Fossil record

@misc{dean1895fishes17,
    author = "Dean, B",
    title = "Fishes, Living and Fossil",
    year = "1895",
    howpublished = "an Outline of Their Forms and Possible Relationships: New York, Macmillan",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Dean, B., 1895, Fishes, Living and Fossil: an Outline of Their Forms and Possible Relationships: New York, Macmillan.}"
}

@article{walcott1908mount52,
    author = "Walcott, C. D",
    title = "Mount Stephan rocks and fossils",
    year = "1908",
    journal = "Canadian Alpine Journal, v. 1, no. 2, p. 232-248",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Walcott, C. D., 1908, Mount Stephan rocks and fossils: Canadian Alpine Journal, v. 1, no. 2, p. 232-248.}"
}

@misc{anonymous1926fort2,
    author = "Anonymous",
    title = "Fort Union Stratum Yield Human Tooth",
    year = "1926",
    howpublished = "Carbon County News (Red Lodge, Montana), p. 1",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Anonymous, 1926, Fort Union Stratum Yield Human Tooth: Carbon County News (Red Lodge, Montana), p. 1.}"
}

@misc{franz1932vivaparus24,
    author = "Franz, V",
    title = "Vivaparus; Morphometrie, Phylogenie und Geographie der europischen, fossilen und rezenten Paludinen",
    year = "1932",
    howpublished = "Med.-Naturw. Ges. Jena, Denkschr., v. 18",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Franz, V., 1932, Vivaparus; Morphometrie, Phylogenie und Geographie der europischen, fossilen und rezenten Paludinen: Med.-Naturw. Ges. Jena, Denkschr., v. 18.}"
}

@book{watson1949the54,
    author = "Watson, D. M. S",
    title = "The evidence afforded by fossil vertebrates on the nature of evolution, in Jepsen, G. L., Simpson, G. G., and Mayr, E., eds., Genetics, Paleontology and Evolution",
    year = "1949",
    publisher = "Princeton, Princeton University Press, p. 45-63; 474 p",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Watson, D. M. S., 1949, The evidence afforded by fossil vertebrates on the nature of evolution, in Jepsen, G. L., Simpson, G. G., and Mayr, E., eds., Genetics, Paleontology and Evolution: Princeton, Princeton University Press, p. 45-63; 474 p.}"
}

@misc{moore1952invertebrate39,
    author = "Moore, R. C. and Lalicker, C. G. and Fischer, A. G",
    title = "Invertebrate Fossils",
    year = "1952",
    howpublished = "New York, McGraw-Hill, 766 p",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Moore, R. C., Lalicker, C. G., and Fischer, A. G., 1952, Invertebrate Fossils: New York, McGraw-Hill, 766 p.}"
}

@inproceedings{cobban1958late13,
    author = "Cobban, W. A",
    title = "Late Cretaecous fossil zones of the Powder River Basin, Wyoming and Montana, 13th Annual Field Conference Guidebook of Wyoming Geological Association",
    year = "1958",
    booktitle = "p.114-119",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Cobban, W. A., 1958, Late Cretaecous fossil zones of the Powder River Basin, Wyoming and Montana, 13th Annual Field Conference Guidebook of Wyoming Geological Association: p.114-119.}"
}

@misc{stensi1958les48,
    author = "Stensi, E",
    title = "Les cyclostomes fossiles ou Ostracodermes, in Grasse, P. P., ed., Trait de Zoologie, 1st facs",
    year = "1958",
    howpublished = "Paris, Masson et Cie, v. 13",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Stensi, E., 1958, Les cyclostomes fossiles ou Ostracodermes, in Grasse, P. P., ed., Trait de Zoologie, 1st facs: Paris, Masson et Cie, v. 13.}"
}

@article{newell1959adequacy40,
    author = "Newell, N. D",
    title = "Adequacy of the fossil record",
    year = "1959",
    journal = "Journal of Paleontology, v. 33, p. 488-499",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Newell, N. D., 1959, Adequacy of the fossil record: Journal of Paleontology, v. 33, p. 488-499.}"
}

@book{stirton1959time49,
    author = "Stirton, R. A",
    title = "Time, Life, and Man - The Fossil Record",
    year = "1959",
    publisher = "New York, Wiley, 558 p",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Stirton, R. A., 1959, Time, Life, and Man - The Fossil Record: New York, Wiley, 558 p.}"
}

@book{andrews1961studies1,
    author = "Andrews, H. N. and Jr",
    title = "Studies in Paleobotany",
    year = "1961",
    publisher = "New York, Wiley",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Andrews, H. N., Jr., 1961, Studies in Paleobotany: New York, Wiley.}"
}

@misc{newell1963crises41,
    author = "Newell, N. D",
    title = "Crises in the history of life",
    year = "1963",
    howpublished = "Scientific American, v. 208, no. 2, p. 77-92",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Newell, N. D., 1963, Crises in the history of life: Scientific American, v. 208, no. 2, p. 77-92.}"
}

@book{clark1964fossil11,
    author = "Clark, W. E. le G",
    title = "Fossil Evidence for Human Evolution",
    year = "1964",
    publisher = "Chicago, Ill., University of Chicago Press",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Clark, W. E. le G., 1964, Fossil Evidence for Human Evolution: Chicago, Ill., University of Chicago Press.}"
}

@misc{glaessner1966the27,
    author = "Glaessner, M. F. and Wade, M",
    title = "The late Precambrian fossils from Ediacara, South Africa",
    year = "1966",
    howpublished = "Palaeontology, v. 9, p. 599-628",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Glaessner, M. F., and Wade, M., 1966, The late Precambrian fossils from Ediacara, South Africa: Palaeontology, v. 9, p. 599-628.}"
}

@misc{cowie1967life14,
    author = "Cowie, J. W",
    title = "Life in Pre-Cambrian and Early Cambrian times, in The Fossil Record",
    year = "1967",
    howpublished = "London, Geological Society of London, p. 17-35",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Cowie, J. W., 1967, Life in Pre-Cambrian and Early Cambrian times, in The Fossil Record: London, Geological Society of London, p. 17-35.}"
}

@misc{harland1967the30,
    author = "Harland, W. B. et al",
    title = "The Fossil Record",
    year = "1967",
    howpublished = "London, Geological Society",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Harland, W. B. et al., 1967, The Fossil Record: London, Geological Society.}"
}

@misc{clark1968fossils10,
    author = "Clark, H. W",
    title = "Fossils, Flood and Fire",
    year = "1968",
    howpublished = "Escondido, California, Outdoor Picture",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Clark, H. W., 1968, Fossils, Flood and Fire: Escondido, California, Outdoor Picture.}"
}

@book{bardack1971lampreys3,
    author = "Bardack, D. and Langerl, R",
    title = "Lampreys in the Fossil Record, in Hardisty, M. W., and Potter, I. C., eds., The Biology of Lampreys",
    year = "1971",
    publisher = "London, Academic Press, p. 67-84",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Bardack, D., and Langerl, R., 1971, Lampreys in the Fossil Record, in Hardisty, M. W., and Potter, I. C., eds., The Biology of Lampreys: London, Academic Press, p. 67-84.}"
}

@article{cuffey1971evidence15,
    author = "Cuffey, R. J",
    title = "Evidence for evolution from the fossil record",
    year = "1971",
    journal = "Journal of American Scientific Affiliations, v. 23, p. 158-159",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Cuffey, R. J., 1971, Evidence for evolution from the fossil record: Journal of American Scientific Affiliations, v. 23, p. 158-159.}"
}

@inproceedings{durham1971the19,
    author = "Durham, J. W",
    title = "The fossil record and the origin of the Deuterostomata, Part H of North American Paleontological Convention, Proceedings",
    year = "1971",
    booktitle = "p. 1104-1132",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Durham, J. W., 1971, The fossil record and the origin of the Deuterostomata, Part H of North American Paleontological Convention, Proceedings: p. 1104-1132.}"
}

@article{cuffey1972more16,
    author = "Cuffey, R. J",
    title = "More on Archeopteryx",
    year = "1972",
    journal = "Journal of American Scientific Affiliations, v. 24, p. 36",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Cuffey, R. J., 1972, More on Archeopteryx: Journal of American Scientific Affiliations, v. 24, p. 36.}"
}

@book{rudwick1972the45,
    author = "Rudwick, M. J. S",
    title = "The Meaning of Fossils",
    year = "1972",
    publisher = "Episodes in the History of Paleontology: London and New York, MacDonald and American Elsevier [Science History Publications]",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Rudwick, M. J. S., 1972, The Meaning of Fossils: Episodes in the History of Paleontology: London and New York, MacDonald and American Elsevier [Science History Publications].}"
}

@inproceedings{jefferies1975fossil35,
    author = "Jefferies, R. P. S",
    title = "Fossil evidence concerning the origin of the chordates",
    year = "1975",
    booktitle = "Symposium of the Zoological Society, London, v. 36, p. 253-318",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Jefferies, R. P. S., 1975, Fossil evidence concerning the origin of the chordates: Symposium of the Zoological Society, London, v. 36, p. 253-318.}"
}

@misc{valentine1975genetic50,
    author = "Valentine, J. W. and Campbell, C. A",
    title = "Genetic Regulation and the Fossil Record",
    year = "1975",
    howpublished = "American Scientist, v. 63, p. 673",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Valentine, J. W., and Campbell, C. A., 1975, Genetic Regulation and the Fossil Record: American Scientist, v. 63, p. 673.}"
}

@misc{francis1978on23,
    author = "Francis, S. and Margulis, L. and Braghoorn, E. S",
    title = "On the experimental silicification of microorganisms II. On the time of appearance of eukaryotic organisms in the fossil record",
    year = "1978",
    howpublished = "Precambrian Research, v. 6, p. 65-100",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Francis, S., Margulis, L., and Braghoorn, E. S., 1978, On the experimental silicification of microorganisms II. On the time of appearance of eukaryotic organisms in the fossil record: Precambrian Research, v. 6, p. 65-100.}"
}

@misc{cloud1979on12,
    author = "Cloud, P. and Morrison, K",
    title = "On microbial contaminants, micro- pseudofossils and the oldest record of life",
    year = "1979",
    howpublished = "Precambrian Research, v. 9, p. 81-91",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Cloud, P., and Morrison, K., 1979, On microbial contaminants, micro- pseudofossils and the oldest record of life: Precambrian Research, v. 9, p. 81-91.}"
}

@misc{whittaker1979fossilization57,
    author = "Whittaker, J. E. P",
    title = "Fossilization, in Steel, R., and Harvey, A. P., eds., The Encyclopedia of Prehistoric Life",
    year = "1979",
    howpublished = "New York, McGraw-Hill, p. 87",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Whittaker, J. E. P., 1979, Fossilization, in Steel, R., and Harvey, A. P., eds., The Encyclopedia of Prehistoric Life: New York, McGraw-Hill, p. 87.}"
}

@inproceedings{ford1980the22,
    author = "Ford, T. D",
    title = "The Edicarian fossils of Charnwood Forest, Leicestershire",
    year = "1980",
    booktitle = "Proceedings of the Geologist's Association, v. 91, p. 81-83",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Ford, T. D., 1980, The Edicarian fossils of Charnwood Forest, Leicestershire: Proceedings of the Geologist's Association, v. 91, p. 81-83.}"
}

@book{rolf1980early44,
    author = "Rolf, W. D. I",
    title = "Early Invertebrate Terrestrial Faunas, in Panchen, A. L., ed., The Terrestrial Environment and the Origin of Land Vertebrates",
    year = "1980",
    publisher = "London, Academic Press",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Rolf, W. D. I., 1980, Early Invertebrate Terrestrial Faunas, in Panchen, A. L., ed., The Terrestrial Environment and the Origin of Land Vertebrates: London, Academic Press.}"
}

@article{carroll1981plesiosaur8,
    author = "Carroll, R. C",
    title = "Plesiosaur ancestors from the Upper Permian of Madagascar",
    year = "1981",
    journal = "Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, London B, v. 293, p. 315- 383",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Carroll, R. C., 1981, Plesiosaur ancestors from the Upper Permian of Madagascar: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, London B, v. 293, p. 315- 383.}"
}

Data on numbers of marine families within 91 metazoan classes known from the Phanerozoic fossil record are analyzed. The distribution of the 2800 fossil families among the classes is very uneven, with most belonging to a small minority of classes. Similarly, the stratigraphic distribution of the classes is very uneven, with most first appearing early in the Paleozoic and with many of the smaller classes becoming extinct before the end of that era. However, despite this unevenness, a Q -mode factor analysis indicates that the structure of these data is rather simple. Only three factors are needed to account for more than 90% of the data. These factors are interpreted as reflecting the three great “evolutionary faunas” of the Phanerozoic marine record: a trilobite-dominated Cambrian fauna, a brachiopod-dominated later Paleozoic fauna, and a mollusc-dominated Mesozoic-Cenozoic, or “modern,” fauna. Lesser factors relate to slow taxonomic turnover within the major faunas through time and to unique aspects of particular taxa and times. Each of the three major faunas seems to have its own characteristic diversity so that its expansion or contraction appears as being intimately associated with a particular phase in the history of total marine diversity. The Cambrian fauna expands rapidly during the Early Cambrian radiations and maintains dominance during the Middle to Late Cambrian “equilibrium.” The Paleozoic fauna then ascends to dominance during the Ordovician radiations, which increase diversity dramatically; this new fauna then maintains dominance throughout the long interval of apparent equilibrium that lasts until the end of the Paleozoic Era. The modern fauna, which slowly increases in importance during the Paleozoic Era, quickly rises to dominance with the Late Permian extinctions and maintains that status during the general rise in diversity to the apparent maximum in the Neogene. The increase in diversity associated with the expansion of each new fauna appears to coincide with an approximately exponential decline of the previously dominant fauna, suggesting possible displacement of each evolutionary fauna by its successor.

@article{doi101017s0094837300003778,
    author = "Sepkoski, J. John",
    title = "A factor analytic description of the Phanerozoic marine fossil record",
    year = "1981",
    journal = "Paleobiology",
    abstract = "Data on numbers of marine families within 91 metazoan classes known from the Phanerozoic fossil record are analyzed. The distribution of the 2800 fossil families among the classes is very uneven, with most belonging to a small minority of classes. Similarly, the stratigraphic distribution of the classes is very uneven, with most first appearing early in the Paleozoic and with many of the smaller classes becoming extinct before the end of that era. However, despite this unevenness, a Q -mode factor analysis indicates that the structure of these data is rather simple. Only three factors are needed to account for more than 90\% of the data. These factors are interpreted as reflecting the three great “evolutionary faunas” of the Phanerozoic marine record: a trilobite-dominated Cambrian fauna, a brachiopod-dominated later Paleozoic fauna, and a mollusc-dominated Mesozoic-Cenozoic, or “modern,” fauna. Lesser factors relate to slow taxonomic turnover within the major faunas through time and to unique aspects of particular taxa and times. Each of the three major faunas seems to have its own characteristic diversity so that its expansion or contraction appears as being intimately associated with a particular phase in the history of total marine diversity. The Cambrian fauna expands rapidly during the Early Cambrian radiations and maintains dominance during the Middle to Late Cambrian “equilibrium.” The Paleozoic fauna then ascends to dominance during the Ordovician radiations, which increase diversity dramatically; this new fauna then maintains dominance throughout the long interval of apparent equilibrium that lasts until the end of the Paleozoic Era. The modern fauna, which slowly increases in importance during the Paleozoic Era, quickly rises to dominance with the Late Permian extinctions and maintains that status during the general rise in diversity to the apparent maximum in the Neogene. The increase in diversity associated with the expansion of each new fauna appears to coincide with an approximately exponential decline of the previously dominant fauna, suggesting possible displacement of each evolutionary fauna by its successor.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1017/s0094837300003778",
    doi = "10.1017/s0094837300003778",
    openalex = "W2505144080",
    references = "doi10100797814613088367, doi1010160012825272900724, doi101017s0094837300004917, doi101017s009483730000508x, doi101017s0094837300005236, doi101017s0094837300005352, doi101017s0094837300005649, doi101017s0094837300005972, doi101017s0094837300012549, doi101126science17740541065, doi101126science2064415217, doi101130spe89p63, doi1023071483846, doi1023071796560, doi1023072405671, doi1023072412725, doi1023072412728, doi1023072806339, doi107312simp93764, openalexw1504049102, openalexw645218623"
}

@misc{lewin1981no37,
    author = "Lewin, R",
    title = "No gap here in the fossil record",
    year = "1981",
    howpublished = "Science, v. 214, p. 645-646",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Lewin, R., 1981, No gap here in the fossil record: Science, v. 214, p. 645-646.}"
}

@misc{sepkoski1981phanerozoic47,
    author = "Sepkoski, J. J. and Bambach, R. K. and Raup, D. M. and Valentine, J. W",
    title = "Phanerozoic marine diversity and the fossil record",
    year = "1981",
    howpublished = "Nature, v. 293, p. 435",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Sepkoski, J. J., Bambach, R. K., Raup, D. M., and Valentine, J. W., 1981, Phanerozoic marine diversity and the fossil record: Nature, v. 293, p. 435.}"
}

@misc{herbert1982fossil31,
    author = "Herbert, W",
    title = "Fossil raises question about earliest primates",
    year = "1982",
    howpublished = "Science News, v. 121, p. 372",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Herbert, W., 1982, Fossil raises question about earliest primates: Science News, v. 121, p. 372.}"
}

@misc{herbert1982was32,
    author = "Herbert, W",
    title = "Was Lucy a climber? Dissenting views on ancient bones",
    year = "1982",
    howpublished = "Science News, v. 122, p. 116",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Herbert, W., 1982, Was Lucy a climber? Dissenting views on ancient bones: Science News, v. 122, p. 116.}"
}

@misc{raup1982mass43,
    author = "Raup, D. M. and Sepkoski, J. J. and Jr",
    title = "Mass extinctions in the marine fossil record",
    year = "1982",
    howpublished = "Science, v. 215, p. 1501-1502",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Raup, D. M., and Sepkoski, J. J., Jr., 1982, Mass extinctions in the marine fossil record: Science, v. 215, p. 1501-1502.}"
}

@article{bengtson1983the5,
    author = "Bengtson, S. and Fletcher, T. P",
    title = "The oldest sequence of skeletal fossils in the Lower Cambrian of southwestern Newfoudland",
    year = "1983",
    journal = "Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, v. 20, p. 525-536",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Bengtson, S., and Fletcher, T. P., 1983, The oldest sequence of skeletal fossils in the Lower Cambrian of southwestern Newfoudland: Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, v. 20, p. 525-536.}"
}

@article{gingerich1983evidence25,
    author = "Gingerich, P. D",
    title = "Evidence for evolution from the vertebrate fossil record",
    year = "1983",
    journal = "Journal of Geological Education, v. 31, p. 140-144",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Gingerich, P. D., 1983, Evidence for evolution from the vertebrate fossil record: Journal of Geological Education, v. 31, p. 140-144.}"
}

@misc{godfrey1983creationism28,
    author = "Godfrey, L. R",
    title = "Creationism and Gaps in the Fossil Record, in Godfrey, L. R., ed., Scientists Confront Creationism",
    year = "1983",
    howpublished = "New York, W.W. Norton, p. 193- 218",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Godfrey, L. R., 1983, Creationism and Gaps in the Fossil Record, in Godfrey, L. R., ed., Scientists Confront Creationism: New York, W.W. Norton, p. 193- 218.}"
}

@misc{godfrey1983creationists29,
    author = "Godfrey, L. R",
    title = "Creationists and Gaps in the Fossil Record, in Godfrey, L. R., ed., Scientists Confront Creationists",
    year = "1983",
    howpublished = "New York, W.W. Norton, p. 193-218",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Godfrey, L. R., 1983, Creationists and Gaps in the Fossil Record, in Godfrey, L. R., ed., Scientists Confront Creationists: New York, W.W. Norton, p. 193-218.}"
}

@misc{macaoidh1983the38,
    author = "Mac Aoidh, C",
    title = "The new fossil record",
    year = "1983",
    howpublished = "Geotimes, v. 28, no. 3, p. 12",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Mac Aoidh, C., 1983, The new fossil record: Geotimes, v. 28, no. 3, p. 12.}"
}

@misc{schafersman1983fossils46,
    author = "Schafersman, S. D",
    title = "Fossils, stratigraphy, and evolution",
    year = "1983",
    howpublished = "consideration of a creationist argument, in Godfrey, L. R., ed., Scientists Confront Creationism: New York, W.W. Norton, p. 219-244",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Schafersman, S. D., 1983, Fossils, stratigraphy, and evolution: consideration of a creationist argument, in Godfrey, L. R., ed., Scientists Confront Creationism: New York, W.W. Norton, p. 219-244.}"
}

@article{brooks1984the7,
    author = "Brooks, W. K",
    title = "The origin of the oldest fossils and the discovey of the bottom of the ocean",
    year = "1984",
    journal = "Journal of Geology, v. 2, p. 455-479",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Brooks, W. K., 1984, The origin of the oldest fossils and the discovey of the bottom of the ocean: Journal of Geology, v. 2, p. 455-479.}"
}

@misc{caster1984ediacaran9,
    author = "Caster, K. E",
    title = "Ediacaran fossils",
    year = "1984",
    howpublished = "Science, v. 223, p. 1129-1130",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Caster, K. E., 1984, Ediacaran fossils: Science, v. 223, p. 1129-1130.}"
}

@misc{yuretich1984yellowstone59,
    author = "Yuretich, R. T",
    title = "Yellowstone fossil forests",
    year = "1984",
    howpublished = "new evidence for burial in place: Geology, v. 12, p. 159-162",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Yuretich, R. T., 1984, Yellowstone fossil forests: new evidence for burial in place: Geology, v. 12, p. 159-162.}"
}

Abstract Preservation of non-mineralized structures (including plants) and of articulated skeletons results from extraordinary hydrographic, sedimentational and early diagenetic conditions. The corresponding chief causative effects (stagnation, obrution and bacterial sealing) define a conceptual continuum into which individual occurrences may be mapped. A more pragmatic, typological classification of conservation deposits, using a standard questionnaire, reveals ecological replacements, as well as trends related to the evolution of the biosphere, through geological time.

@article{doi101098rstb19850134,
    author = "Seilacher, Adolf and Reif, Wolf‐Ernst and Westphal, Florian",
    title = "Sedimentological, ecological and temporal patterns of fossil Lagerstätten",
    year = "1985",
    journal = "Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences",
    abstract = "Abstract Preservation of non-mineralized structures (including plants) and of articulated skeletons results from extraordinary hydrographic, sedimentational and early diagenetic conditions. The corresponding chief causative effects (stagnation, obrution and bacterial sealing) define a conceptual continuum into which individual occurrences may be mapped. A more pragmatic, typological classification of conservation deposits, using a standard questionnaire, reveals ecological replacements, as well as trends related to the evolution of the biosphere, through geological time.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.1985.0134",
    doi = "10.1098/rstb.1985.0134",
    openalex = "W2111944730",
    references = "doi101007978364269317510, doi1010079783642758294, doi101007bfb0009832, doi101111j136530911982tb00072x, doi101111j150239311985tb00688x, doi101126science2224620163, doi101126science2244651872, doi101127njgpa1591980324, doi101306ad4616f116f711d78645000102c1865d"
}

@book{gish1985evolution26,
    author = "Gish, D. T",
    title = "Evolution",
    year = "1985",
    publisher = "The Challenge of the Fossil Record: El Cajon, California, Creation-Life Publishers, Master Books Division, 278 p",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Gish, D. T., 1985, Evolution: The Challenge of the Fossil Record: El Cajon, California, Creation-Life Publishers, Master Books Division, 278 p.}"
}

@book{olson1985the42,
    author = "Olson, S. L",
    title = "The fossil record of birds, in Farner, D. S., King, J. R., and Parkes, K. C., eds., Avian Biology VIII",
    year = "1985",
    publisher = "New York, Academic Press, p. 80-238",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Olson, S. L., 1985, The fossil record of birds, in Farner, D. S., King, J. R., and Parkes, K. C., eds., Avian Biology VIII: New York, Academic Press, p. 80-238.}"
}

@misc{vines1985strange51,
    author = "Vines, G",
    title = {Strange case of Archeopteryx "fraud},
    year = "1985",
    howpublished = "New Scientist, p. 3",
    note = {talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Vines, G., 1985, Strange case of Archeopteryx "fraud": New Scientist, p. 3.}}
}

@misc{wilford1985the58,
    author = "Wilford, J. N",
    title = "The Riddle of the Dinosaur",
    year = "1985",
    howpublished = "New York, Random House",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Wilford, J. N., 1985, The Riddle of the Dinosaur: New York, Random House.}"
}

@phdthesis{beardsley1986fossil4,
    author = "Beardsley, T",
    title = "Fossil bird shakes evolutionary hypothesis",
    year = "1986",
    publisher = "Nature, v. 322, p. 677",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Beardsley, T., 1986, Fossil bird shakes evolutionary hypothesis: Nature, v. 322, p. 677.}"
}

@misc{bower1986nova6,
    author = "Bower, B",
    title = "Nova Scotia fossils illuminate 200-million-year-old changes",
    year = "1986",
    howpublished = "Science News, v. 129, p. 86",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Bower, B., 1986, Nova Scotia fossils illuminate 200-million-year-old changes: Science News, v. 129, p. 86.}"
}

We used life-history theory to predict reaction norms for age and size at maturation. We assumed that fecundity increases with size and that juvenile mortality rates of offspring decrease as ages-at-maturity of parents increase, then calculated the reaction norm by varying growth rate and calculating an optimal age at maturity for each growth rate. The reaction norm for maturation should take one of at least four shapes that depend on specific relations between changes in growth rates and changes in adult mortality rates, juvenile mortality rates, or both. Most organisms should mature neither at a fixed size nor at a fixed age, but along an age-size trajectory. The model makes possible a clear distinction between the genetic and phenotypic components of variation. The evolved response to selection is reflected in the shape and position of the reaction norm. The phenotypic response of a single organism to rapid or slow growth is defined by the location of its maturation event as a point on the reaction norm. A quantitative test with data from 19 populations and species of fish showed that predictions were in good agreement with observations (r = 0.93, P < 0.0001). The predictions of the model also agreed qualitatively with observed phenotypic variation in age and size at maturity in humans, platyfish, fruit flies, and red deer. This preliminary success suggests that experiments designed to test the predictions directly will be worthwhile.

@article{doi101111j155856461986tb00560x,
    author = "Stearns, Stephen C. and Koella, Jacob C.",
    title = "THE EVOLUTION OF PHENOTYPIC PLASTICITY IN LIFE‐HISTORY TRAITS: PREDICTIONS OF REACTION NORMS FOR AGE AND SIZE AT MATURITY",
    year = "1986",
    journal = "Evolution",
    abstract = "We used life-history theory to predict reaction norms for age and size at maturation. We assumed that fecundity increases with size and that juvenile mortality rates of offspring decrease as ages-at-maturity of parents increase, then calculated the reaction norm by varying growth rate and calculating an optimal age at maturity for each growth rate. The reaction norm for maturation should take one of at least four shapes that depend on specific relations between changes in growth rates and changes in adult mortality rates, juvenile mortality rates, or both. Most organisms should mature neither at a fixed size nor at a fixed age, but along an age-size trajectory. The model makes possible a clear distinction between the genetic and phenotypic components of variation. The evolved response to selection is reflected in the shape and position of the reaction norm. The phenotypic response of a single organism to rapid or slow growth is defined by the location of its maturation event as a point on the reaction norm. A quantitative test with data from 19 populations and species of fish showed that predictions were in good agreement with observations (r = 0.93, P < 0.0001). The predictions of the model also agreed qualitatively with observed phenotypic variation in age and size at maturity in humans, platyfish, fruit flies, and red deer. This preliminary success suggests that experiments designed to test the predictions directly will be worthwhile.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1558-5646.1986.tb00560.x",
    doi = "10.1111/j.1558-5646.1986.tb00560.x",
    openalex = "W2329565638",
    references = "doi101086400074, doi101126science18241191305, doi1023071935217"
}

@misc{weisburd1986oldest55,
    author = "Weisburd, S",
    title = "Oldest Bird and Longest Dinosaur",
    year = "1986",
    howpublished = "Science News, v. 130, p. 103",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Weisburd, S., 1986, Oldest Bird and Longest Dinosaur: Science News, v. 130, p. 103.}"
}

@misc{eldredge1987life20,
    author = "Eldredge, N",
    title = "Life Pulse",
    year = "1987",
    howpublished = "Episodes from the Story of the Fossil Record: New York, Facts on File",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Eldredge, N., 1987, Life Pulse: Episodes from the Story of the Fossil Record: New York, Facts on File.}"
}

@misc{kritsky1987fossil36,
    author = "Kritsky, G",
    title = "Fossil Insects",
    year = "1987",
    howpublished = "Pests of Creation: Creation/Evolution, v. 20, p. 13-19",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Kritsky, G., 1987, Fossil Insects: Pests of Creation: Creation/Evolution, v. 20, p. 13-19.}"
}

@misc{dixon1988the18,
    author = "Dixon, D. and Cox, B. and Savage, R. J. G. and Gardiner, B",
    title = "The Macmillan Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals",
    year = "1988",
    howpublished = "New York, Macmillan",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Dixon, D., Cox, B., Savage, R. J. G., and Gardiner, B., 1988, The Macmillan Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals: New York, Macmillan.}"
}

@misc{houxianguang1988discovery34,
    author = "Hou Xian-guang, Sun Wei-guo",
    title = "Discovery of Chengjiang fauna at Meishucun, Jinning, Yunnan [in Chinese]",
    year = "1988",
    howpublished = "Acta Palaeontologica Sinica, v. 27, p. 1-12",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Hou Xian-guang, and Sun Wei-guo, 1988, Discovery of Chengjiang fauna at Meishucun, Jinning, Yunnan [in Chinese]: Acta Palaeontologica Sinica, v. 27, p. 1-12.}"
}

@misc{wellnhofer1988a56,
    author = "Wellnhofer, P",
    title = "A New Specimen of Archeopteryx",
    year = "1988",
    howpublished = "Science, v. 240, p. 1790-1792",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Wellnhofer, P., 1988, A New Specimen of Archeopteryx: Science, v. 240, p. 1790-1792.}"
}

@misc{fenton1989the21,
    author = "Fenton, C. L. and Fenton, M. A",
    title = "The Fossil Book",
    year = "1989",
    howpublished = "A Record of Prehistoric Life: New York, Doubleday; Revised and expanded by P.V. Rich, T.H. Rich and M.A. Fenton",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Fenton, C. L., and Fenton, M. A., 1989, The Fossil Book: A Record of Prehistoric Life: New York, Doubleday; Revised and expanded by P.V. Rich, T.H. Rich and M.A. Fenton.}"
}

@misc{waldrop1989how53,
    author = "Waldrop, M. M",
    title = "How Do You Read from the Palimpset of Life?",
    year = "1989",
    howpublished = "Science, v. 246, p. 578-579",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Waldrop, M. M., 1989, How Do You Read from the Palimpset of Life?: Science, v. 246, p. 578-579.}"
}

@misc{houck1990allometric33,
    author = "Houck, M. A. and Gauthier, J. A. and Strauss, R. E",
    title = "Allometric scaling in the earliest fossil bird, Archeopteryx lithographica",
    year = "1990",
    howpublished = "Science, v. 247, p. 195",
    note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Houck, M. A., Gauthier, J. A., and Strauss, R. E., 1990, Allometric scaling in the earliest fossil bird, Archeopteryx lithographica: Science, v. 247, p. 195.}"
}

Insects possess a surprisingly extensive fossil record. Compilation of the geochronologic ranges of insect families demonstrates that their diversity exceeds that of preserved vertebrate tetrapods through 91 percent of their evolutionary history. The great diversity of insects was achieved not by high origination rates but rather by low extinction rates comparable to the low rates of slowly evolving marine invertebrate groups. The great radiation of modern insects began 245 million years ago and was not accelerated by the expansion of angiosperms during the Cretaceous period. The basic trophic machinery of insects was in place nearly 100 million years before angiosperms appeared in the fossil record.

@article{doi101126science11536548,
    author = "Labandeira, Conrad C. and Sepkoski, J. John",
    title = "Insect Diversity in the Fossil Record",
    year = "1993",
    journal = "Science",
    abstract = "Insects possess a surprisingly extensive fossil record. Compilation of the geochronologic ranges of insect families demonstrates that their diversity exceeds that of preserved vertebrate tetrapods through 91 percent of their evolutionary history. The great diversity of insects was achieved not by high origination rates but rather by low extinction rates comparable to the low rates of slowly evolving marine invertebrate groups. The great radiation of modern insects began 245 million years ago and was not accelerated by the expansion of angiosperms during the Cretaceous period. The basic trophic machinery of insects was in place nearly 100 million years before angiosperms appeared in the fossil record.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1126/science.11536548",
    doi = "10.1126/science.11536548",
    openalex = "W1984084181",
    references = "doi1010079781468491814, doi101017s0094837300003778, doi101038293435a0, doi101038303614a0, doi101086284840, doi101111j155856461964tb01674x, doi101111j155856461966tb03364x, doi101126science13334591105, doi101126science21545391501, doi101126science2314734129, doi101146annureves10110179001335, doi107312simp93764, openalexw2038423019"
}

Prologue Part I: Evolutionary explanation Demography: age and stage structure Quantitative genetics and reaction norms Trade-offs Lineage-specific effects Part II: Age and size at maturity Number and size of offspring Reproductive lifespan and ageing Appendices Glossary References Author index Subject index.

@article{doi1023075403,
    author = "Benton, Tim G. and Stearne, S.C.",
    title = "The Evolution of Life-histories",
    year = "1993",
    journal = "Journal of Animal Ecology",
    abstract = "Prologue Part I: Evolutionary explanation Demography: age and stage structure Quantitative genetics and reaction norms Trade-offs Lineage-specific effects Part II: Age and size at maturity Number and size of offspring Reproductive lifespan and ageing Appendices Glossary References Author index Subject index.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.2307/5403",
    doi = "10.2307/5403",
    openalex = "W1544815196"
}

Life history variations: a first look. Quantitative genetic background. Life history theory: a framework. Methods of analysis. The age schedules of birth and death. The cost of reproduction. Age and size at maturity. Reproductive effort. Clutch size. Offspring size. Final thoughts. Index.

@article{doi105860choice304983,
    title = "The evolution of life histories: theory and analysis",
    year = "1993",
    journal = "Choice Reviews Online",
    abstract = "Life history variations: a first look. Quantitative genetic background. Life history theory: a framework. Methods of analysis. The age schedules of birth and death. The cost of reproduction. Age and size at maturity. Reproductive effort. Clutch size. Offspring size. Final thoughts. Index.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.5860/choice.30-4983",
    doi = "10.5860/choice.30-4983",
    openalex = "W2117918005"
}

@book{doi1010029781444313918,
    author = "Smith, Andrew B.",
    title = "Systematics and the Fossil Record",
    year = "1994",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1002/9781444313918",
    doi = "10.1002/9781444313918",
    openalex = "W4244814634"
}

@article{crossref1995systematics,
    title = "Systematics and the fossil record: documenting evolutionary patterns",
    year = "1995",
    journal = "Choice Reviews Online",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.5860/choice.32-3881",
    doi = "10.5860/choice.32-3881",
    number = "07",
    openalex = "W626899126",
    pages = "32-3881-32-3881",
    volume = "32"
}

The incompleteness of the fossil record hinders the inference of evolutionary rates and patterns. Here, we derive relationships among true taxonomic durations, preservation probability, and observed taxonomic ranges. We use these relationships to estimate original distributions of taxonomic durations, preservation probability, and completeness (proportion of taxa preserved), given only the observed ranges. No data on occurrences within the ranges of taxa are required. When preservation is random and the original distribution of durations is exponential, the inference of durations, preservability, and completeness is exact. However, reasonable approximations are possible given non-exponential duration distributions and temporal and taxonomic variation in preservability. Thus, the approaches we describe have great potential in studies of taphonomy, evolutionary rates and patterns, and genealogy. Analyses of Upper Cambrian-Lower Ordovician trilobite species, Paleozoic crinoid genera, Jurassic bivalve species, and Cenozoic mammal species yield the following results: (1) The preservation probability inferred from stratigraphic ranges alone agrees with that inferred from the analysis of stratigraphic gaps when data on the latter are available. (2) Whereas median durations based on simple tabulations of observed ranges are biased by stratigraphic resolution, our estimates of median duration, extinction rate, and completeness are not biased.(3) The shorter geologic ranges of mammalian species relative to those of bivalves cannot be attributed to a difference in preservation potential. However, we cannot rule out the contribution of taxonomic practice to this difference. (4) In the groups studied, completeness (proportion of species [trilobites, bivalves, mammals] or genera [crinoids] preserved) ranges from 60% to 90%. The higher estimates of completeness at smaller geographic scales support previous suggestions that the incompleteness of the fossil record reflects loss of fossiliferous rock more than failure of species to enter the fossil record in the first place.

@article{doi101017s0094837300016134,
    author = "Foote, Mike and Raup, David M.",
    title = "Fossil preservation and the stratigraphic ranges of taxa",
    year = "1996",
    journal = "Paleobiology",
    abstract = "The incompleteness of the fossil record hinders the inference of evolutionary rates and patterns. Here, we derive relationships among true taxonomic durations, preservation probability, and observed taxonomic ranges. We use these relationships to estimate original distributions of taxonomic durations, preservation probability, and completeness (proportion of taxa preserved), given only the observed ranges. No data on occurrences within the ranges of taxa are required. When preservation is random and the original distribution of durations is exponential, the inference of durations, preservability, and completeness is exact. However, reasonable approximations are possible given non-exponential duration distributions and temporal and taxonomic variation in preservability. Thus, the approaches we describe have great potential in studies of taphonomy, evolutionary rates and patterns, and genealogy. Analyses of Upper Cambrian-Lower Ordovician trilobite species, Paleozoic crinoid genera, Jurassic bivalve species, and Cenozoic mammal species yield the following results: (1) The preservation probability inferred from stratigraphic ranges alone agrees with that inferred from the analysis of stratigraphic gaps when data on the latter are available. (2) Whereas median durations based on simple tabulations of observed ranges are biased by stratigraphic resolution, our estimates of median duration, extinction rate, and completeness are not biased.(3) The shorter geologic ranges of mammalian species relative to those of bivalves cannot be attributed to a difference in preservation potential. However, we cannot rule out the contribution of taxonomic practice to this difference. (4) In the groups studied, completeness (proportion of species [trilobites, bivalves, mammals] or genera [crinoids] preserved) ranges from 60\% to 90\%. The higher estimates of completeness at smaller geographic scales support previous suggestions that the incompleteness of the fossil record reflects loss of fossiliferous rock more than failure of species to enter the fossil record in the first place.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1017/s0094837300016134",
    doi = "10.1017/s0094837300016134",
    openalex = "W1936619567",
    references = "doi1010029781444313918, doi101007bf00897326, doi101017s0094837300004929, doi101017s0094837300005996, doi101017s009483730001263x, doi10106314822961, doi101126science11539488, doi1023072405671, doi107312simp93764, openalexw1522518756, openalexw2145250129, openalexw3135630760, schopf1978fossilization"
}

This collection of case studies seeks to re-examine the understanding of the speciation patterns that appear in the fossil record through analysis of the patterns and their presumed processes. The contributions address the questions surrounding speciation in the fossil record by conducting very specific studies of particular lineages. In each case, the rigorous techniques of morphological analysis, quantitative genetic analysis, phylogenetic analysis, and sedimentary completeness have been employed. The new perspectives revealed in this volume should make it a useful resource for students, teachers, and professionals in the fields of paleontology and evolutionary biology. Rich with data and cogent examples of the speciation processes, this book should stand as a guide to greater understanding of the issues surrounding these processes.

@article{doi105860choice333929,
    title = "New approaches to speciation in the fossil record",
    year = "1996",
    journal = "Choice Reviews Online",
    abstract = "This collection of case studies seeks to re-examine the understanding of the speciation patterns that appear in the fossil record through analysis of the patterns and their presumed processes. The contributions address the questions surrounding speciation in the fossil record by conducting very specific studies of particular lineages. In each case, the rigorous techniques of morphological analysis, quantitative genetic analysis, phylogenetic analysis, and sedimentary completeness have been employed. The new perspectives revealed in this volume should make it a useful resource for students, teachers, and professionals in the fields of paleontology and evolutionary biology. Rich with data and cogent examples of the speciation processes, this book should stand as a guide to greater understanding of the issues surrounding these processes.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.5860/choice.33-3929",
    doi = "10.5860/choice.33-3929",
    openalex = "W585029652"
}

Phosphorites of the late Neoproterozoic Doushantuo Formation exposed in the vicinity of Weng'an, Guizhou Province, and Chadian, Shaanxi Province, South China, contain exceptionally well-preserved algal thalli, acritarchs, and globular microfossils interpreted as animal embryos. Combined optical microscopic and SEM observations provide insights into the taphonomy of phosphatized fossils. Algal cells and tissues are variably resistant to decay, and within preserved populations permineralization began at varying stages of degradation. In consequence, there is a spectrum of quality in cellular preservation. Algal cell walls, acritarch vesicles, and embryo envelopes are commonly encrusted by an isopachous rim of apatite, with cell interiors filled by collophane and later diagenetic dolomite. In contrast, blastomere surfaces of animal embryos are encrusted primarily by minute phosphatic spherules and filaments, possibly reflecting an immediately postmortem infestation of bacteria that provided nucleation sites for phosphate crystal growth. Thus, the same processes that gave rise to Phanerozoic phosphatized Lagerstatten--phosphatic encrustation, and impregnation, probably mediated by microbial activity--effected soft-tissue preservation in the Doushantuo Lagerstatte. It remains unclear how phosphatic ions and organic macromolecules interact at the molecular level and to what extent specific microbial metabolisms or microenvironmental conditions control the phosphatization of soft tissues. New observations of phosphatized Doushantuo fossils include: a second locality (Chadian) for Wengania globosa, interpreted as an algal thallus and previously known only from Weng'an; microtunnels in Weng'an phosphorites interpreted as pyrite trails; and new taxa described from Weng'an: Meghystrichosphaeridium reticulatum (acritarch), Sarcinophycus radiatus (algal thallus), and one unnamed problematic form.

@article{doi101111j150239311999tb00541x,
    author = "Xiao, Shuhai and Knoll, Andrew H.",
    title = "Fossil preservation in the Neoproterozoic Doushantuo phosphorite Lagerstätte, South China",
    year = "1999",
    journal = "Lethaia",
    abstract = "Phosphorites of the late Neoproterozoic Doushantuo Formation exposed in the vicinity of Weng'an, Guizhou Province, and Chadian, Shaanxi Province, South China, contain exceptionally well-preserved algal thalli, acritarchs, and globular microfossils interpreted as animal embryos. Combined optical microscopic and SEM observations provide insights into the taphonomy of phosphatized fossils. Algal cells and tissues are variably resistant to decay, and within preserved populations permineralization began at varying stages of degradation. In consequence, there is a spectrum of quality in cellular preservation. Algal cell walls, acritarch vesicles, and embryo envelopes are commonly encrusted by an isopachous rim of apatite, with cell interiors filled by collophane and later diagenetic dolomite. In contrast, blastomere surfaces of animal embryos are encrusted primarily by minute phosphatic spherules and filaments, possibly reflecting an immediately postmortem infestation of bacteria that provided nucleation sites for phosphate crystal growth. Thus, the same processes that gave rise to Phanerozoic phosphatized Lagerstatten--phosphatic encrustation, and impregnation, probably mediated by microbial activity--effected soft-tissue preservation in the Doushantuo Lagerstatte. It remains unclear how phosphatic ions and organic macromolecules interact at the molecular level and to what extent specific microbial metabolisms or microenvironmental conditions control the phosphatization of soft tissues. New observations of phosphatized Doushantuo fossils include: a second locality (Chadian) for Wengania globosa, interpreted as an algal thallus and previously known only from Weng'an; microtunnels in Weng'an phosphorites interpreted as pyrite trails; and new taxa described from Weng'an: Meghystrichosphaeridium reticulatum (acritarch), Sarcinophycus radiatus (algal thallus), and one unnamed problematic form.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1502-3931.1999.tb00541.x",
    doi = "10.1111/j.1502-3931.1999.tb00541.x",
    openalex = "W2114329528",
    references = "bengtson1976the, briggs1994decay, doi1010160301926879900226, doi101017s0022336000025567, doi101098rstb19850139, doi101111j150239311995tb01587x"
}

Molecular fossils of biological lipids are preserved in 2700-million-year-old shales from the Pilbara Craton, Australia. Sequential extraction of adjacent samples shows that these hydrocarbon biomarkers are indigenous and syngenetic to the Archean shales, greatly extending the known geological range of such molecules. The presence of abundant 2α-methylhopanes, which are characteristic of cyanobacteria, indicates that oxygenic photosynthesis evolved well before the atmosphere became oxidizing. The presence of steranes, particularly cholestane and its 28- to 30-carbon analogs, provides persuasive evidence for the existence of eukaryotes 500 million to 1 billion years before the extant fossil record indicates that the lineage arose.

@article{doi101126science28554301033,
    author = "Brocks, Jochen J. and Logan, Graham A. and Buick, Roger and Summons, Roger E.",
    title = "Archean Molecular Fossils and the Early Rise of Eukaryotes",
    year = "1999",
    journal = "Science",
    abstract = "Molecular fossils of biological lipids are preserved in 2700-million-year-old shales from the Pilbara Craton, Australia. Sequential extraction of adjacent samples shows that these hydrocarbon biomarkers are indigenous and syngenetic to the Archean shales, greatly extending the known geological range of such molecules. The presence of abundant 2α-methylhopanes, which are characteristic of cyanobacteria, indicates that oxygenic photosynthesis evolved well before the atmosphere became oxidizing. The presence of steranes, particularly cholestane and its 28- to 30-carbon analogs, provides persuasive evidence for the existence of eukaryotes 500 million to 1 billion years before the extant fossil record indicates that the lineage arose.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1126/science.285.5430.1033",
    doi = "10.1126/science.285.5430.1033",
    openalex = "W2032247127",
    references = "doi101038362834a0, doi101038376053a0, doi101038384055a0, doi101126science11539686, doi101126science1585174, doi101126science1603829729, doi101126science1631544, doi101126science2605108640, doi101146annurevmi41100187001505, doi102113gsecongeo6871135"
}

Life history responses to environmental conditions include a combination of fecundity–survival schedules and behavioral strategies that yield the highest fitness in a given environment. In this study, we examined the pattern of covariation in avian life history strategies along an elevational gradient by comparing variation in life history traits, including most components of parental care, between phylogenetically paired taxa from low- and high-elevation sites. We found that high-elevation species had significantly lower annual fecundity but provided greater parental care to their offspring. However, a strong negative relationship between offspring number and duration of parental care along the elevational gradient suggested that high-elevation species were shifting investment from offspring number toward offspring quality. Although adult survival did not differ between high- and low-elevation species, higher juvenile survival may have compensated for lower annual fecundity in high-elevation species. The elevation at which breeding occurred strongly influenced the partitioning of parental behavior between sexes. Male participation in nestling provisioning was significantly greater in high-elevation species. In turn, altitudinal variation in the frequency of biparental care closely covaries with the intensity of sexual selection, ultimately resulting in the strong elevational pattern of sexual dimorphism. Moreover, elevational variation in costs of development and maintenance of secondary sexual traits constitutes an additional effect on fecundity–survival schedules along elevational gradients. Thus, a trade-off between fecundity and parental care, and associated interactions among morphological, life history, and behavioral traits play important roles in the evolution of life history strategies in birds.

@article{doi1018900012965820010822948eolhae20co2,
    author = "Badyaev, Alexander V. and Ghalambor, Cameron K.",
    title = "EVOLUTION OF LIFE HISTORIES ALONG ELEVATIONAL GRADIENTS: TRADE-OFF BETWEEN PARENTAL CARE AND FECUNDITY",
    year = "2001",
    journal = "Ecology",
    abstract = "Life history responses to environmental conditions include a combination of fecundity–survival schedules and behavioral strategies that yield the highest fitness in a given environment. In this study, we examined the pattern of covariation in avian life history strategies along an elevational gradient by comparing variation in life history traits, including most components of parental care, between phylogenetically paired taxa from low- and high-elevation sites. We found that high-elevation species had significantly lower annual fecundity but provided greater parental care to their offspring. However, a strong negative relationship between offspring number and duration of parental care along the elevational gradient suggested that high-elevation species were shifting investment from offspring number toward offspring quality. Although adult survival did not differ between high- and low-elevation species, higher juvenile survival may have compensated for lower annual fecundity in high-elevation species. The elevation at which breeding occurred strongly influenced the partitioning of parental behavior between sexes. Male participation in nestling provisioning was significantly greater in high-elevation species. In turn, altitudinal variation in the frequency of biparental care closely covaries with the intensity of sexual selection, ultimately resulting in the strong elevational pattern of sexual dimorphism. Moreover, elevational variation in costs of development and maintenance of secondary sexual traits constitutes an additional effect on fecundity–survival schedules along elevational gradients. Thus, a trade-off between fecundity and parental care, and associated interactions among morphological, life history, and behavioral traits play important roles in the evolution of life history strategies in birds.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1890/0012-9658(2001)082[2948:eolhae]2.0.co;2",
    doi = "10.1890/0012-9658(2001)082[2948:eolhae]2.0.co;2",
    openalex = "W2111441384",
    references = "doi1023073546065"
}

The Burgess Shale arthropod Leanchoilia superlata Walcott 1912, commonly preserves a three-dimensional axial structure generally interpreted as gut contents. Thin-section examination shows this instead to be phosphatized biserially repeated midgut glands, including exceptional preservation of subcellular features. The preferential mineralization of these structures is related to their unusually high chemical reactivity and probably to an internal source of phosphate. Sub-millimetric lineations previously interpreted as annular musculature are in fact planar, sometimes radially arranged, subdivisions of these glands. Ventral rows of isolated phosphate patches appear to represent the same tissue. In extant arthropods, extensively developed midgut glands are related to a rich but infrequent diet with a primary function in storage. Their conspicuous occurrence in unambiguous fossil predators such as Sidneyia and Laggania (Anomalocaris) suggests they served a similar role in the Cambrian; by extension, their conspicuous occurrence in Leanchoilia suggests it was a predator or scavenger. Phosphatized midguts with a structure essentially indistinguishable from that of Leanchoilia are also found in Burgess Shale Odaraia, Canadaspis, Perspicaris, Sidneyia, Anomalocaris, and Opabinia. All are characterized by a distinctive sub-millimetric arrangement of planar elements that is not found in extant arthropods or trilobites, suggesting they diverged before the last common ancestor of extant forms; i.e., they represent stem-group arthropods. Three-dimensionally preserved guts are widely preserved in the Lower Cambrian Chengjiang biota but, unlike those in the Burgess Shale, appear to be filled with sediment. Although generally interpreted as evidence of deposit feeding, the form of these structures points to early permineralization of (sediment-free) midgut glands that were subsequently altered to clay minerals. There is no evidence of deposit feeding in the Chengjiang; indeed, there is a case to be made for deposit feeding not being generally exploited generally until after the Cambrian. Fossils with three-dimensionally preserved axes from the Lower Cambrian Sirius Passet biota have been interpreted as lobopodians; however, most of the putative lobopodian features find alternative interpretations as aspects of Leanchoilia -type midgut glands. Although Kerygmachela is reliably identified as a stem-group arthropod, its phylogenetic position remains unresolved owing to the non-preservation of critical external features and to the plesiomorphic nature of its Leanchoilia -type midgut.

@article{doi1016660094837320020280155lgatio20co2,
    author = "Butterfield, Nicholas J.",
    title = "Leanchoilia guts and the interpretation of three-dimensional structures in Burgess Shale-type fossils",
    year = "2002",
    journal = "Paleobiology",
    abstract = "The Burgess Shale arthropod Leanchoilia superlata Walcott 1912, commonly preserves a three-dimensional axial structure generally interpreted as gut contents. Thin-section examination shows this instead to be phosphatized biserially repeated midgut glands, including exceptional preservation of subcellular features. The preferential mineralization of these structures is related to their unusually high chemical reactivity and probably to an internal source of phosphate. Sub-millimetric lineations previously interpreted as annular musculature are in fact planar, sometimes radially arranged, subdivisions of these glands. Ventral rows of isolated phosphate patches appear to represent the same tissue. In extant arthropods, extensively developed midgut glands are related to a rich but infrequent diet with a primary function in storage. Their conspicuous occurrence in unambiguous fossil predators such as Sidneyia and Laggania (Anomalocaris) suggests they served a similar role in the Cambrian; by extension, their conspicuous occurrence in Leanchoilia suggests it was a predator or scavenger. Phosphatized midguts with a structure essentially indistinguishable from that of Leanchoilia are also found in Burgess Shale Odaraia, Canadaspis, Perspicaris, Sidneyia, Anomalocaris, and Opabinia. All are characterized by a distinctive sub-millimetric arrangement of planar elements that is not found in extant arthropods or trilobites, suggesting they diverged before the last common ancestor of extant forms; i.e., they represent stem-group arthropods. Three-dimensionally preserved guts are widely preserved in the Lower Cambrian Chengjiang biota but, unlike those in the Burgess Shale, appear to be filled with sediment. Although generally interpreted as evidence of deposit feeding, the form of these structures points to early permineralization of (sediment-free) midgut glands that were subsequently altered to clay minerals. There is no evidence of deposit feeding in the Chengjiang; indeed, there is a case to be made for deposit feeding not being generally exploited generally until after the Cambrian. Fossils with three-dimensionally preserved axes from the Lower Cambrian Sirius Passet biota have been interpreted as lobopodians; however, most of the putative lobopodian features find alternative interpretations as aspects of Leanchoilia -type midgut glands. Although Kerygmachela is reliably identified as a stem-group arthropod, its phylogenetic position remains unresolved owing to the non-preservation of critical external features and to the plesiomorphic nature of its Leanchoilia -type midgut.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1666/0094-8373(2002)028<0155:lgatio>2.0.co;2",
    doi = "10.1666/0094-8373(2002)028<0155:lgatio>2.0.co;2",
    openalex = "W2175470899",
    references = "doi1010079789401149044, doi101017s002233600002758x, doi10103708944105154544, doi101038001534a0, doi101038114085a0, doi10103835318, doi10103846965, doi101086284623, doi101086415511, doi101098rstb19750033, doi101098rstb19780005, doi101098rstb19810007, doi101098rstb19810164, doi101098rstb19830020, doi101098rstb19850096, doi101111j150239311995tb01587x, doi101126science28153801173, doi101826182003769311997, doi104095103458, doi105281zenodo15992748, müller1983crustacea, openalexw2242001249, openalexw3127114020, openalexw659399033, xianguang1999new"
}

▪ Abstract Fossil deposits that preserve soft-bodied organisms provide critical evidence of the history of life. Usually, only more decay resistant materials, e.g., cuticles, survive as organic remains as a result of selective preservation and subsequent diagenesis to more resistant biopolymers. Permineralization, the permeation of tissues by mineralizing fluids, may preserve remarkable detail, particularly of plants. However, evidence of more labile tissues, e.g., muscle, normally requires the replication of their morphology by rapid in situ growth of minerals, i.e., authigenic mineralization. This process relies on the steep geochemical gradients generated by decay microbes. The minerals involved, and the level of detail preserved (which may be subcellular), depend on a number of factors, including the nature of microbial activity and amount of decay, availability of ions, and the type of organism that is fossilized. Understanding these controls is essential to determining the conditions that favor exceptional preservation.

@article{briggs2003the,
    author = "Briggs, Derek E.G.",
    title = "The Role of Decay and Mineralization in the Preservation of Soft-Bodied Fossils",
    year = "2003",
    journal = "Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences",
    abstract = "▪ Abstract Fossil deposits that preserve soft-bodied organisms provide critical evidence of the history of life. Usually, only more decay resistant materials, e.g., cuticles, survive as organic remains as a result of selective preservation and subsequent diagenesis to more resistant biopolymers. Permineralization, the permeation of tissues by mineralizing fluids, may preserve remarkable detail, particularly of plants. However, evidence of more labile tissues, e.g., muscle, normally requires the replication of their morphology by rapid in situ growth of minerals, i.e., authigenic mineralization. This process relies on the steep geochemical gradients generated by decay microbes. The minerals involved, and the level of detail preserved (which may be subcellular), depend on a number of factors, including the nature of microbial activity and amount of decay, availability of ions, and the type of organism that is fossilized. Understanding these controls is essential to determining the conditions that favor exceptional preservation.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.earth.31.100901.144746",
    doi = "10.1146/annurev.earth.31.100901.144746",
    number = "1",
    openalex = "W2125375419",
    pages = "275-301",
    volume = "31",
    references = "allison1988the, briggs1994decay, briggs1996the, doi1010160016703789901919, doi1010160016703794902984, doi101016002532279390147n, doi1010160034666775900056, doi101017s0006323199005472, doi101017s0022336000040026, doi101017s0094837300009994, doi101017s009483730001188x, doi101017s0094837300012082, doi101098rstb19790006, doi101098rstb19850134, doi101098rstb19930082, doi101111j150239311983tb01993x, doi101126science25951001439, doi101126science28153801173, doi1011300091761319880160149mibbbs23co2, doi1015159781501509247, doi1016660094837320020280155lgatio20co2, doi1023071222284, doi1023073515360, doi1023073515363, doi105860choice284524, doi107208chicago97802261597130010001, openalexw2754161204"
}

Exceptionally preserved, non-biomineralizing fossils contribute importantly to resolving details of the Cambrian explosion, but little to its overall patterns. Six distinct "types" of exceptional preservation are identified for the terminal Proterozoic-Cambrian interval, each of which is dependent on particular taphonomic circumstances, typically restricted both in space and time. Taphonomic pathways yielding exceptional preservation were particularly variable through the Proterozoic-Cambrian transition, at least in part a consequence of contemporaneous evolutionary innovations. Combined with the reasonably continuous record of "Doushantuo-type preservation," and the fundamentally more robust records of shelly fossils, phytoplankton cysts and trace fossils, these taphonomic perturbations contribute to the documentation of major evolutionary and biogeochemical shifts through the terminal Proterozoic and early Cambrian.Appreciation of the relationship between taphonomic pathway and fossil expression serves as a useful tool for interpreting exceptionally preserved, often problematic, early Cambrian fossils. In shale facies, for example, flattened non-biomineralizing structures typically represent the remains of degradation-resistant acellular and extracellular "tissues" such as chaetae and cuticles, whereas three-dimensional preservation represents labile cellular tissues with a propensity for attracting and precipitating early diagenetic minerals. Such distinction helps to identify the acuticular integument of hyolithids, the chaetae-like nature of Wiwaxia sclerites, the chaetognath-like integument of Amiskwia, the midgut glands of various Burgess Shale arthropods, and the misidentification of deposit-feeding arthropods in the Chengjiang biota. By the same reasoning, putative lobopods in the Sirius Passet biota and putative deuterostomes in the Chengiang biota are better interpreted as arthropods.

@article{doi101093icb431166,
    author = "Butterfield, Nicholas J.",
    title = "Exceptional Fossil Preservation and the Cambrian Explosion",
    year = "2003",
    journal = "Integrative and Comparative Biology",
    abstract = {Exceptionally preserved, non-biomineralizing fossils contribute importantly to resolving details of the Cambrian explosion, but little to its overall patterns. Six distinct "types" of exceptional preservation are identified for the terminal Proterozoic-Cambrian interval, each of which is dependent on particular taphonomic circumstances, typically restricted both in space and time. Taphonomic pathways yielding exceptional preservation were particularly variable through the Proterozoic-Cambrian transition, at least in part a consequence of contemporaneous evolutionary innovations. Combined with the reasonably continuous record of "Doushantuo-type preservation," and the fundamentally more robust records of shelly fossils, phytoplankton cysts and trace fossils, these taphonomic perturbations contribute to the documentation of major evolutionary and biogeochemical shifts through the terminal Proterozoic and early Cambrian.Appreciation of the relationship between taphonomic pathway and fossil expression serves as a useful tool for interpreting exceptionally preserved, often problematic, early Cambrian fossils. In shale facies, for example, flattened non-biomineralizing structures typically represent the remains of degradation-resistant acellular and extracellular "tissues" such as chaetae and cuticles, whereas three-dimensional preservation represents labile cellular tissues with a propensity for attracting and precipitating early diagenetic minerals. Such distinction helps to identify the acuticular integument of hyolithids, the chaetae-like nature of Wiwaxia sclerites, the chaetognath-like integument of Amiskwia, the midgut glands of various Burgess Shale arthropods, and the misidentification of deposit-feeding arthropods in the Chengjiang biota. By the same reasoning, putative lobopods in the Sirius Passet biota and putative deuterostomes in the Chengiang biota are better interpreted as arthropods.},
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1093/icb/43.1.166",
    doi = "10.1093/icb/43.1.166",
    openalex = "W2181027699",
    references = "doi1010160016703789901919, doi101017s000632310000548x, doi101017s0094837300009994, doi101017s0094837300012082, doi10103834391, doi10103835318, doi101098rstb19790006, doi101098rstb19850005, doi101111j1469185x1999tb00046x, doi101111j150239311975tb01311x, doi101111j150239311994tb01558x, doi101111j150239311995tb01587x, doi101111j150239311995tb01591x, doi101126science1066611, doi101126science28153801173, doi1016660094837320000260386bpngns20co2, doi1016660094837320020280155lgatio20co2, doi1023073514743, doi1023073515360, openalexw2326083785, openalexw2754161204, openalexw3127114020, openalexw659399033"
}

"Australopithecines, dinosaurs, trilobites - such fossils conjure up images of lost worlds filled with vanished organisms. But in the full history of life, ancient animals, even the trilobites, form only the half-billion-year tip of nearly 4-billion-year iceberg. Andrew Knoll explores the deep history of life from its origins on a young planet to the incredible Cambrian explosion, presenting a compelling new explanation for the emergence of biological novelty." "The very latest discoveries in paleontology - many of them made by the author and his students - are integrated with emerging insights from molecular biology and earth system science to forge a broad understanding of how the biological diversity that surrounds us came to be. Moving from Siberia to Namibia to the Bahamas, Knoll shows how life and environment have evolved together through Earth's history. Innovations in biology have helped shape our air and oceans, and, just as surely, environmental change has influenced the course of evolution, repeatedly closing off opportunities for some species while opening avenues for others." "Readers go into the field to confront fossils, enter the lab to discern the inner workings of cells, and alight on Mars to ask how our terrestrial experience can guide exploration for life beyond our planet. Along the way, Knoll brings us up-to-date on some of science's hottest questions, from the oldest fossils and claims of life beyond the Earth to the hypothesis of global glaciation and Knoll's own unifying concept of "permissive ecology."--BOOK JACKET.

@article{doi105860choice412190,
    author = "Knoll, Andrew H.",
    title = "Life on a young planet: the first three billion years of evolution on Earth",
    year = "2003",
    journal = "Choice Reviews Online",
    abstract = {"Australopithecines, dinosaurs, trilobites - such fossils conjure up images of lost worlds filled with vanished organisms. But in the full history of life, ancient animals, even the trilobites, form only the half-billion-year tip of nearly 4-billion-year iceberg. Andrew Knoll explores the deep history of life from its origins on a young planet to the incredible Cambrian explosion, presenting a compelling new explanation for the emergence of biological novelty." "The very latest discoveries in paleontology - many of them made by the author and his students - are integrated with emerging insights from molecular biology and earth system science to forge a broad understanding of how the biological diversity that surrounds us came to be. Moving from Siberia to Namibia to the Bahamas, Knoll shows how life and environment have evolved together through Earth's history. Innovations in biology have helped shape our air and oceans, and, just as surely, environmental change has influenced the course of evolution, repeatedly closing off opportunities for some species while opening avenues for others." "Readers go into the field to confront fossils, enter the lab to discern the inner workings of cells, and alight on Mars to ask how our terrestrial experience can guide exploration for life beyond our planet. Along the way, Knoll brings us up-to-date on some of science's hottest questions, from the oldest fossils and claims of life beyond the Earth to the hypothesis of global glaciation and Knoll's own unifying concept of "permissive ecology."--BOOK JACKET.},
    url = "https://doi.org/10.5860/choice.41-2190",
    doi = "10.5860/choice.41-2190",
    openalex = "W1577075652"
}

We implement a Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm for estimating species divergence times that uses heterogeneous data from multiple gene loci and accommodates multiple fossil calibration nodes. A birth-death process with species sampling is used to specify a prior for divergence times, which allows easy assessment of the effects of that prior on posterior time estimates. We propose a new approach for specifying calibration points on the phylogeny, which allows the use of arbitrary and flexible statistical distributions to describe uncertainties in fossil dates. In particular, we use soft bounds, so that the probability that the true divergence time is outside the bounds is small but nonzero. A strict molecular clock is assumed in the current implementation, although this assumption may be relaxed. We apply our new algorithm to two data sets concerning divergences of several primate species, to examine the effects of the substitution model and of the prior for divergence times on Bayesian time estimation. We also conduct computer simulation to examine the differences between soft and hard bounds. We demonstrate that divergence time estimation is intrinsically hampered by uncertainties in fossil calibrations, and the error in Bayesian time estimates will not go to zero with increased amounts of sequence data. Our analyses of both real and simulated data demonstrate potentially large differences between divergence time estimates obtained using soft versus hard bounds and a general superiority of soft bounds. Our main findings are as follows. (1) When the fossils are consistent with each other and with the molecular data, and the posterior time estimates are well within the prior bounds, soft and hard bounds produce similar results. (2) When the fossils are in conflict with each other or with the molecules, soft and hard bounds behave very differently; soft bounds allow sequence data to correct poor calibrations, while poor hard bounds are impossible to overcome by any amount of data. (3) Soft bounds eliminate the need for "safe" but unrealistically high upper bounds, which may bias posterior time estimates. (4) Soft bounds allow more reliable assessment of estimation errors, while hard bounds generate misleadingly high precisions when fossils and molecules are in conflict.

@article{doi101093molbevmsj024,
    author = "Yang, Ziheng and Rannala, Bruce",
    title = "Bayesian Estimation of Species Divergence Times Under a Molecular Clock Using Multiple Fossil Calibrations with Soft Bounds",
    year = "2005",
    journal = "Molecular Biology and Evolution",
    abstract = {We implement a Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm for estimating species divergence times that uses heterogeneous data from multiple gene loci and accommodates multiple fossil calibration nodes. A birth-death process with species sampling is used to specify a prior for divergence times, which allows easy assessment of the effects of that prior on posterior time estimates. We propose a new approach for specifying calibration points on the phylogeny, which allows the use of arbitrary and flexible statistical distributions to describe uncertainties in fossil dates. In particular, we use soft bounds, so that the probability that the true divergence time is outside the bounds is small but nonzero. A strict molecular clock is assumed in the current implementation, although this assumption may be relaxed. We apply our new algorithm to two data sets concerning divergences of several primate species, to examine the effects of the substitution model and of the prior for divergence times on Bayesian time estimation. We also conduct computer simulation to examine the differences between soft and hard bounds. We demonstrate that divergence time estimation is intrinsically hampered by uncertainties in fossil calibrations, and the error in Bayesian time estimates will not go to zero with increased amounts of sequence data. Our analyses of both real and simulated data demonstrate potentially large differences between divergence time estimates obtained using soft versus hard bounds and a general superiority of soft bounds. Our main findings are as follows. (1) When the fossils are consistent with each other and with the molecular data, and the posterior time estimates are well within the prior bounds, soft and hard bounds produce similar results. (2) When the fossils are in conflict with each other or with the molecules, soft and hard bounds behave very differently; soft bounds allow sequence data to correct poor calibrations, while poor hard bounds are impossible to overcome by any amount of data. (3) Soft bounds eliminate the need for "safe" but unrealistically high upper bounds, which may bias posterior time estimates. (4) Soft bounds allow more reliable assessment of estimation errors, while hard bounds generate misleadingly high precisions when fossils and molecules are in conflict.},
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msj024",
    doi = "10.1093/molbev/msj024",
    openalex = "W2036628186",
    references = "doi101038nature00879, rambaut1998estimating"
}

The role of fossils in dating the tree of life has been misunderstood. Fossils can provide good "minimum" age estimates for branches in the tree, but "maximum" constraints on those ages are poorer. Current debates about which are the "best" fossil dates for calibration move to consideration of the most appropriate constraints on the ages of tree nodes. Because fossil-based dates are constraints, and because molecular evolution is not perfectly clock-like, analysts should use more rather than fewer dates, but there has to be a balance between many genes and few dates versus many dates and few genes. We provide "hard" minimum and "soft" maximum age constraints for 30 divergences among key genome model organisms; these should contribute to better understanding of the dating of the animal tree of life.

@article{doi101093molbevmsl150,
    author = "Benton, Michael J. and Donoghue, Philip C. J.",
    title = "Paleontological Evidence to Date the Tree of Life",
    year = "2006",
    journal = "Molecular Biology and Evolution",
    abstract = {The role of fossils in dating the tree of life has been misunderstood. Fossils can provide good "minimum" age estimates for branches in the tree, but "maximum" constraints on those ages are poorer. Current debates about which are the "best" fossil dates for calibration move to consideration of the most appropriate constraints on the ages of tree nodes. Because fossil-based dates are constraints, and because molecular evolution is not perfectly clock-like, analysts should use more rather than fewer dates, but there has to be a balance between many genes and few dates versus many dates and few genes. We provide "hard" minimum and "soft" maximum age constraints for 30 divergences among key genome model organisms; these should contribute to better understanding of the dating of the animal tree of life.},
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msl150",
    doi = "10.1093/molbev/msl150",
    openalex = "W2061352595",
    references = "doi101007bf02101113, doi101007bf02101694, doi1010160031018279901639, doi1010160169534789901626, doi101016b9780444594259000196, doi101016b9780444594259000238, doi101016b9780444594259000287, doi101016b9781483227344500176, doi101016jtig200403007, doi101016jtoxlet200611011, doi101016jtree200504008, doi101017cbo9780511536045, doi101017cbo9780511536045020, doi101017s000632310000548x, doi101017s009483730000508x, doi101017s1464793102006103, doi101038260293a0, doi10103835054550, doi10103835084063, doi101038371306a0, doi101038377720a0, doi101038416816a, doi10103846965, doi101038nature00879, doi101038nature01264, doi101038nature01420, doi101038nature03150, doi101038nature04890, doi101071zo9550654, doi101073pnas0334222100, doi10108002724634199110011426, doi101098rstb19990489, doi101111j109636421985tb01796x, doi101111j109636421995tb00932x, doi101126science1107765, doi101126science147365368, doi101126science1503697743, doi101126science17740541065, doi101371journalpbio0040088, doi1015159781400881376, doi101643004585112002002053220co2, doi105281zenodo16171435, doi105860choice332720, doi105860choice355657, doi105860choice405235, doi105860choice432801, openalexw1587561751, openalexw1599677799, openalexw1900040508, openalexw78894702"
}

Evidence for the existence of life during the Archaean segment of Earth history (more than 2500 Myr ago) is summarized. Data are presented for 48 Archaean deposits reported to contain biogenic stromatolites, for 14 such units reported to contain 40 morphotypes of putative microfossils, and for 13 especially ancient, 3200-3500 Myr old geologic units for which available organic geochemical data are also summarized. These compilations support the view that life's existence dates from more than or equal to 3500 Myr ago.

@article{doi101098rstb20061834,
    author = "Schopf, J. William",
    title = "Fossil evidence of Archaean life",
    year = "2006",
    journal = "Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences",
    abstract = "Evidence for the existence of life during the Archaean segment of Earth history (more than 2500 Myr ago) is summarized. Data are presented for 48 Archaean deposits reported to contain biogenic stromatolites, for 14 such units reported to contain 40 morphotypes of putative microfossils, and for 13 especially ancient, 3200-3500 Myr old geologic units for which available organic geochemical data are also summarized. These compilations support the view that life's existence dates from more than or equal to 3500 Myr ago.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2006.1834",
    doi = "10.1098/rstb.2006.1834",
    openalex = "W2159170019",
    references = "doi1010160012825273900020, doi101016030192689500018z, doi101016b0080437516071036, doi101016s014663809900145x, doi101017cbo9780511601064, doi101038416073a, doi101038416076a, doi101089ast20055333, doi101111j136530911989tb00615x, doi101126science11539686, doi101126science2605108640, doi101139e79088, doi101146annurevearth271313, doi102475ajs26791017, openalexw109813744, openalexw1552860341, openalexw624811619"
}

P.A. Sims, D.G. Mann and L.K. Medlin. 2006. Evolution of the diatoms: insights from fossil, biological and molecular data.Phycologia 45: 361–402. DOI: 10.2216/05-22.1Molecular sequence analyses have yielded many important insights into diatom evolution, but there have been few attempts to relate these to the extensive fossil record of diatoms, probably because of unfamiliarity with the data available, which are scattered widely through the geological literature. We review the main features of molecular phylogenies and concentrate on the correspondence between these and the fossil record; we also review the evolution of major morphological, cytological and life cycle characteristics, and possible diatom origins. The first physical remains of diatoms are from the Jurassic, and well-preserved, diverse floras are available from the Lower Cretaceous. Though these are unequivocally identifiable as centric diatoms, none except a possible Stephanopyxis can be unequivocally linked to lineages of extant diatoms, although it is almost certain that members of the Coscinodiscophyceae (radial centrics) and Mediophyceae (polar centrics) were present; some display curious morphological features that hint at an unorthodox cell division mechanism and life cycle. It seems most likely that the earliest diatoms were marine, but recently discovered fossil deposits hint that episodes of terrestrial colonization may have occurred in the Mesozoic, though the main invasion of freshwaters appears to have been delayed until the Cenozoic. By the Upper Cretaceous, many lineages are present that can be convincingly related to extant diatom taxa. Pennate diatoms appear in the late Cretaceous and raphid diatoms in the Palaeocene, though molecular phylogenies imply that raphid diatoms did in fact evolve considerably earlier. Recent evidence shows that diatoms are substantially underclassified at the species level, with many semicryptic or cryptic species to be recognized; however, there is little prospect of being able to discriminate between such taxa in fossil material.

@article{doi10221605221,
    author = "Sims, Patricia A. and Mann, David G. and Medlin, Linda",
    title = "Evolution of the diatoms: insights from fossil, biological and molecular data",
    year = "2006",
    journal = "Phycologia",
    abstract = "P.A. Sims, D.G. Mann and L.K. Medlin. 2006. Evolution of the diatoms: insights from fossil, biological and molecular data.Phycologia 45: 361–402. DOI: 10.2216/05-22.1Molecular sequence analyses have yielded many important insights into diatom evolution, but there have been few attempts to relate these to the extensive fossil record of diatoms, probably because of unfamiliarity with the data available, which are scattered widely through the geological literature. We review the main features of molecular phylogenies and concentrate on the correspondence between these and the fossil record; we also review the evolution of major morphological, cytological and life cycle characteristics, and possible diatom origins. The first physical remains of diatoms are from the Jurassic, and well-preserved, diverse floras are available from the Lower Cretaceous. Though these are unequivocally identifiable as centric diatoms, none except a possible Stephanopyxis can be unequivocally linked to lineages of extant diatoms, although it is almost certain that members of the Coscinodiscophyceae (radial centrics) and Mediophyceae (polar centrics) were present; some display curious morphological features that hint at an unorthodox cell division mechanism and life cycle. It seems most likely that the earliest diatoms were marine, but recently discovered fossil deposits hint that episodes of terrestrial colonization may have occurred in the Mesozoic, though the main invasion of freshwaters appears to have been delayed until the Cenozoic. By the Upper Cretaceous, many lineages are present that can be convincingly related to extant diatom taxa. Pennate diatoms appear in the late Cretaceous and raphid diatoms in the Palaeocene, though molecular phylogenies imply that raphid diatoms did in fact evolve considerably earlier. Recent evidence shows that diatoms are substantially underclassified at the species level, with many semicryptic or cryptic species to be recognized; however, there is little prospect of being able to discriminate between such taxa in fossil material.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.2216/05-22.1",
    doi = "10.2216/05-22.1",
    openalex = "W2012951185",
    references = "doi101007bf03017175, doi10102990jb02015, doi101038nature01416, doi10108011035898209455245, doi101111j00223646199600889x, doi101126science23547931156, doi101144gsjgs13620175, doi102216i003188843864371, doi1023071931600, doi1023072420042, doi1023072992511, doi1023073514632, doi105860choice331556, kitchell1986biological, openalexw1574810993, openalexw1979889320"
}

@article{doi101038nature07673,
    author = "Love, Gordon D. and Grosjean, Emmanuelle and Stalvies, Charlotte and Fike, David A. and Grotzinger, J. P. and Bradley, Alexander S. and Kelly, Amy E. and Bhatia, Maya P. and Meredith, William and Snape, Colin E. and Bowring, Samuel A. and Condon, Daniel J. and Summons, Roger E.",
    title = "Fossil steroids record the appearance of Demospongiae during the Cryogenian period",
    year = "2009",
    journal = "Nature",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1038/nature07673",
    doi = "10.1038/nature07673",
    openalex = "W2016049452",
    references = "doi1010160146638086900896, doi101016s0301926899000728, doi10103835318, doi101038nature05345, doi101038nature05682, doi101073pnas0708336105, doi101126science1107765, doi1011300091761320030310431eocana20co2, doi101130b256301, doi10247510200701"
}

@article{openalexw1921158499,
    author = "Cúneo, Rubén",
    title = "Paleobotany: The Biology and Evolution of Fossil Plants",
    year = "2009",
    journal = "Ameghiniana",
    openalex = "W1921158499"
}

@article{doi101016jtree201005002,
    author = "Quental, Tiago B. and Marshall, Charles R.",
    title = "Diversity dynamics: molecular phylogenies need the fossil record",
    year = "2010",
    journal = "Trends in Ecology \& Evolution",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2010.05.002",
    doi = "10.1016/j.tree.2010.05.002",
    openalex = "W2157452947",
    references = "doi101017s0094837300016134, doi101073pnas111144698, doi101111j14754983200600612x"
}

Cyanobacteria are among the most ancient of evolutionary lineages, oxygenic photosynthesizers that may have originated before 3.0 Ga, as evidenced by free oxygen levels. Throughout the Precambrian, cyanobacteria were one of the most important drivers of biological innovations, strongly impacting early Earth's environments. At the end of the Archean Eon, they were responsible for the rapid oxygenation of Earth's atmosphere during an episode referred to as the Great Oxidation Event (GOE). However, little is known about the origin and diversity of early cyanobacterial taxa, due to: (1) the scarceness of Precambrian fossil deposits; (2) limited characteristics for the identification of taxa; and (3) the poor preservation of ancient microfossils. Previous studies based on 16S rRNA have suggested that the origin of multicellularity within cyanobacteria might have been associated with the GOE. However, single-gene analyses have limitations, particularly for deep branches. We reconstructed the evolutionary history of cyanobacteria using genome scale data and re-evaluated the Precambrian fossil record to get more precise calibrations for a relaxed clock analysis. For the phylogenomic reconstructions, we identified 756 conserved gene sequences in 65 cyanobacterial taxa, of which eight genomes have been sequenced in this study. Character state reconstructions based on maximum likelihood and Bayesian phylogenetic inference confirm previous findings, of an ancient multicellular cyanobacterial lineage ancestral to the majority of modern cyanobacteria. Relaxed clock analyses provide firm support for an origin of cyanobacteria in the Archean and a transition to multicellularity before the GOE. It is likely that multicellularity had a greater impact on cyanobacterial fitness and thus abundance, than previously assumed. Multicellularity, as a major evolutionary innovation, forming a novel unit for selection to act upon, may have served to overcome evolutionary constraints and enabled diversification of the variety of morphotypes seen in cyanobacteria today.

@article{doi101111pala12178,
    author = "Schirrmeister, Bettina E. and Gugger, Muriel and Donoghue, Philip C. J.",
    title = "Cyanobacteria and the Great Oxidation Event: evidence from genes and fossils",
    year = "2015",
    journal = "Palaeontology",
    abstract = "Cyanobacteria are among the most ancient of evolutionary lineages, oxygenic photosynthesizers that may have originated before 3.0 Ga, as evidenced by free oxygen levels. Throughout the Precambrian, cyanobacteria were one of the most important drivers of biological innovations, strongly impacting early Earth's environments. At the end of the Archean Eon, they were responsible for the rapid oxygenation of Earth's atmosphere during an episode referred to as the Great Oxidation Event (GOE). However, little is known about the origin and diversity of early cyanobacterial taxa, due to: (1) the scarceness of Precambrian fossil deposits; (2) limited characteristics for the identification of taxa; and (3) the poor preservation of ancient microfossils. Previous studies based on 16S rRNA have suggested that the origin of multicellularity within cyanobacteria might have been associated with the GOE. However, single-gene analyses have limitations, particularly for deep branches. We reconstructed the evolutionary history of cyanobacteria using genome scale data and re-evaluated the Precambrian fossil record to get more precise calibrations for a relaxed clock analysis. For the phylogenomic reconstructions, we identified 756 conserved gene sequences in 65 cyanobacterial taxa, of which eight genomes have been sequenced in this study. Character state reconstructions based on maximum likelihood and Bayesian phylogenetic inference confirm previous findings, of an ancient multicellular cyanobacterial lineage ancestral to the majority of modern cyanobacteria. Relaxed clock analyses provide firm support for an origin of cyanobacteria in the Archean and a transition to multicellularity before the GOE. It is likely that multicellularity had a greater impact on cyanobacterial fitness and thus abundance, than previously assumed. Multicellularity, as a major evolutionary innovation, forming a novel unit for selection to act upon, may have served to overcome evolutionary constraints and enabled diversification of the variety of morphotypes seen in cyanobacteria today.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1111/pala.12178",
    doi = "10.1111/pala.12178",
    openalex = "W1831957949",
    references = "doi1010160301926888900058, doi101016030192689500018z, doi101016s0168952500020242, doi101093bioinformaticsbtg412, doi101093bioinformaticsbtr088, doi101093bioinformaticsbtu153, doi101093molbevmsm088, doi101093molbevmsn067, doi101093molbevmst010, doi1010990022128711111, doi101111j14724669200900220x, doi101111pala12178, doi1011861471210510421, doi101371journalpbio0040088, openalexw2622880403"
}

The discovery of the Fezouata biota in the latest Tremadocian of southeastern Morocco has significantly changed our understanding of the early Phanerozoic radiation. The shelly fossil record shows a well-recognized pattern of macroevolutionary stasis between the Cambrian Explosion and the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event, but the rich soft-bodied Fezouata biota paints a different evolutionary picture. The Fezouata assemblage includes a considerable component of Cambrian holdovers alongside a surprising number of crown group taxa previously unknown to have evolved by the Early Ordovician. Study of the Fezouata biota is in its early stages, and future discoveries will continue to enrich our view of the dynamics of the early Phanerozoic radiation and of the nature of the fossil record. Supplementary material: A complete faunal list is available at http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/SUP18843.

@article{doi101144jgs2015017,
    author = "Roy, Peter Van and Briggs, Derek E. G. and Gaines, Robert R.",
    title = "The Fezouata fossils of Morocco; an extraordinary record of marine life in the Early Ordovician",
    year = "2015",
    journal = "Journal of the Geological Society",
    abstract = "The discovery of the Fezouata biota in the latest Tremadocian of southeastern Morocco has significantly changed our understanding of the early Phanerozoic radiation. The shelly fossil record shows a well-recognized pattern of macroevolutionary stasis between the Cambrian Explosion and the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event, but the rich soft-bodied Fezouata biota paints a different evolutionary picture. The Fezouata assemblage includes a considerable component of Cambrian holdovers alongside a surprising number of crown group taxa previously unknown to have evolved by the Early Ordovician. Study of the Fezouata biota is in its early stages, and future discoveries will continue to enrich our view of the dynamics of the early Phanerozoic radiation and of the nature of the fossil record. Supplementary material: A complete faunal list is available at http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/SUP18843.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1144/jgs2015-017",
    doi = "10.1144/jgs2015-017",
    openalex = "W2124526279",
    references = "doi10100797894017960024, doi101016jpalaeo201005031, doi101017s0022336000027773, doi101017s0025315400028575, doi101017s0094837300006539, doi101017s0094837300008186, doi101038122881a0, doi101038nature09038, doi101038nature13010, doi101038nature13414, doi101038nature14256, doi101038ncomms4210, doi101073pnas1111784109, doi101093icb431166, doi101098rstb19810007, doi101111brv12168, doi101126science1169514, doi101130g206401, doi101130g24961a1, doi105962bhltitle50608, doi105962bhltitle82327, doi107312webb12678"
}

Exceptionally preserved fossils are the product of complex interplays of biological and geological processes including burial, autolysis and microbial decay, authigenic mineralization, diagenesis, metamorphism, and finally weathering and exhumation. Determining which tissues are preserved and how biases affect their preservation pathways is important for interpreting fossils in phylogenetic, ecological, and evolutionary frameworks. Although laboratory decay experiments reveal important aspects of fossilization, applying the results directly to the interpretation of exceptionally preserved fossils may overlook the impact of other key processes that remove or preserve morphological information. Investigations of fossils preserving non-biomineralized tissues suggest that certain structures that are decay resistant (e.g., the notochord) are rarely preserved (even where carbonaceous components survive), and decay-prone structures (e.g., nervous systems) can fossilize, albeit rarely. As we review here, decay resistance is an imperfect indicator of fossilization potential, and a suite of biological and geological processes account for the features preserved in exceptional fossils.

@article{doi101002bies201700167,
    author = "Parry, Luke A. and Smithwick, Fiann M. and Nordén, Klara K. and Saitta, Evan T. and Lozano-Fernández, Jesús and Tanner, Alastair R. and Caron, Jean‐Bernard and Edgecombe, Gregory D. and Briggs, Derek E. G. and Vinther, Jakob",
    title = "Soft‐Bodied Fossils Are Not Simply Rotten Carcasses – Toward a Holistic Understanding of Exceptional Fossil Preservation",
    year = "2017",
    journal = "BioEssays",
    abstract = "Exceptionally preserved fossils are the product of complex interplays of biological and geological processes including burial, autolysis and microbial decay, authigenic mineralization, diagenesis, metamorphism, and finally weathering and exhumation. Determining which tissues are preserved and how biases affect their preservation pathways is important for interpreting fossils in phylogenetic, ecological, and evolutionary frameworks. Although laboratory decay experiments reveal important aspects of fossilization, applying the results directly to the interpretation of exceptionally preserved fossils may overlook the impact of other key processes that remove or preserve morphological information. Investigations of fossils preserving non-biomineralized tissues suggest that certain structures that are decay resistant (e.g., the notochord) are rarely preserved (even where carbonaceous components survive), and decay-prone structures (e.g., nervous systems) can fossilize, albeit rarely. As we review here, decay resistance is an imperfect indicator of fossilization potential, and a suite of biological and geological processes account for the features preserved in exceptional fossils.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1002/bies.201700167",
    doi = "10.1002/bies.201700167",
    openalex = "W2768543413",
    references = "briggs1996the, doi101016jcub201606065, doi101038nature04894, doi101038nature12520, doi101038nature13414, doi101038ncomms4210, doi101038ncomms4560, doi101038s415590160022, doi101073pnas1111784109, doi101098rspb20063761, doi101111j1469185x201200220x, doi101111pala12219, doi101130g24961a1, doi10166609147r21, doi102110palo2003p05070r"
}

The hypothesis that eusociality originated once in Vespidae has shaped interpretation of social evolution for decades and has driven the supposition that preimaginal morphophysiological differences between castes were absent at the outset of eusociality. Many researchers also consider casteless nest-sharing an antecedent to eusociality. Together, these ideas endorse a stepwise progression of social evolution in wasps (solitary → casteless nest-sharing → eusociality with rudimentary behavioral castes → eusociality with preimaginal caste-biasing (PCB) → morphologically differentiated castes). Here, we infer the phylogeny of Vespidae using sequence data generated via anchored hybrid enrichment from 378 loci across 136 vespid species and perform ancestral state reconstructions to test whether rudimentary and monomorphic castes characterized the initial stages of eusocial evolution. Our results reject the single origin of eusociality hypothesis, contest the supposition that eusociality emerged from a casteless nest-sharing ancestor, and suggest that eusociality in Polistinae + Vespinae began with castes having morphological differences. An abrupt appearance of castes with ontogenetically established morphophysiological differences conflicts with the current conception of stepwise social evolution and suggests that the climb up the ladder of sociality does not occur through sequential mutation. Phenotypic plasticity and standing genetic variation could explain how cooperative brood care evolved in concert with nest-sharing and how morphologically dissimilar castes arose without a rudimentary intermediate. Furthermore, PCB at the outset of eusociality implicates a subsocial route to eusociality in Polistinae + Vespinae, emphasizing the role of mother-daughter interactions and subfertility (i.e. the cost component of kin selection) in the origin of workers.

@article{doi101093molbevmsy124,
    author = "Piekarski, Patrick and Carpenter, James M. and Lemmon, Alan R. and Lemmon, Emily Moriarty and Sharanowski, Barbara J.",
    title = "Phylogenomic Evidence Overturns Current Conceptions of Social Evolution in Wasps (Vespidae)",
    year = "2018",
    journal = "Molecular Biology and Evolution",
    abstract = "The hypothesis that eusociality originated once in Vespidae has shaped interpretation of social evolution for decades and has driven the supposition that preimaginal morphophysiological differences between castes were absent at the outset of eusociality. Many researchers also consider casteless nest-sharing an antecedent to eusociality. Together, these ideas endorse a stepwise progression of social evolution in wasps (solitary → casteless nest-sharing → eusociality with rudimentary behavioral castes → eusociality with preimaginal caste-biasing (PCB) → morphologically differentiated castes). Here, we infer the phylogeny of Vespidae using sequence data generated via anchored hybrid enrichment from 378 loci across 136 vespid species and perform ancestral state reconstructions to test whether rudimentary and monomorphic castes characterized the initial stages of eusocial evolution. Our results reject the single origin of eusociality hypothesis, contest the supposition that eusociality emerged from a casteless nest-sharing ancestor, and suggest that eusociality in Polistinae + Vespinae began with castes having morphological differences. An abrupt appearance of castes with ontogenetically established morphophysiological differences conflicts with the current conception of stepwise social evolution and suggests that the climb up the ladder of sociality does not occur through sequential mutation. Phenotypic plasticity and standing genetic variation could explain how cooperative brood care evolved in concert with nest-sharing and how morphologically dissimilar castes arose without a rudimentary intermediate. Furthermore, PCB at the outset of eusociality implicates a subsocial route to eusociality in Polistinae + Vespinae, emphasizing the role of mother-daughter interactions and subfertility (i.e. the cost component of kin selection) in the origin of workers.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msy124",
    doi = "10.1093/molbev/msy124",
    openalex = "W2809192310",
    references = "doi101111cla12160"
}

Patterns of species richness are commonly linked to life history strategies. In diatoms, an exceptionally diverse lineage of photosynthetic heterokonts important for global photosynthesis and burial of atmospheric carbon, lineages with different locomotory and reproductive traits differ dramatically in species richness, but any potential association between life history strategy and diversification has not been tested in a phylogenetic framework. We constructed a time-calibrated, 11-gene, 1151-taxon phylogeny of diatoms - the most inclusive diatom species tree to date. We used this phylogeny, together with a comprehensive inventory of first-last occurrences of Cenozoic fossil diatoms, to estimate ranges of expected species richness, diversification and its variation through time and across lineages. Diversification rates varied with life history traits. Although anisogamous lineages diversified faster than oogamous ones, this increase was restricted to a nested clade with active motility in the vegetative cells. We propose that the evolution of motility in vegetative cells, following an earlier transition from oogamy to anisogamy, facilitated outcrossing and improved utilization of habitat complexity, ultimately leading to enhanced opportunity for adaptive divergence across a variety of novel habitats. Together, these contributed to a species radiation that gave rise to the majority of present-day diatom diversity.

@article{doi101111nph15137,
    author = "Nakov, Teofil and Beaulieu, Jeremy M. and Alverson, Andrew J.",
    title = "Accelerated diversification is related to life history and locomotion in a hyperdiverse lineage of microbial eukaryotes (Diatoms, Bacillariophyta)",
    year = "2018",
    journal = "New Phytologist",
    abstract = "Patterns of species richness are commonly linked to life history strategies. In diatoms, an exceptionally diverse lineage of photosynthetic heterokonts important for global photosynthesis and burial of atmospheric carbon, lineages with different locomotory and reproductive traits differ dramatically in species richness, but any potential association between life history strategy and diversification has not been tested in a phylogenetic framework. We constructed a time-calibrated, 11-gene, 1151-taxon phylogeny of diatoms - the most inclusive diatom species tree to date. We used this phylogeny, together with a comprehensive inventory of first-last occurrences of Cenozoic fossil diatoms, to estimate ranges of expected species richness, diversification and its variation through time and across lineages. Diversification rates varied with life history traits. Although anisogamous lineages diversified faster than oogamous ones, this increase was restricted to a nested clade with active motility in the vegetative cells. We propose that the evolution of motility in vegetative cells, following an earlier transition from oogamy to anisogamy, facilitated outcrossing and improved utilization of habitat complexity, ultimately leading to enhanced opportunity for adaptive divergence across a variety of novel habitats. Together, these contributed to a species radiation that gave rise to the majority of present-day diatom diversity.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.15137",
    doi = "10.1111/nph.15137",
    openalex = "W2795900490",
    references = "doi101111j2041210x201200223x"
}

Cyanobacteria played an important role in the evolution of Early Earth and the biosphere. They are responsible for the oxygenation of the atmosphere and oceans since the Great Oxidation Event around 2.4 Ga, debatably earlier. They are also major primary producers in past and present oceans, and the ancestors of the chloroplast. Nevertheless, the identification of cyanobacteria in the early fossil record remains ambiguous because the morphological criteria commonly used are not always reliable for microfossil interpretation. Recently, new biosignatures specific to cyanobacteria were proposed. Here, we review the classic and new cyanobacterial biosignatures. We also assess the reliability of the previously described cyanobacteria fossil record and the challenges of molecular approaches on modern cyanobacteria. Finally, we suggest possible new calibration points for molecular clocks, and strategies to improve our understanding of the timing and pattern of the evolution of cyanobacteria and oxygenic photosynthesis.

@article{doi101016jfreeradbiomed201905007,
    author = "Demoulin, Catherine and Lara, Yannick and Cornet, Luc and François, Camille and Baurain, Denis and Wilmotte, Annick and Javaux, Emmanuelle",
    title = "Cyanobacteria evolution: Insight from the fossil record",
    year = "2019",
    journal = "Free Radical Biology and Medicine",
    abstract = "Cyanobacteria played an important role in the evolution of Early Earth and the biosphere. They are responsible for the oxygenation of the atmosphere and oceans since the Great Oxidation Event around 2.4 Ga, debatably earlier. They are also major primary producers in past and present oceans, and the ancestors of the chloroplast. Nevertheless, the identification of cyanobacteria in the early fossil record remains ambiguous because the morphological criteria commonly used are not always reliable for microfossil interpretation. Recently, new biosignatures specific to cyanobacteria were proposed. Here, we review the classic and new cyanobacterial biosignatures. We also assess the reliability of the previously described cyanobacteria fossil record and the challenges of molecular approaches on modern cyanobacteria. Finally, we suggest possible new calibration points for molecular clocks, and strategies to improve our understanding of the timing and pattern of the evolution of cyanobacteria and oxygenic photosynthesis.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2019.05.007",
    doi = "10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2019.05.007",
    openalex = "W2944755726",
    references = "doi1010160022519367900793, doi1010160301926877900262, doi1010160301926879900226, doi1010160301926888900058, doi101016jcub201709015, doi101016jprecamres200505006, doi101016jvetmic200903012, doi101016s014663809900145x, doi101017jpa2016124, doi101038nature02260, doi101038nature13068, doi101038s4155901702405, doi10108003115517808527785, doi101098rstb20150493, doi1010990022128711111, doi101111pala12178, doi101126science1069651, doi101126science2605108640, doi101126science28554301033, doi101146annurevearth042711105327, doi101371journalpbio1000602, doi102110palo2013p13005r, doi1054991jop2012359, sergeev1994microfossils"
}

Burgess Shale-type fossil Lagerstätten provide the best evidence for deciphering the biotic patterns and magnitude of the Cambrian explosion. Here, we report a Lagerstätte from South China, the Qingjiang biota (~518 million years old), which is dominated by soft-bodied taxa from a distal shelf setting. The Qingjiang biota is distinguished by pristine carbonaceous preservation of labile organic features, a very high proportion of new taxa (~53%), and preliminary taxonomic diversity that suggests it could rival the Chengjiang and Burgess Shale biotas. Defining aspects of the Qingjiang biota include a high abundance of cnidarians, including both medusoid and polypoid forms; new taxa resembling extant kinorhynchs; and abundant larval or juvenile forms. This distinctive composition holds promise for providing insights into the evolution of Cambrian ecosystems across environmental gradients.

@article{doi101126scienceaau8800,
    author = "Fu, Dongjing and Tong, Guanghui and Dai, Tao and Liu, Wei and Yang, Yuning and Zhang, Yuan and Cui, Linhao and Li, Luoyang and Yun, Hao and Wu, Yu and Sun, Ao and Liu, Cong and Pei, Wenrui and Gaines, Robert R. and Zhang, Xingliang",
    title = "The Qingjiang biota—A Burgess Shale–type fossil Lagerstätte from the early Cambrian of South China",
    year = "2019",
    journal = "Science",
    abstract = "Burgess Shale-type fossil Lagerstätten provide the best evidence for deciphering the biotic patterns and magnitude of the Cambrian explosion. Here, we report a Lagerstätte from South China, the Qingjiang biota (\textasciitilde 518 million years old), which is dominated by soft-bodied taxa from a distal shelf setting. The Qingjiang biota is distinguished by pristine carbonaceous preservation of labile organic features, a very high proportion of new taxa (\textasciitilde 53\%), and preliminary taxonomic diversity that suggests it could rival the Chengjiang and Burgess Shale biotas. Defining aspects of the Qingjiang biota include a high abundance of cnidarians, including both medusoid and polypoid forms; new taxa resembling extant kinorhynchs; and abundant larval or juvenile forms. This distinctive composition holds promise for providing insights into the evolution of Cambrian ecosystems across environmental gradients.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aau8800",
    doi = "10.1126/science.aau8800",
    openalex = "W2923733494",
    references = "doi1010029781118896372, doi101007s114340140419y, doi1010160016703795000382, doi101016b9780444594259000196, doi101016jearscirev201707017, doi101016jpalwor201510001, doi101017s108933260000276x, doi101038nature11874, doi101038ncomms4210, doi101073pnas1111784109, doi101073pnas1719962115, doi101111j14754983200700656x, doi101130g24961a1, doi101144jgs1582211, doi101144jgs2015083, doi10166612056, doi102110palo2009p09004r"
}

@article{doi101016jearscirev2021103506,
    author = "Wei, Guang‐Yi and Planavsky, Noah J. and He, Tianchen and Zhang, Feifei and Stockey, Richard and Cole, Devon B. and Lin, Yibo and Ling, Hong‐Fei",
    title = "Global marine redox evolution from the late Neoproterozoic to the early Paleozoic constrained by the integration of Mo and U isotope records",
    year = "2021",
    journal = "Earth-Science Reviews",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2021.103506",
    doi = "10.1016/j.earscirev.2021.103506",
    openalex = "W3119079502",
    references = "doi101038s4155901908216, doi101093icbicy088, doi101111gbi12382, doi101111let12259, doi101126scienceaax4953"
}

Mandibular teeth and dentitions are features of jawed vertebrates that were first acquired by the Palaeozoic ancestors1-3 of living chondrichthyans and osteichthyans. The fossil record currently points to the latter part of the Silurian period4-7 (around 425 million years ago) as a minimum date for the appearance of gnathostome teeth and to the evolution of growth and replacement mechanisms of mandibular dentitions in the subsequent Devonian period2,8-10. Here we provide, to our knowledge, the earliest direct evidence for jawed vertebrates by describing Qianodus duplicis, a new genus and species of an early Silurian gnathostome based on isolated tooth whorls from Guizhou province, China. The whorls possess non-shedding teeth arranged in a pair of rows that demonstrate a number of features found in modern gnathostome groups. These include lingual addition of teeth in offset rows and maintenance of this patterning throughout whorl development. Our data extend the record of toothed gnathostomes by 14 million years from the late Silurian into the early Silurian (around 439 million years ago) and are important for documenting the initial diversification of vertebrates. Our analyses add to mounting fossil evidence that supports an earlier emergence of jawed vertebrates as part of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event (approximately 485-445 million years ago).

@article{doi101038s41586022051662,
    author = "Andreev, Plamen S and Sansom, Ivan J and Li, Qiang and Zhao, Wenjin and Wang, Jianhua and Wang, Chun-Chieh and Peng, Lijian and Jia, Liantao and Qiao, Tuo and Zhu, Min",
    title = "The oldest gnathostome teeth.",
    year = "2022",
    journal = "Nature",
    abstract = "Mandibular teeth and dentitions are features of jawed vertebrates that were first acquired by the Palaeozoic ancestors1-3 of living chondrichthyans and osteichthyans. The fossil record currently points to the latter part of the Silurian period4-7 (around 425 million years ago) as a minimum date for the appearance of gnathostome teeth and to the evolution of growth and replacement mechanisms of mandibular dentitions in the subsequent Devonian period2,8-10. Here we provide, to our knowledge, the earliest direct evidence for jawed vertebrates by describing Qianodus duplicis, a new genus and species of an early Silurian gnathostome based on isolated tooth whorls from Guizhou province, China. The whorls possess non-shedding teeth arranged in a pair of rows that demonstrate a number of features found in modern gnathostome groups. These include lingual addition of teeth in offset rows and maintenance of this patterning throughout whorl development. Our data extend the record of toothed gnathostomes by 14 million years from the late Silurian into the early Silurian (around 439 million years ago) and are important for documenting the initial diversification of vertebrates. Our analyses add to mounting fossil evidence that supports an earlier emergence of jawed vertebrates as part of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event (approximately 485-445 million years ago).",
    url = "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/5451804/",
    doi = "10.1038/s41586-022-05166-2",
    openalex = "W4297475876",
    pmcid = "5451804",
    pmid = "36171375",
    references = "doi101002jmor20370, doi1010179781316832172004, doi101038nature07855, doi101038nature11555, doi101038nature14065, doi101038nature14438, doi101093sysbiosyw107, doi101098rspb20172418, doi101111cla12160, doi101111j2041210x201200223x, doi101111let12259, doi101126scienceaah3764"
}

Molecular clocks estimate that diatom microalgae, one of Earth’s foremost primary producers, originated near the Triassic–Jurassic boundary (200 Ma), which is close in age to the earliest, generally accepted diatom fossils of the genus Pyxidicula. During an extensive search for Jurassic diatoms from twenty-five sites worldwide, three sites yielded microfossils initially recognized as diatoms. After applying stringent safeguards and evaluation criteria, however, the fossils found at each of the three sites were rejected as new diatom records. This led us to systematically reexamine published evidence in support of Lower- and Middle-Jurassic Pyxidicula fossils. Although Pyxidicula resembles some extant radial centric diatoms and has character states that may have been similar to those of ancestral diatoms, we describe numerous sources of uncertainty regarding the reliability of these records. We conclude that the Lower Jurassic Pyxidicula fossils were most likely calcareous nannofossils, whereas the Middle Jurassic Pyxidicula species has been reassigned to the Lower Cretaceous and is likely a testate amoeba, not a diatom. Excluding the Pyxidicula fossils widens the gap between the estimated time of origin and the oldest abundant fossil diatom record to 75 million years. This study underscores the difficulties in discovering and validating ancient microfossils.

@article{bryłka2023uncertainties,
    author = "Bryłka, Karolina and Alverson, Andrew J. and Pickering, Rebecca A. and Richoz, Sylvain and Conley, Daniel J.",
    title = "Uncertainties surrounding the oldest fossil record of diatoms",
    year = "2023",
    journal = "Scientific Reports",
    abstract = "Molecular clocks estimate that diatom microalgae, one of Earth’s foremost primary producers, originated near the Triassic–Jurassic boundary (200 Ma), which is close in age to the earliest, generally accepted diatom fossils of the genus Pyxidicula. During an extensive search for Jurassic diatoms from twenty-five sites worldwide, three sites yielded microfossils initially recognized as diatoms. After applying stringent safeguards and evaluation criteria, however, the fossils found at each of the three sites were rejected as new diatom records. This led us to systematically reexamine published evidence in support of Lower- and Middle-Jurassic Pyxidicula fossils. Although Pyxidicula resembles some extant radial centric diatoms and has character states that may have been similar to those of ancestral diatoms, we describe numerous sources of uncertainty regarding the reliability of these records. We conclude that the Lower Jurassic Pyxidicula fossils were most likely calcareous nannofossils, whereas the Middle Jurassic Pyxidicula species has been reassigned to the Lower Cretaceous and is likely a testate amoeba, not a diatom. Excluding the Pyxidicula fossils widens the gap between the estimated time of origin and the oldest abundant fossil diatom record to 75 million years. This study underscores the difficulties in discovering and validating ancient microfossils.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-35078-8",
    doi = "10.1038/s41598-023-35078-8",
    number = "1",
    openalex = "W4376959355",
    volume = "13",
    references = "doi1010160016703777900990, doi101016jtree201005002, doi101016s0031018200001528, doi101038nature08057, doi101073pnas2035132100, doi101098rstb19850134, doi1012019781482283181, doi10221605221, doi105962bhltitle58475, openalexw1921158499"
}

The use of the functional feeding group-damage type system for analyzing arthropod and pathogen interactions with plants has transformed our understanding of herbivory in fossil plant assemblages by providing data, analyses, and interpretation of the local, regional, and global patterns of a 420-Myr history. The early fossil record can be used to answer major questions about the oldest evidence for herbivory, the early emergence of herbivore associations on land plants, and later expansion on seed plants. The subsequent effects of the Permian-Triassic ecological crisis on herbivore diversity, the resulting formation of biologically diverse herbivore communities on gymnosperms, and major shifts in herbivory ensuing from initial angiosperm diversification are additional issues that need to be addressed. Studies ofherbivory resulting from more recent transient spikes and longer-term climate trends provide important data that are applied to current global change and include herbivore community responses to latitude, altitude, and habitat. Ongoing paleoecological themes remaining to be addressed include the antiquity of modern interactions, differential herbivory between ferns and angiosperms, and origins of modern tropical forests. The expansion of databases that include a multitude of specimens; improvements in sampling strategies; development of new analytical methods; and, importantly, the ability to address conceptually stimulating ecological and evolutionary questions have provided new impetus in this rapidly advancing field.

@article{doi101146annurevento120120102849,
    author = "Labandeira, Conrad C and Wappler, Torsten",
    title = "Arthropod and Pathogen Damage on Fossil and Modern Plants: Exploring the Origins and Evolution of Herbivory on Land.",
    year = "2023",
    journal = "Annual review of entomology",
    abstract = "The use of the functional feeding group-damage type system for analyzing arthropod and pathogen interactions with plants has transformed our understanding of herbivory in fossil plant assemblages by providing data, analyses, and interpretation of the local, regional, and global patterns of a 420-Myr history. The early fossil record can be used to answer major questions about the oldest evidence for herbivory, the early emergence of herbivore associations on land plants, and later expansion on seed plants. The subsequent effects of the Permian-Triassic ecological crisis on herbivore diversity, the resulting formation of biologically diverse herbivore communities on gymnosperms, and major shifts in herbivory ensuing from initial angiosperm diversification are additional issues that need to be addressed. Studies ofherbivory resulting from more recent transient spikes and longer-term climate trends provide important data that are applied to current global change and include herbivore community responses to latitude, altitude, and habitat. Ongoing paleoecological themes remaining to be addressed include the antiquity of modern interactions, differential herbivory between ferns and angiosperms, and origins of modern tropical forests. The expansion of databases that include a multitude of specimens; improvements in sampling strategies; development of new analytical methods; and, importantly, the ability to address conceptually stimulating ecological and evolutionary questions have provided new impetus in this rapidly advancing field.",
    url = "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36689301/",
    doi = "10.1146/annurev-ento-120120-102849",
    openalex = "W4317757481",
    pmid = "36689301",
    references = "doi101073pnas042492999, doi101073pnas0708646105, doi101073pnas912512278, doi101098rspb20080715, doi101111j2041210x201200224x, doi101126science1116913, doi101126science11536548, doi101146annureves19110188001231, doi1023071942161, doi105860choice404600"
}

Abstract Deep-time (=pre-Quaternary) maar lakes and certain other, hydrologically deep volcanogenic lakes, are often excellent Konservat-Lagerstätten representing unique windows into past biota and ecosystems. Many deposits from such lakes contain animal and plant remains in extraordinary preservation, often with soft tissues or fine morphological and anatomical details preserved. Such Lagerstätten have the potential to provide in-depth information on a variety of organisms, which is important for understanding their biology and ecology, their evolution and palaeobiogeography, but also for elucidating entire ecosystems with their numerous biotic and abiotic interactions. The formation of such Lagerstätten is intimately linked to volcanic processes, amongst which phreatomagmatic explosions that formed maar-diatreme volcanoes are probably the most important, but also other volcanic processes can lead to the formation of deep volcanogenic lakes (e.g. in certain calderas). Maar lakes and other volcanogenic Konservat-Lagerstätten occur in a large number of volcanically active regions worldwide, although older deposits are often difficult to access as they are more likely to be eroded or covered by younger deposits. The accessibility of many of the better-known localities is often connected to the mining of natural resources, ranging from diamonds, to volcanic rocks such as basalts to the lacustrine sediments that may have filled volcanic craters, including diatomites and ‘oil-shales’. Most or even all of the maar and other volcanogenic lakes presented here in greater detail, can be considered as important geoheritage sites. Although currently some of these deposits have at least some kind of legal protection as monuments of natural heritage, others remain in danger of being exploited commercially for natural resources and hence, ultimately destroyed. Moreover, many scientific questions related to these ancient lakes and their biota covered here in more detail, as well as those related to lakes only briefly mentioned in passing, have not been posed, let alone answered. This makes maar lakes and other volcanogenic lakes important resources for present-day and future research. The present contribution should be seen as a global call to scientists to find further localities that represent similar volcanogenic lacustrine settings, as they may be the source of vital and surprising new information about the plants, animals, and environments of the past. Examples of pre-Quaternary maar and other volcanogenic lakes that are presented here in greater detail include the following localities: Paleocene: Menat (France); Eocene: Messel, Eckfeld (Germany), Mahenge (Tanzania); Oligocene: Enspel, Rott, Hammerunterwiesenthal, Baruth, Kleinsaubernitz (Germany); Miocene: Foulden Maar, Hindon Maar Complex (New Zealand), Randeck Maar, Hirnkopf-Maar, Höwenegg, Öhningen (Germany); Pliocene: Ruppach-Goldhausen (Germany), Camp dels Ninots (Spain).

@article{doi101007s12549024006350,
    author = "Uhl, Dieter and Wuttke, Michael and Aiglstorfer, Manuela and Gee, Carole T. and Grandi, Federica and Höltke, Olaf and Kaiser, Thomas M. and Kaulfuß, Uwe and Lee, Daphne E. and Lehmann, Thomas and Oms, Oriol and Poschmann, Markus and Rasser, Michael W. and Schindler, Thomas and Smith, Krister T. and Suhr, Peter and Wappler, Torsten and Wedmann, Sonja",
    title = "Deep-time maar lakes and other volcanogenic lakes as Fossil-Lagerstätten – An overview",
    year = "2024",
    journal = "Palaeobiodiversity and Palaeoenvironments",
    abstract = "Abstract Deep-time (=pre-Quaternary) maar lakes and certain other, hydrologically deep volcanogenic lakes, are often excellent Konservat-Lagerstätten representing unique windows into past biota and ecosystems. Many deposits from such lakes contain animal and plant remains in extraordinary preservation, often with soft tissues or fine morphological and anatomical details preserved. Such Lagerstätten have the potential to provide in-depth information on a variety of organisms, which is important for understanding their biology and ecology, their evolution and palaeobiogeography, but also for elucidating entire ecosystems with their numerous biotic and abiotic interactions. The formation of such Lagerstätten is intimately linked to volcanic processes, amongst which phreatomagmatic explosions that formed maar-diatreme volcanoes are probably the most important, but also other volcanic processes can lead to the formation of deep volcanogenic lakes (e.g. in certain calderas). Maar lakes and other volcanogenic Konservat-Lagerstätten occur in a large number of volcanically active regions worldwide, although older deposits are often difficult to access as they are more likely to be eroded or covered by younger deposits. The accessibility of many of the better-known localities is often connected to the mining of natural resources, ranging from diamonds, to volcanic rocks such as basalts to the lacustrine sediments that may have filled volcanic craters, including diatomites and ‘oil-shales’. Most or even all of the maar and other volcanogenic lakes presented here in greater detail, can be considered as important geoheritage sites. Although currently some of these deposits have at least some kind of legal protection as monuments of natural heritage, others remain in danger of being exploited commercially for natural resources and hence, ultimately destroyed. Moreover, many scientific questions related to these ancient lakes and their biota covered here in more detail, as well as those related to lakes only briefly mentioned in passing, have not been posed, let alone answered. This makes maar lakes and other volcanogenic lakes important resources for present-day and future research. The present contribution should be seen as a global call to scientists to find further localities that represent similar volcanogenic lacustrine settings, as they may be the source of vital and surprising new information about the plants, animals, and environments of the past. Examples of pre-Quaternary maar and other volcanogenic lakes that are presented here in greater detail include the following localities: Paleocene: Menat (France); Eocene: Messel, Eckfeld (Germany), Mahenge (Tanzania); Oligocene: Enspel, Rott, Hammerunterwiesenthal, Baruth, Kleinsaubernitz (Germany); Miocene: Foulden Maar, Hindon Maar Complex (New Zealand), Randeck Maar, Hirnkopf-Maar, Höwenegg, Öhningen (Germany); Pliocene: Ruppach-Goldhausen (Germany), Camp dels Ninots (Spain).",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1007/s12549-024-00635-0",
    doi = "10.1007/s12549-024-00635-0",
    openalex = "W4405902236",
    references = "doi101002ajb216169, doi101146annurevento120120102849"
}

Paleontological observations of ancient flora and fauna provide powerful insights into past diversity and relationship dynamics between organisms and their environments. Diatoms are globally distributed protists that influence major biogeochemical cycles and sustain oceanic food webs. The fossil diatom record extends 120 million years back to the Early Cretaceous where rare deposits were discovered worldwide and are occasionally represented by diverse communities. However scarce, the taxonomic richness and geographical spread of these diatom communities suggest prior evolutionary events and therefore earlier deposits. To complement the existing fossil information and to discover diatom deposits predating 120 Ma, we examined 33 study sites from cores and outcrops across oceans and continents. These efforts did not generate new fossil discoveries, however. Our assessment suggests biogenic silica that comprises the cell wall of diatoms was likely dissolved from Mesozoic sediments through diagenetic processes. Altogether, the search for the oldest diatoms must continue but should target sediments that experienced shallow burial and concretions.

@article{doi101016jmarmicro2024102371,
    author = "Bryłka, Karolina and Richoz, Sylvain and Alverson, Andrew J. and Conley, Daniel J.",
    title = "Looking for the oldest diatoms",
    year = "2024",
    journal = "Marine Micropaleontology",
    abstract = "Paleontological observations of ancient flora and fauna provide powerful insights into past diversity and relationship dynamics between organisms and their environments. Diatoms are globally distributed protists that influence major biogeochemical cycles and sustain oceanic food webs. The fossil diatom record extends 120 million years back to the Early Cretaceous where rare deposits were discovered worldwide and are occasionally represented by diverse communities. However scarce, the taxonomic richness and geographical spread of these diatom communities suggest prior evolutionary events and therefore earlier deposits. To complement the existing fossil information and to discover diatom deposits predating 120 Ma, we examined 33 study sites from cores and outcrops across oceans and continents. These efforts did not generate new fossil discoveries, however. Our assessment suggests biogenic silica that comprises the cell wall of diatoms was likely dissolved from Mesozoic sediments through diagenetic processes. Altogether, the search for the oldest diatoms must continue but should target sediments that experienced shallow burial and concretions.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marmicro.2024.102371",
    doi = "10.1016/j.marmicro.2024.102371",
    openalex = "W4399245507",
    references = "bryłka2023uncertainties"
}

• Early, rapidly diversification and spread of anaerobic life. • Preservation of early life largely through silicification. • Evolution of oxygenic photosynthesis related to geodynamics and geochemistry. • Global development of stromatolites after GOE and glaciation. • Start of biogeodynamic cycle in the Neoarachaean-Palaeoproterozoic. • Importance of carbonate as of the Meoarchaean. • Timing of emergence of eukaryotes unknown • Three stages of eukaryote development in the Proterozoic The Precambrian covers 80% of the history the Earth. In this timespan, the Earth developed from an anaerobic planet to the oxygenic planet dominated by Wilson-style plate tectonics that we know today. Concomitant with geological evolution, life emerged and evolved, gradually colonising all known aqueous habitats. Until the Palaeoarchaean, life was largely dominated by its geological environment. However, as of the Mesoarchaean, when there were major changes in geodynamics leading to continental erosion and runoff of essential nutrients, the effects of life started to impinge on the geological environment. The interaction of life and Earth was and is reciprocal, hence the term biogeodynamics. In this review, we trace the evolution of geology and life in parallel, thus highlighting the gradual buildup of the importance of life on terrestrial processes, and the importance of changes in the geological environment on the evolution of life. We do not attempt to make an exhaustive review of all the occurrences of life in the Precambrian but use selected examples to illustrate key events and changes. We conclude by addressing certain aspects of the evolution of life that require more in-depth study and show how the finding of extra-terrestrial life would advance our understanding of life on Earth.

@article{doi101016jprecamres2024107589,
    author = "Westall, Francès and Xiao, Shuhai",
    title = "Precambrian Earth: Co-evolution of life and geodynamics",
    year = "2024",
    journal = "Precambrian Research",
    abstract = "• Early, rapidly diversification and spread of anaerobic life. • Preservation of early life largely through silicification. • Evolution of oxygenic photosynthesis related to geodynamics and geochemistry. • Global development of stromatolites after GOE and glaciation. • Start of biogeodynamic cycle in the Neoarachaean-Palaeoproterozoic. • Importance of carbonate as of the Meoarchaean. • Timing of emergence of eukaryotes unknown • Three stages of eukaryote development in the Proterozoic The Precambrian covers 80\% of the history the Earth. In this timespan, the Earth developed from an anaerobic planet to the oxygenic planet dominated by Wilson-style plate tectonics that we know today. Concomitant with geological evolution, life emerged and evolved, gradually colonising all known aqueous habitats. Until the Palaeoarchaean, life was largely dominated by its geological environment. However, as of the Mesoarchaean, when there were major changes in geodynamics leading to continental erosion and runoff of essential nutrients, the effects of life started to impinge on the geological environment. The interaction of life and Earth was and is reciprocal, hence the term biogeodynamics. In this review, we trace the evolution of geology and life in parallel, thus highlighting the gradual buildup of the importance of life on terrestrial processes, and the importance of changes in the geological environment on the evolution of life. We do not attempt to make an exhaustive review of all the occurrences of life in the Precambrian but use selected examples to illustrate key events and changes. We conclude by addressing certain aspects of the evolution of life that require more in-depth study and show how the finding of extra-terrestrial life would advance our understanding of life on Earth.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.precamres.2024.107589",
    doi = "10.1016/j.precamres.2024.107589",
    openalex = "W4404022053",
    references = "doi101098rsos240154"
}

@article{doi101038s4157902401044y,
    author = "Lyons, Timothy W. and Tino, Christopher and Fournier, Gregory P. and Anderson, R. and Leavitt, William D. and Konhauser, Kurt O. and Stüeken, Eva E.",
    title = "Co‐evolution of early Earth environments and microbial life",
    year = "2024",
    journal = "Nature Reviews Microbiology",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1038/s41579-024-01044-y",
    doi = "10.1038/s41579-024-01044-y",
    openalex = "W4399122153",
    references = "doi101016jtim202105008, doi101038s4146702124396y"
}

Today oxygenic photosynthesis is unique to cyanobacteria and their plastid relatives within eukaryotes. Although its origin before the Great Oxidation Event is still debated1-4, the accumulation of O2 profoundly modified the redox chemistry of the Earth and the evolution of the biosphere, including complex life. Understanding the diversification of cyanobacteria is thus crucial to grasping the coevolution of our planet and life, but their early fossil record remains ambiguous5. Extant cyanobacteria include the thylakoid-less Gloeobacter-like group and the remainder of cyanobacteria that acquired thylakoid membranes6,7. The timing of this divergence is indirectly estimated at between 2.7 and 2.0 billion years ago (Ga) based on molecular clocks and phylogenies8-11 and inferred from the earliest undisputed fossil record of Eoentophysalis belcherensis, a 2.018-1.854 Ga pleurocapsalean cyanobacterium preserved in silicified stromatolites12,13. Here we report the oldest direct evidence of thylakoid membranes in a parallel-to-contorted arrangement within the enigmatic cylindrical microfossils Navifusa majensis from the McDermott Formation, Tawallah Group, Australia (1.78-1.73 Ga), and in a parietal arrangement in specimens from the Grassy Bay Formation, Shaler Supergroup, Canada (1.01-0.9 Ga). This discovery extends their fossil record by at least 1.2 Ga and provides a minimum age for the divergence of thylakoid-bearing cyanobacteria at roughly 1.75 Ga. It allows the unambiguous identification of early oxygenic photosynthesizers and a new redox proxy for probing early Earth ecosystems, highlighting the importance of examining the ultrastructure of fossil cells to decipher their palaeobiology and early evolution.

@article{doi101038s41586023068967,
    author = "Demoulin, Catherine F and Lara, Yannick J and Lambion, Alexandre and Javaux, Emmanuelle J",
    title = "Oldest thylakoids in fossil cells directly evidence oxygenic photosynthesis.",
    year = "2024",
    journal = "Nature",
    abstract = "Today oxygenic photosynthesis is unique to cyanobacteria and their plastid relatives within eukaryotes. Although its origin before the Great Oxidation Event is still debated1-4, the accumulation of O2 profoundly modified the redox chemistry of the Earth and the evolution of the biosphere, including complex life. Understanding the diversification of cyanobacteria is thus crucial to grasping the coevolution of our planet and life, but their early fossil record remains ambiguous5. Extant cyanobacteria include the thylakoid-less Gloeobacter-like group and the remainder of cyanobacteria that acquired thylakoid membranes6,7. The timing of this divergence is indirectly estimated at between 2.7 and 2.0 billion years ago (Ga) based on molecular clocks and phylogenies8-11 and inferred from the earliest undisputed fossil record of Eoentophysalis belcherensis, a 2.018-1.854 Ga pleurocapsalean cyanobacterium preserved in silicified stromatolites12,13. Here we report the oldest direct evidence of thylakoid membranes in a parallel-to-contorted arrangement within the enigmatic cylindrical microfossils Navifusa majensis from the McDermott Formation, Tawallah Group, Australia (1.78-1.73 Ga), and in a parietal arrangement in specimens from the Grassy Bay Formation, Shaler Supergroup, Canada (1.01-0.9 Ga). This discovery extends their fossil record by at least 1.2 Ga and provides a minimum age for the divergence of thylakoid-bearing cyanobacteria at roughly 1.75 Ga. It allows the unambiguous identification of early oxygenic photosynthesizers and a new redox proxy for probing early Earth ecosystems, highlighting the importance of examining the ultrastructure of fossil cells to decipher their palaeobiology and early evolution.",
    url = "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/8730617/",
    doi = "10.1038/s41586-023-06896-7",
    openalex = "W4390546860",
    pmcid = "8730617",
    pmid = "38172638",
    references = "doi101007bf00446333, doi101016jtim202105008, doi101038nature08793, doi101073pnas0600999103, doi101099002077135217, doi101111j14724669200900220x, doi101111j14724677200400027x, doi101111nph16249, doi101111pala12178, doi101126science202030, sergeev1994microfossils"
}

Eukaryotes have evolved to dominate the biosphere today, accounting for most documented living species and the vast majority of the Earth's biomass. Consequently, understanding how these biologically complex organisms initially diversified in the Proterozoic Eon over 539 million years ago is a foundational question in evolutionary biology. Over the last 70 years, palaeontologists have sought to document the rise of eukaryotes with fossil evidence. However, the delicate and microscopic nature of their sub-cellular features affords early eukaryotes diminished preservation potential. Chemical biomarker signatures of eukaryotes and the genetics of living eukaryotes have emerged as complementary tools for reconstructing eukaryote ancestry. In this review, we argue that exceptionally preserved Proterozoic microfossils are critical to interpreting these complementary tools, providing crucial calibrations to molecular clocks and testing hypotheses of palaeoecology. We highlight recent research on their preservation and biomolecular composition that offers new ways to enhance their utility.

@article{doi101098rsos240154,
    author = "Anderson, Ross P. and Mughal, Sanaa and Wedlake, George O.",
    title = "Proterozoic microfossils continue to provide new insights into the rise of complex eukaryotic life",
    year = "2024",
    journal = "Royal Society Open Science",
    abstract = "Eukaryotes have evolved to dominate the biosphere today, accounting for most documented living species and the vast majority of the Earth's biomass. Consequently, understanding how these biologically complex organisms initially diversified in the Proterozoic Eon over 539 million years ago is a foundational question in evolutionary biology. Over the last 70 years, palaeontologists have sought to document the rise of eukaryotes with fossil evidence. However, the delicate and microscopic nature of their sub-cellular features affords early eukaryotes diminished preservation potential. Chemical biomarker signatures of eukaryotes and the genetics of living eukaryotes have emerged as complementary tools for reconstructing eukaryote ancestry. In this review, we argue that exceptionally preserved Proterozoic microfossils are critical to interpreting these complementary tools, providing crucial calibrations to molecular clocks and testing hypotheses of palaeoecology. We highlight recent research on their preservation and biomolecular composition that offers new ways to enhance their utility.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.240154",
    doi = "10.1098/rsos.240154",
    openalex = "W4401725458",
    references = "doi101016jtree201908008, doi101038nature13068, doi101038s41586023068967, doi101073pnas1110633108, doi101073pnas1711842115, doi101093molbevmsj024, doi10109900207713522297, doi101126science2815374237, doi101126science28554301033, doi1011300091761319950230921uteopm23co2, doi101371journalpbio1001127"
}

Mesozoic fossils of frogs are rare in the palaeontological record, particularly those exhibiting soft tissues that offer limited insights into early life-history characteristics. Here we report on a skeletally immature frog from the Lower Cretaceous of northwest China, with egg masses in the body and eggs in the oviduct, indicative of a gravid female. CT reconstruction of the specimen allows referral to Gansubatrachus qilianensis and we assign it as a paratype complementing the diagnosis of the type species. The new fossil, which might represent a younger individual than the holotype of Gansubatrachus, shows that sexual maturation occurred before full adulthood in this frog and provides evidence of death linked to mating behaviour. We also discuss other potential sources of variation and life-history traits of Gansubatrachus. The new finding represents the oldest Early Cretaceous frog preserving in situ eggs and provides a glimpse into ancient anuran development during Mesozoic times.

@article{doi101098rspb20232320,
    author = "Du, Baoxia and Zhang, Jing and Gómez, Raúl Orencio and Dong, Liping and Zhang, Mingzhen and Lei, Xiangtong and Li, Aijing and Dai, Shuang",
    title = "A cretaceous frog with eggs from northwestern China provides fossil evidence for sexual maturity preceding skeletal maturity in anurans.",
    year = "2024",
    journal = "Proceedings. Biological sciences",
    abstract = "Mesozoic fossils of frogs are rare in the palaeontological record, particularly those exhibiting soft tissues that offer limited insights into early life-history characteristics. Here we report on a skeletally immature frog from the Lower Cretaceous of northwest China, with egg masses in the body and eggs in the oviduct, indicative of a gravid female. CT reconstruction of the specimen allows referral to Gansubatrachus qilianensis and we assign it as a paratype complementing the diagnosis of the type species. The new fossil, which might represent a younger individual than the holotype of Gansubatrachus, shows that sexual maturation occurred before full adulthood in this frog and provides evidence of death linked to mating behaviour. We also discuss other potential sources of variation and life-history traits of Gansubatrachus. The new finding represents the oldest Early Cretaceous frog preserving in situ eggs and provides a glimpse into ancient anuran development during Mesozoic times.",
    url = "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10846944/",
    doi = "10.1098/rspb.2023.2320",
    openalex = "W4391872867",
    pmcid = "PMC10846944",
    pmid = "38320608",
    references = "doi101093ilar483235, doi101098rspb20232320, doi101111j150239311995tb01587x, doi101130b253881, doi101130g24961a1, doi101159000213583, doi1023073546065, doi107208chicago97802268933340010001, openalexw2226673225"
}

assimilation to the Earth's crust, suggesting a role for corrin synthesis in the origin of free-living cells.

@article{doi101111febs17367,
    author = "Modjewski, Luca and Karavaeva, Val and Mrnjavac, Natalia and Knopp, Michael and Martin, William and Sousa, Filipa L.",
    title = "Evidence for corrin biosynthesis in the last universal common ancestor",
    year = "2024",
    journal = "FEBS Journal",
    abstract = "assimilation to the Earth's crust, suggesting a role for corrin synthesis in the origin of free-living cells.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1111/febs.17367",
    doi = "10.1111/febs.17367",
    openalex = "W4405662713",
    references = "doi1010021873346814906"
}

The history of life intrigues both researchers and society, as it is human nature to question our origins. Our understanding of microbial evolution comes mainly from genomic data and geological evidence. Recent advances in sequencing technologies are revealing vast insights into microbial diversity, especially among uncultured lineages. While metagenomics indicates the existence of novel lineages, their ecological functions remain unknown. To unlock these mysteries, we need to shift focus from genomics to understanding their physiology. A barrier to understanding environmental microbes lies in our limited knowledge of their energy-harnessing and conservation strategies. Phylogenetic trees built from universal genes can group thousands of lineages but fail to capture the entire genome or reflect key physiological traits, especially with lateral gene transfer complicating evolutionary patterns. To deepen our knowledge of microbial evolution, a promising strategy combines large-scale comparative phylogenetic analyses of genes related to physiology with experimental data. Geochemical records of ancient energy sources can act as evolutionary constraints. This top-down approach would help rule out traits that could not be ancient, narrowing the physiological possibilities of early microbial life. Focusing on how microbes harnessed energy during evolution could bridge the gap between geochemistry and microbiology, providing testable predictions about bioenergetic transitions.This article is part of the discussion meeting issue 'Chance and purpose in the evolution of biospheres'.

@article{doi101098rstb20240102,
    author = "Padalko, Anastasiia and Karavaeva, Val and Beas, Jordi Zamarreño and Neukirchen, Sinje and Sousa, Filipa L.",
    title = "Bioenergetics evolution: the link between Earth’s and Life’s history",
    year = "2025",
    journal = "Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences",
    abstract = "The history of life intrigues both researchers and society, as it is human nature to question our origins. Our understanding of microbial evolution comes mainly from genomic data and geological evidence. Recent advances in sequencing technologies are revealing vast insights into microbial diversity, especially among uncultured lineages. While metagenomics indicates the existence of novel lineages, their ecological functions remain unknown. To unlock these mysteries, we need to shift focus from genomics to understanding their physiology. A barrier to understanding environmental microbes lies in our limited knowledge of their energy-harnessing and conservation strategies. Phylogenetic trees built from universal genes can group thousands of lineages but fail to capture the entire genome or reflect key physiological traits, especially with lateral gene transfer complicating evolutionary patterns. To deepen our knowledge of microbial evolution, a promising strategy combines large-scale comparative phylogenetic analyses of genes related to physiology with experimental data. Geochemical records of ancient energy sources can act as evolutionary constraints. This top-down approach would help rule out traits that could not be ancient, narrowing the physiological possibilities of early microbial life. Focusing on how microbes harnessed energy during evolution could bridge the gap between geochemistry and microbiology, providing testable predictions about bioenergetic transitions.This article is part of the discussion meeting issue 'Chance and purpose in the evolution of biospheres'.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2024.0102",
    doi = "10.1098/rstb.2024.0102",
    openalex = "W4413036466",
    references = "doi1010021873346814906, doi103390life14050607"
}

, the primary chemical driving force of aging. With all that, the energy benefits of aerobic metabolism have provided for the advent of multicellular organisms, in particular, those featuring massive extracellular matter and unrenewable cell populations, including those comprising the brain. Their functions are incompatible with complete renewal. This makes the role of oxygen in aging not limited to being the source of reactive oxygen species. Oxygen had been indispensable for the advent of both accumulators of chemical damage and ability to recognize it. In a sense, it was not a problem for nature to develop aging in the course of evolution towards humans, for whom being aware of aging is a problem. Its satisfactory solution cannot be chemical, physical, pharmacological, or otherwise technical. It can only be mental.

@article{doi101134s0006297925601674,
    author = "Golubev, Aleksei G.",
    title = "Chemistry of the Joint Origin and Evolution of Life, Death, and Aging",
    year = "2025",
    journal = "Biochemistry (Moscow)",
    abstract = ", the primary chemical driving force of aging. With all that, the energy benefits of aerobic metabolism have provided for the advent of multicellular organisms, in particular, those featuring massive extracellular matter and unrenewable cell populations, including those comprising the brain. Their functions are incompatible with complete renewal. This makes the role of oxygen in aging not limited to being the source of reactive oxygen species. Oxygen had been indispensable for the advent of both accumulators of chemical damage and ability to recognize it. In a sense, it was not a problem for nature to develop aging in the course of evolution towards humans, for whom being aware of aging is a problem. Its satisfactory solution cannot be chemical, physical, pharmacological, or otherwise technical. It can only be mental.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.1134/s0006297925601674",
    doi = "10.1134/s0006297925601674",
    openalex = "W4414691491",
    references = "doi1010021873346814906, doi101016jpbiomolbio202407002"
}

Sponges (Porifera) are ecosystem engineers that play a critical role in global biogeochemical processes. Their evolution is key to understanding Neoproterozoic paleoecology but remains mired in controversy. Molecular timescales suggest a Tonian or Cryogenian origin, while their oldest unequivocal fossils consist of disarticulated siliceous spicules from the Late Ediacaran. We derived a new, dated sponge phylogeny and tested whether ancestral sponges had mineralized skeletons. We resolve the sponge phylogeny in good agreement with current knowledge and date their origin to the early Ediacaran. Our results suggest that early sponges were not biomineralized and that both biosilicification and biocalcification evolved independently multiple times across Porifera. We reconcile fossil evidence and molecular estimates of sponge evolution by showing that the Neoproterozoic history of Porifera is limited to the Ediacaran and providing evidence suggesting that sponges are largely absent from the Ediacaran record because they were yet to evolve biomineralized skeletons.

@article{doi101126sciadvadx1754,
    author = "Rossi, Maria Eleonora and Keating, Joseph N and Kenny, Nathan J and Giacomelli, Mattia and Álvarez-Carretero, Sandra and Schuster, Astrid and Cárdenas, Paco and Taboada, Sergi and Koutsouveli, Vasiliki and Donoghue, Philip C J and Riesgo, Ana and Pisani, Davide",
    title = "Independent origins of spicules reconcile paleontological and molecular evidence of sponge evolutionary history.",
    year = "2026",
    journal = "Science advances",
    abstract = "Sponges (Porifera) are ecosystem engineers that play a critical role in global biogeochemical processes. Their evolution is key to understanding Neoproterozoic paleoecology but remains mired in controversy. Molecular timescales suggest a Tonian or Cryogenian origin, while their oldest unequivocal fossils consist of disarticulated siliceous spicules from the Late Ediacaran. We derived a new, dated sponge phylogeny and tested whether ancestral sponges had mineralized skeletons. We resolve the sponge phylogeny in good agreement with current knowledge and date their origin to the early Ediacaran. Our results suggest that early sponges were not biomineralized and that both biosilicification and biocalcification evolved independently multiple times across Porifera. We reconcile fossil evidence and molecular estimates of sponge evolution by showing that the Neoproterozoic history of Porifera is limited to the Ediacaran and providing evidence suggesting that sponges are largely absent from the Ediacaran record because they were yet to evolve biomineralized skeletons.",
    url = "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12778063/",
    doi = "10.1126/sciadv.adx1754",
    openalex = "W7118345720",
    pmcid = "PMC12778063",
    pmid = "41499514",
    references = "doi101038nbt1883, doi101073pnas2503009122, doi101093bioinformaticsbtp348, doi101093bioinformaticsbts565, doi101093bioinformaticsbtu170, doi101093molbevmsaa015, doi101093molbevmsm088, doi101093molbevmsu300, doi101093nargkh340, doi101093sysbiosys029, doi101111j2041210x201100169x"
}

Abstract Modern sponges (Porifera) diverged by the Cryogenian, but their silicious skeletons do not appear in the fossil record until one hundred million years later, a time-span termed the “spicule gap” and thought to be a taphonomic artifact even though sponges convergently evolved siliceous spicules. Due to sponges’ position in animal phylogeny and important role in regulating ocean chemistry, the timing of their biomineralization has major implications for the changing tempo and mode of Earth systems as animals radiate. In a comprehensive dataset of Ediacaran and Cambrian sponges, we find that spicules are readily preserved in Cambrian environments more extreme than those of the Ediacaran. Given the convergent evolution of siliceous spicules, we find that the fossil record accurately represents when spicules first evolved in the different sponge lineages.

@article{doi106489820260127702024,
    author = "Cui, Sandy and Mizrahi, Nicole and Rahman, Shaily and Nichols, Scott and Karim, Talia S and Simpson, C.L.",
    title = "The fossil record of siliceous sponge spicules can be taken at face value",
    year = "2026",
    journal = "bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)",
    abstract = "Abstract Modern sponges (Porifera) diverged by the Cryogenian, but their silicious skeletons do not appear in the fossil record until one hundred million years later, a time-span termed the “spicule gap” and thought to be a taphonomic artifact even though sponges convergently evolved siliceous spicules. Due to sponges’ position in animal phylogeny and important role in regulating ocean chemistry, the timing of their biomineralization has major implications for the changing tempo and mode of Earth systems as animals radiate. In a comprehensive dataset of Ediacaran and Cambrian sponges, we find that spicules are readily preserved in Cambrian environments more extreme than those of the Ediacaran. Given the convergent evolution of siliceous spicules, we find that the fossil record accurately represents when spicules first evolved in the different sponge lineages.",
    url = "https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.01.27.702024",
    doi = "10.64898/2026.01.27.702024",
    openalex = "W7126228742",
    references = "doi101016jcub201509066, doi10102995gb01070, doi101038nature07673, doi101073pnas111144698, doi101073pnas171316998, doi101073pnas95116234, doi101073pnas962361, doi101126sciadvadx1754, doi101126science1156963, doi101126science1206375, doi1018814epiiugs2004v27i2002"
}