general terms Flashcards
(29 cards)
What is paleobiology?
The study of the biology, ecology, and evolution of fossil organisms.
What is a fossil?
Any preserved remains, traces, or impressions of past life, typically older than 10,000 years.
What is a body fossil?
Physical remains of organisms, like bones, teeth, shells, or exoskeletons.
What is a trace fossil (ichnofossil)?
Evidence of biological activity, such as footprints, burrows, coprolites (fossil poop), or feeding marks.
What is taphonomy?
The study of how organisms decay, become buried, and fossilize.
What is the fossil record?
The total collection of fossils and their placement in rock layers, providing a history of life on Earth.
What is biostratigraphy?
Using fossils to correlate and date rock layers.
What is an index fossil?
A fossil of a species that was widespread, abundant, and short-lived; used to date rock layers.
What is mass extinction?
A rapid, widespread loss of many species in a short geological time, e.g., end-Permian or K-Pg extinction.
What is adaptive radiation?
Rapid evolutionary diversification of a group into many new forms to fill ecological niches.
What is convergence (convergent evolution)?
Independent evolution of similar features in unrelated groups, often due to similar environmental pressures.
What is a Lagerstätte?
A sedimentary deposit with exceptionally preserved fossils, sometimes including soft tissue (e.g., Burgess Shale).
What is biomineralization?
The process by which living organisms produce minerals to harden body parts (e.g., shells, bones, teeth).
What is a microfossil?
A fossil that requires a microscope to study, e.g., foraminifera, conodont elements.
What is phylogeny?
The evolutionary history and relationships among species or groups.
What is a clade?
A group of organisms consisting of a common ancestor and all its descendants.
What is morphological disparity?
The range or variety of body forms in a group, regardless of how many species there are.
What is paleoecology?
The study of past ecosystems and how fossil organisms interacted with each other and their environment.
What is functional morphology?
The study of the relationship between the form of a fossil and its function or lifestyle.
What is punctuated equilibrium?
A model where species remain stable for long periods, interrupted by short bursts of rapid evolution.
What is gradualism?
The idea that evolutionary change happens slowly and steadily over time.
What is heterochrony?
Changes in the timing of developmental events, leading to evolutionary changes in body shape or size.
What is neoteny?
Retention of juvenile features into adulthood.
What is an extant species?
A species that is still living today.
