Ben Slater´s docentship lecture: The origins of animals: the fossil evidence

Docentföreläsning: The origins of animals: the fossil evidence

Institutionen för geovetenskap inbjuder härmed alla intresserade till Ben Slaters docenturföreläsning i ämnet geovetenskap med inriktning mot historisk geologi och paleontologi.

Lecturer: Dr Ben Slater

Title: The origins of animals: the fossil evidence

Date: 8th May 2025 at 13:15

Location: Småland

Chairperson: Professor Jorijntje Henderiks

Representative of the Docentship Committee: Professor Alireza Malehmir

Abstract: The evolution of animals fundamentally reshaped the biosphere and the Earth system. Constraining when and how animals evolved has therefore become one of the major aims of palaeontology. Evidence from the fossil record suggests animals first evolved during the late Ediacaran Period (around 575 Million years ago), and then diversified rapidly during the Cambrian Period (538–485 Million years ago). In sedimentary rocks of this age, mineralized shells and skeletal parts from animals become common as fossils, marking the beginning of the Phanerozoic fossil record as we know it. Yet most organisms (extant and extinct) lack such mineralized shells. Consequently, our view of how and when animals evolved is heavily biased towards groups that produced shells. Spectacular Cambrian fossil sites (such as the Burgess Shale) provide more complete glimpses into early animal evolution, but these deposits are frustratingly rare. This lecture will cover the history of thinking and some of the current controversies surrounding the topic of early animal evolution, what the fossil record can (and cannot) tell us about when animals evolved, and finally some of the new breakthroughs in this area – in particular a newly discovered type of fossilisation which is helping to overcome some of the major biases in the fossil record and transform our picture of animal origins.

The lecture will be given in English.

Welcome!