Lecture: Prehistoric behaviour; from dinosaurs to sea scorpions
Speaker:
Entry Fee
Members: Free
Visitors: £5.00
Date and Time
19:30 -
Location
Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution, 16-18 Queen Square, Bath BA1 2HN
Lecture Description
Under normal circumstances (i.e. being alive), it is normally a challenge to try and figure out how an animal thinks. This can be done through careful, and silent observation and meticulous investigation of the neuroanatomy. The whole process is made significantly more difficult when the animal in question cannot be observed in the wild, has no available brain to investigate and has also been dead for 125 million years.
Through CT scanning, neurological reconstruction and detailed comparison to living organisms, it is possible to theorise and predict behaviours as well as general life history of long extinct animals. I will talk about how my research took me to rebuilding the brain of a Spinosaurid dinosaur. I will investigate how we can apply these techniques to a much larger range of animals, spanning even further back in time, to attempt to understand a little about how ancient ecosystems worked. It is so easy to look at fossils in rocks and forget there was a life behind it, rather than just inanimate rock. Here I will hopefully bring to life the fossils and reveal the secrets that they are hiding.
About Tom Land: I am a zoologist, evolutionary biologist and accidental palaeontologist. My main interest is investigating why animals do the things they do, looking across time at the behaviour of extant animals and fossils alike. Previously I have worked on rebuilding dinosaur brains, attempting to understand what the life history of a Spinosaurid specimen was like. I have additionally worked on the Galapagos Archipelago with Finches and Marine Iguanas, as well as now focussing my attention onto the investigation of brain evolution across primates (both extinct and living).
Attending via Zoom
This is a hybrid meeting: you can attend in person or join online via Zoom.
Bath Geological Society Members: Free of charge. Joining instructions and the Zoom link are sent to members by email prior to the lecture.
Visitors & Non-Members: (including members of the Geologists' Association and affiliated societies) Please book via Eventbrite to receive Zoom access (see the Entry Fee details above).
How to join: Click the Zoom link provided in your email or Eventbrite confirmation. You can join using the Zoom desktop or mobile app, or directly via your web browser without installing any software. The virtual waiting room opens approximately 15 minutes before the scheduled start time, and attendees will be admitted before the talk commences.
For any queries about joining online, please contact [email protected].