or minus buttons in the toolbar (left side of screen), or the scroll wheel on your mouse to zoom in and out. Once you zoom in you can use the mouse to click and drag the map around.
2. Geologic time scale ( BOTTOM ) showing the major eras, periods, and stages. Selecting any of thetime units on time scale will restrict the data that is displayed to that time interval. 3. Tool bar ( LEFT ) showing the tools you can use to explore the database. These include: zoom in/out on the map reconstruct plate tectonic configurations for time interval (era or smaller) you are exploring narrow down which taxonomic group is plotted on map create a diversity curve for the occurrences currently plotted on map download the data (lat/long, geologic age, etc.) for the occurrences plotted on map If you click on any time units in the geologic time scale, the occurrences displayed on the map will be restricted to those time intervals; if you click on a taxon on the right side, only the localities where that taxon is found will be shown. As you click on things (e.g. Paleozoic), they are added as search terms. The search terms are listed in the lower left corner of the map. You can clear them by clicking the X next to each one. Biostratigraphy – Investigating Life through Time As you may know, the geologic time scale was assembled over many years by correlating rock units based on fossils (among other things). Using the Principle of Faunal Succession, geologists organized rock units into groups of similar ages. Click on different time units on the geologic time scale. Note that the taxa may change in the taxon list. Write down three Time Intervals and the three most Abundant Taxa for each: Time 1: Time 2: Time 3: 1 st Taxon 2 nd Taxon 3 rd Taxon This is a rough approximation of the different kinds of life that geologists used to recognize stratigraphic units of distinct ages, you should be able to note differences in the faunas between time intervals.
Which two of the time units you selected were most distinct from one another? How many years passed between these two units of time? Explain why this makes sense based on your answer above. How does this relate to role that evolution has played in history or life? The Phanerozoic Eon contains three eras. What are they? Those eras were recognized early on by geologists because they have quite distinctive faunas. Each era after the Paleozoic was preceded by a mass extinction. Mass extinctions cause large - ­­ scale turnover in fossils that are preserved in the rock record. Describe the Principle of Faunal Succession in your own words: The first mass extinction we will examine is the end - ­­ Cretaceous mass extinction. This separates the Mesozoic from the Cenozoic. The end of the Cretaceous Period and the start of the Paleogene were recognized in part because of the extinction of the non - ­­ avian dinosaurs.
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