BI2PB2: Palaeobiology

Module code: BI2PB2

Module provider: School of Biological Sciences

Credits: 20

Level: 5

When you’ll be taught: Semester 2

Module convenor: Dr Brian Pickles , email: b.j.pickles@reading.ac.uk

Module co-convenor: Dr Andrew Meade, email: a.meade@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s):

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2025/6

Available to visiting students: Yes

Talis reading list: Yes

Last updated: 3 April 2025

Overview

Module aims and purpose

Palaeobiology is a truly interdisciplinary field that integrates concepts drawn from geology and biology. Zoologists and ecologists with an interest in evolutionary history and the fossil record, especially palaeontology of dinosaurs and other reptiles, will find this module provides valuable context for their studies of modern organisms and ecosystems.

Palaeobiology is an international discipline and this course has a global context beyond the concepts being taught. Samples for fossil ID have been collected from Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada, and kindly loaned to UoR by the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology. You may have the opportunity to interactÌýwith researchers and graduate students from the NHM and potentially from different parts of the world including Australia (University of New England) and Canada (Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology).

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to:Ìý

1. Explain the links and interactions between the evolution of life, mass extinctions, geological history, and palaeoclimates
2. Summarise the taphonomic processes the lead to fossilization and what they mean for our understanding of biodiversity through time
3. Discuss the value of the fossil record for informing our understanding of the modern world
4. Apply field, lab, and statistical approaches to the study of palaeobiology

Module content

You will learn about the principles of palaeontology and palaeoecology with lectures covering diverse topics including palaeoclimate archives and proxies, taphonomy, palaeobiodiversity, stratigraphy, palaeobiogeography, life histories and biology of extinct species, macroevolution, extinction, and the fossil record and earth history. You will gain field skills such as mapping, excavation, fossil preparation and extraction, with trips to nearby sites of Palaeobiological significance such as the Jurassic Coast and the Isle of Wight. You will also gain skills in fossil identification, specimen curation, and modern analytical techniques.

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

The learning outcomes will be met through a mixture of lectures, seminars, field trips, field work, practical skills training, laboratory work, phylogenetics, self-directed learning and directed independent study. Appropriate supplementary information and reading lists will be provided on Blackboard.ÌýÌý

Students will engage in discussion with peers and staff regarding topics they are studying, as well as online seminars with researchers working in different areas of palaeontology, palaeoecology, and palaeobiology. Students will work together on field trips and in practical classes to gain a range of skills needed for modern palaeobiological research.Ìý

Study hours

At least 72 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.