The Fossil Record and Adaptive

Radiationby

Stefan TassoulasZach HerbstCaleb Jarriel Holden Lee

Lambros Tassoulas

Introduction

• Discovery of arthropods in amber droplets• Inclusions from 230 mya (Schmidt et al.

2012)o Amber from the Late Triassic

• Fossil record and adaptive radiationo Stratigraphy

Data and Results

• Worldwide amber deposition • 70,000 triassic amber droplets

were examined (Schmidt et al. 2012)o 3 species of arthropods found

Stratigraphy Analysis

Discussion

• 100 Ma before flowering plants appearedo Pegs conifer feeding as an ancestral

trait

• Eriophyidae group: adaptive radiationo 3500 species o Special body plan

Conclusion• Three possible explanations for

Carnian amber anomaly o Changes in sedimentation patterns o Increased resin productiono Both factors together

• Arthropod fossils in ambero Fossil record indicates adaptive

radiation

Literature Cited

Schmidt, Alexander R., Saskia Jancke, and Evert E. Lindquist. "Arthropods in Amber from the Triassic Period." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 109.37 (2012): 14796-4801. Print.

Georg-August-Universität Göttingen. Courant Research Centre Geobiology.

Discovery of the Earliest Arthropods Preserved in Amber. Georg-August-Universität Göttingen. N.p., 31 Aug. 2012. Web. 9 Sept. 2012. <http://www.uni-goettingen.de/en/3240.html?cid=4267>.

Shanks, John. "230-Million-Year-Old Fly and Mites Found Preserved in

Amber." Sci-news.com. Sci-News.com, 27 Aug. 2012. Web. 9 Sept. 2012.

<http://www.sci-news.com/paleontology/article00551.html>.