Scotland’s Palaeozoic rocks represent important windows through which crucial stages in the early evolution of life on Earth can be viewed. Our Palaeozoic collections are renowned worldwide for specimens of eurypterids, plants, fishes and early tetrapods. They are central to our research on early vertebrate diversity and evolution, the reconstruction of evolutionary pattern and process, and uses of fossils and systematic methods in evolutionary developmental biology.
Taxonomic expertise in arthropods, brachiopods, and “enigmatic” Palaeozoic fossils sits together with fossil birds, dinosaurs and marine reptiles. There is also a focus on amber deposits including a growing collections of Burmese amber which is a joint programme with Invertebrates.
Core research within Vertebrate Biology looks at hybridisation between native and introduced mammal species, geographical variation and the effects of captivity on mammal and bird skeletal morphology, including ageing and pathology. Other research strands focus on molecular evolution and the biogeography and archaeology of Eurasian mammals, especially rodents and cetaceans.
Link of the Research page : Research page
Link of the Annual report : Annual Reviews