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Search indexed bioRxiv preprints in genomics, neuroscience, cell biology and bioinformatics. Read source abstracts and check manuscript versions; preprints are not peer reviewed.

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bioRxiv2024

Basal Cambrian soft-bodied segmented bilaterians preserved as microbial pseudomorphs

Before Cambrian Stage 3, unambiguous body fossils of segmented bilaterians were rare, severely hampering our understanding of the early history of such important animals. Here we report a variety of microfossils with quintessential features such as paired appendages, dorsoventral and anteroposterior differentiations from the basal Cambrian Fortunian of South China, representing the earliest known three-dimensional body fossils of segmented bilaterians. These fossils were all microbial pseudomorphs built up by secondarily phosphatized bacteria aggregations, testifying microbial pseudomorph could serve as a novel and important pathway to preserve tiny, fragile bilaterian progenitors. This finding unveils a diversified segmented bilaterian world at the very beginning of Cambrian and would arouse a more comprehensive perspective on the early evolution of bilaterian body plans.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

Origin of division of labor is decoupled from polymorphism in colonial animals

Division of labor, the specialization of sometimes phenotypically divergent cell types or group members, is often associated with ecological success in eukaryotic colonial organisms. Despite its many independent evolutionary origins, how division of labor originates remains unclear. Conventional hypotheses tend towards an "economic" model, so that biological division of labor may reflect a partitioning of pre-existing tasks and morphologies into specialized colony members. Here, we present an alternative model of the origin of division of labor, which can explain the evolution of new functions within a colony. We show that in colonies of the Cretaceous aged (103-96 Ma) fossil bryozoan of the genus Wilbertopora, the first cheilostome bryozoan to evolve polymorphism, new member morphologies were not a simple partitioning of pre-existing morphologies, but instead expanded into novel morphospace as they lost functions, specifically feeding. This expansion into new morphologies occurred primarily during two pulses of heightened morphological disparity, suggesting that the evolution of polymorphism corresponded to relaxed constraints on morphology and perhaps to the exploration of novel functions. Using a simple model of physiological connections, we show that regardless of the functionality of these new colony members, all non-feeding members could have been supported by neighboring feeding members. This suggests that the geometric constraints and physiological connectedness could be prerequisites for evolving both polymorphism and division of labor in modular organisms, and that a classic partitioning model of specialization cannot be broadly applied to biological systems. One Sentence summaryIn cheilostome bryozoans, polymorphism evolved through the loss of preexisting functions, rather than the gain of new functions, suggesting that polymorphism can evolve through drift rather than division of labor.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

A Portrait of a Young Fish: Redescription of Pteronisculus gunnari (Nielsen, 1942) from a juvenile specimen from the Early Triassic of East Greenland, with implications for ontogenetic development in early actinopterygians

The Early-Middle Triassic actinopterygian genus Pteronisculus (White, 1933) is part of the Triassic Early Fish Fauna (TEFF), a cosmopolitan group of taxa that thrived in the aftermath of the end-Permian mass extinction. Pteronisculus is considered an important non-neopterygian outgroup taxon in many works dealing with the interrelationships of early crown actinopterygians, but the phylogenetic relationships of many of TEFF genera are debated, with the topology of the lineages giving rise to crown actinopterygians consequently unclear. This is despite exceptional, three-dimensionally preservation of an abundance of fossils associated with TEFF fishes. P. gunnari, from the Induan (Early Triassic) Kap Stosch Formation, East Greenland, is known in less detail than other species of the genus. Here, we use X-ray micro-computed tomography to comprehensively redescribe the three-dimensionally preserved holotype of P. gunnari, including a detailed description of the internal anatomy. The specimen shows morphological features previously undescribed for the genus, including paired premaxillae, medially-directed teeth on the palate, canals for the buccohypophysial canal and internal carotids piercing the parasphenoid, and numerous parotic toothplates. Scale covering is complete, but the braincase and palatoquadrate are ossified as multiple elements, indicating that the specimen was not fully mature and allowing new insights into ossification patterns and ontogenetic development of non-neopterygian actinopterygians. These new anatomical data enrich our understanding of both the morphological complexity and the interrelationships of actinopterygians from the Triassic Early Fish Fauna.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

Computational simulations of Pachycrocuta bite damage based on a ~1.2 Ma ravaged hippopotamus femur from Fuente Nueva 3 (Orce, Granada, Spain)

Understanding the behaviour and interactions of extinct carnivoran species present a significant challenge in archaeological and palaeontological research, often limited by numerous constraints in the fossil record. Here we analyse a hippopotamus femur that presents extensive damage by carnivorans, recovered from the open-air site Fuente Nueva 3 ([~]1.2 Ma, Orce, Granada, Spain). Given the extent of furrowing, the potential agents known in the palaeolandscape, and a number of additional theoretical features, we believe this bone to have been consumed by an extinct species of giant hyena; Pachycrocuta brevirostris. Leveraging the use of advanced microscopic techniques to digitise the tooth marks observed on this specimen in three dimensions, the present study utilises artificially intelligent algorithms to then simulate the possible morphological variability of this carnivoran. This allows us to propose a characterisation of Pachycrocuta brevirostris tooth pit morphology, so as to construct a proposal for a diagnostic reference sample of this species. If our findings are correct, they underscore the importance tooth mark size has on identifying the activity of Pachycrocuta, revealing the giant hyena to have produced remarkably large, deep, and circular tooth pits on dense cortical bone.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

Classification of dinosaur footprints using machine learning

Fossilised dinosaur footprints enable us to study the behaviour of individual dinosaurs as well as interactions between dinosaurs of the same or different species. There are two principal groups of three-toed dinosaurs, ornithopods and theropods. Determining if a footprint is from an ornithopod or a theropod is a challenging problem. Based on a data set of over 300 dinosaur footprints we train several machine learning models for classifying footprints as either ornithopods or theropods. The data are provided in the form of 20 landmarks for representing each footprint which are derived from images. Variable selection using logistic forward regression demonstrates that the selected landmarks are at locations that are intuitively expected to be especially informative locations, such as the top or the bottom of a footprint. Most models show good accuracy but the recall of ornithopods, of which fewer samples were contained in the data set, was generally lower than the recall of theropods. The Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) stands out as the model which did best at dealing with the class imbalance. Finally, we investigate which footprints were misclassified by the majority of models. We find that some misclassified samples exhibit features that are characteristic of the other class or have a compromised shape, for example, a middle toe that points to the left or the right rather than straight ahead.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

An extinct clade sister to Eumetazoa: On the phylogeny of the Cambrian chancelloriids

The notable disparity of animal body plans can be traced back to the morphological innovations during the Cambrian explosion and represented by a number of exceptionally preserved soft-bodied and skeletal fossils that provide a compelling narrative for animal evolution. Chancelloriids, one of the extinct groups of Cambrian animals, have a distinctive body that characterized by a sclerite-bearing, flexible integument and a single apical opening leading into a central cavity devoid of unequivocal internal organs. Their phylogenetic position within the Metazoa, however, is controversial. Here, we describe new soft-bodied fossils of chancelloriids from the 518-million-year-old Chengjiang biota of China, which corroborate the unique bauplan pattern and reveal exquisite integument microstructures. The tiny protuberances and wrinkling structures of the integument are interpreted to be related to primitive epithelial contraction, suggesting that chancelloriids were a group of basal epitheliozoans and constitute an evolutionary clade that branched below all extant eumetazoans while above or close to the placozoans. Thus, the chancelloriid body plan likely filled one of the anatomical gaps between the Placozoa and the Eumetazoa.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

Reassessment of body temperature and thermoregulation strategies in Mesozoic marine reptiles

Ichthyosauria, Plesiosauria and Metriorhynchidae were apex predators in Mesozoic oceanic trophic networks. Previous stable oxygen isotope studies suggested that several taxa belonging to these groups were endothermic and for some of them homeothermic organisms. However, these conclusions remain contentious owing to the associated uncertainties regarding the {delta}18O value and oxygen isotope fractionation relative to environmental sea water. Here, we present new hydroxylapatite phosphate {delta}18O values ({delta}18Op) of Ichthyosauria, Plesiosauria and Metriorhynchidae (Middle Jurassic to Early Cretaceous) recovered from mid- to high-paleolatitudes to better constrain their thermophysiology and investigate the presence of regional heterothermies. The intra-skeletal {delta}18Op variability failed to reveal distinct heterothermic patterns within any of the specimens, indicating either intra-body temperature homogeneity or an overriding diagenetic overprint of the original biological {delta}18Op bone record. Body temperature estimates have then been reassessed from new and published {delta}18Op values of well-preserved isolated teeth, recently revised Mesozoic latitudinal {delta}18O oceanic gradient and 18O-enrichment factor of fully aquatic air-breathing vertebrates. Our results confirm that Ichthyosauria were homeothermic endotherms (31{degrees}C to 41{degrees}C), while Plesiosauria were likely poikilothermic endotherms (27{degrees}C to 34{degrees}C). The new body temperature estimates of the Metriorhynchidae (25{degrees}C to 32{degrees}C) closely follow ambient temperatures and point to poikilothermic strategy with no or little endothermic abilities. These results improve our understanding of Mesozoic marine reptile thermoregulation and indicate that due to their limited body temperature variations, the {delta}18Op values from Ichthyosauria fossil remains could be used as valuable archives of Mesozoic oceans {delta}18Osw values that may help improve palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic reconstructions. Non-technical abstractSome marine reptiles from the Mesozoic such as ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs and metriorhynchids, were capable of reaching elevated body temperatures and for some of them to maintain it few degrees above that of their marine environment, a characteristic similar to that observed in modern cetaceans. Nevertheless, the estimation of their body temperature from the chemical oxygen signature of their fossil remains (bones and teeth) is accompanied by uncertainties associated with the chemical oxygen signature of the surrounding water and the mineralisation processes of the bones and teeth. In this study, new data were collected from four ichthyosaurs, three plesiosaurs and one metriorhynchid in order to gain a deeper understanding of the mechanisms by which these marine reptiles were able to maintain a body temperature higher than that of their environment. The chemical signatures of oxygen in the bones and teeth of the specimens did not exhibit any discernible patterns indicative of specific zones of heat production or loss, as observed in modern marine vertebrates. Concurrently, we reassessed the estimated body temperature of these marine reptiles, thereby corroborating the hypothesis that ichthyosaurs were homeothermic endotherms. Conversely, our novel estimates suggest that plesiosaurs were likely poikilothermic endotherms, whereas metriorhynchids were probably also poikilothermic endotherms but with a limited capacity for heat production. Finally, the narrow range of body temperatures maintained by ichthyosaurs indicates that the oxygen chemical signature of fossilised remains could serve as a valuable marker for reconstructing variations in the oxygen isotope composition of the Mesozoic oceans, paving the way to enhance our understanding of the environment and climate of this period in Earths history.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

A new tuna specimen (Genus Auxis) from the Duho Formation (middle Miocene) of South Korea

A partially preserved caudal vertebrae imprint of a tuna was discovered from the Duho Formation (Miocene) of South Korea. This specimen was assigned to the genus Auxis and represents the second record of fossil Auxis found in South Korea and in the world. We compared the vertebral morphology of the studied specimen to that of currently known species of Auxis, including extinct taxa. However, the specimen could not be assigned to any extant or new species of Auxis due to anatomical differences and a lack of comparability. The discovery of a new specimen of Auxis aligns with theories of high marine biodiversity in the East Sea (Sea of Japan) and its opening in the Early to Middle Miocene. A widely opened East Sea and upwelling activities might have increased the abundance and diversity of large oceanic fishes such as tunas during the deposition of the Duho Formation. The specimen supports paleoenvironmental interpretations of the Duho Formation as pelagic and subtropical. A taphonomic scenario of the specimen was inferred based on the lack of anal pterygiophores and the leaf imprint on the matrix. The specimen would have been exposed for at least a month in a low-energy sedimentary environment at the deep-sea bottom and would have undergone disintegration before being buried.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

An extraordinary larval-like teleost fish from the Eocene of Bolca

"Pegasus" volans is a highly unusual fossil teleost fish from the celebrated Eocene Bolca Lagerstatte. The fossil, known on the basis of two specimens, has been historically assigned to seamoths (Pegasidae), then to oarfish and relatives (Lampriformes). We describe its enigmatic skeletal anatomy in detail, and provide a new genus name. "Pegasus" volans is an extremely elongate and slender animal, with long anal and dorsal fins and a very well-developed first dorsal-fin ray reminiscent to the vexillum of some modern teleost larvae. Most striking is its extreme ventral projection of the pelvic girdle (basipterygium), associated with an element of the pectoral girdle (a long process of the coracoid) and developed pelvic-fin rays. The strongly reduced abdominal region suggests that "Pegasus" volans had an external gut, once again reminiscent of those of certain larval teleosts. The unique character state combination displayed by "Pegasus" volans make it impossible to assign it to a specific subclade within perch-like spiny-rayed fishes (Percomorpha). Nevertheless, it offers a valuable perspective on the diversity of morphologies and ecological niches occupied by teleost fishes of the early Eocene Bolca fauna.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

Estimating ancestral states of complex characters: a case study on the evolution of feathers

Feathers are a key novelty underpinning the evolutionary success of birds, yet the origin of feathers remains poorly understood. Debates about feather evolution hinge upon whether filamentous integument has evolved once or multiple time independently on the lineage leading to modern birds. These contradictory results stem from subjective methodological differences in statistical ancestral state estimates. Here we conduct a comprehensive comparison of ancestral state estimation methodologies applied to stem-group birds, testing the role of outgroup inclusion, tree time scaling method, model choice and character coding strategy. Models are compared based on their Akaike Information Criteria (AIC), mutual information, as well as the uncertainty of marginal ancestral state estimates. Our results demonstrate that ancestral state estimates of stem-bird integument are strongly influenced by tree time scaling method, outgroup selection and model choice, while character coding strategy seems to have less effect on the ancestral estimates produced. We identify the best fitting models using AIC scores and a leave-one-out cross-validation approach (LOOCV). Our analyses broadly support the independent origin of filamentous integument in dinosaurs and pterosaurs and support a younger evolutionary origin of feathers than has been suggested previously. More generally, our study highlights that special care must be taken in selecting the outgroup, tree and model when conducting ASE analyses. With respect to model selection, our results suggest that considering a LOOCV approach, may yield more reliable results than simply comparing AIC scores when the analyses involve a limited number of taxa.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

DeepDiveR - A software for deep learning estimation of palaeodiversity from fossil occurrences

O_LIThe incompleteness of the fossil record, in particular variation in preservation and sampling through space and time, presents a barrier to estimating changes in biodiversity which standard statistical methods struggle to account for. C_LIO_LIHere we present DeepDiveR, an R package for the DeepDive program enabling estimation of biodiversity from fossil occurrence data. The method uses a simulation-trained deep neural network to generate predictions of biodiversity change through time, while accounting for temporal, spatial and taxonomic heterogeneities in preservation. C_LIO_LIDeepDiveR can be readily used to explore the extinct biodiversity of different clades. We demonstrate the pipeline to build and customise analyses, including consideration of changes in biogeography. We also further develop the model to integrate information about modern diversity in the case of extant clades and introduce a function that automatically adjusts the parameterization of the simulations to generate training data that reflect the distribution of empirical datasets. C_LIO_LITo demonstrate the software, we analyse the fossil record of the order Carnivora through the Cenozoic, finding a peak in diversity in the Late Miocene and a 37% species loss since the Pleistocene. Our implementation includes the generation summary statistics and plots that allow for an evaluation of the model performance and diversity estimations and a configuration file that captures all parameters required to guarantee the full reproducibility of the results. C_LI

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

Unique dental arrangement in a new species of Groenlandaspis (Placodermi, Arthrodire) from the Middle Devonian of Mount Howitt, Victoria, Australia

Well-preserved specimens of an undescribed species of arthrodiran placoderm, Groenlandaspis howittensis sp. nov. (Middle Devonian of Victoria, Australia), reveals previously unknown information on the dermal skeleton, body-shape and tooth arcade of the wide-spread genus Groenlandaspis. The new material includes, dual pineal plates, extrascapular plates, and cheek bones cheek bones showing the presence of cutaneous sensory organs. The anterior supragnathal, usually a paired element in arthrodires, is a fused medial bone in G. howittensis sp. nov. It is positioned anterior to the occlusion of the mouth between the lower jaw (infragnathals) and upper jaw (posterior supragnathals) bones, indicating a specialised feeding mechanism and broadening the known diversity of placoderm dental morphologies. G. howittensis sp. nov. differs from all other groenlandaspidids by a less pronounced posterior expansion of the nuchal plate; the shape of the posterior dorsolateral plate and the presence of a short accessory canal on the anterior dorsolateral plate. A new phylogenetic analysis positions Groenlandaspididae in a monophyly with the phlyctaeniid families Arctolepidae and Arctaspdidae, however, the specific intrarelationships of groenlandaspidids remain poorly resolved.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

Tetrapod species-area relationships across the Cretaceous-Paleogene mass extinction

Mass extinctions are rare but catastrophic events that profoundly disrupt biodiversity. Widelyaccepted consequences of mass extinctions, such as biodiversity loss and the appearance of temporary disaster taxa, imply that nested species-area relationships (SARs, or how biodiversity scales with area) should change dramatically across these events: specifically, both the slope (reflecting the rate of accumulation of new species with increasing area) and intercept (reflecting the density of species at local scales) of the power-law relationship should decrease. However, these hypotheses have not been tested, and the contribution of variation in the SAR to diversity dynamics in deep time has been neglected. We use fossil data to quantify nested SARs in North American terrestrial tetrapods through the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K/Pg) mass extinction (Campanian-Ypresian). SARs vary substantially through time and among groups. In the pre-extinction interval (Maastrichtian), unusually shallow SAR slopes (indicating low beta diversity or provinciality) drive low total regional diversity in dinosaurs, mammals and other tetrapods. In the immediate post-extinction interval (Danian), the explosive diversification of mammals drove high regional diversity via a large increase in SAR slope (indicating higher beta diversity or provinciality), and only a limited increase in SAR intercept (suggesting limited diversity change at small scales). This contradicts the expectation that post-extinction biotas should be regionally homogenized by the spread of disaster taxa and impoverished by diversity loss. This early post-extinction increase in SAR slope was followed in the Thanetian-Selandian ([~]4.4. myr later) by increases in the intercept, indicating that diversity dynamics at local and regional scales did not change in synchrony. These results demonstrate the importance of SARs for understanding deep-time diversity dynamics, particularly the spatial dynamics of recovery from mass extinctions.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

Reconstructing the diversity dynamics of paleo-grasslands using deep learning on superresolution images of fossil Poaceae pollen

Grass pollen is largely overlooked in investigating grassland evolution because the pollen of most species cannot be differentiated using traditional optical microscopy. However, deep learning can quantify small variations in pollen morphology visible under superresolution microscopy. We use the abstract features output by deep learning to estimate the taxonomic diversity and physiology of fossil grass pollen assemblages. Using a semi-supervised learning strategy, we trained convolutional neural networks (CNNs) on superresolution pollen images of modern grasses and unlabeled fossil Poaceae. Our models captured features that reflected both the taxonomic diversity of grass communities along an elevational gradient and morphological differences between C3 and C4 species. We applied our trained models to fossil grass pollen assemblages from a 25,000-year lake-sediment record from eastern equatorial Africa (Mt. Kenya) and correlated past shifts in grass diversity with atmospheric CO2 concentration and proxy records of local temperature, precipitation, and fire occurrence. We quantified changes in grass diversity using morphological variability of fossil pollen assemblages, approximated by the Shannon entropy of CNN features. Our data show that grassland species diversity was strongly reduced between 21,500 and 16,000 years ago, coincident with most severe regional cooling during the last ice age. C3:C4 ratios reconstructed using a gradient-boosted decision tree classifier infer a gradual decrease in C4 grasses since the late-glacial to Holocene transition, associated with decreasing fire activity and elevated temperatures. Our results demonstrate that CNN features of pollen morphology can advance palynological analysis, enabling robust estimation of grass diversity and C3:C4 ratio in ancient grassland ecosystems. SignificanceAlthough the pollen of most grass species are morphologically indistinguishable using traditional optical microscopy, we show that they can be differentiated through deep learning analyses of superresolution images. Abstracted morphological features derived from convolutional neural networks can be used to quantify the biological and physiological diversity of grass pollen assemblages, without a priori knowledge of the species present, and used to reconstruct past changes in the taxonomic diversity and relative abundance of C4 grasses in ancient grasslands. This approach unlocks ecological information previously unattainable from the fossil pollen record and demonstrates that deep learning can solve some of the most intractable identification problems in the reconstruction of past vegetation dynamics.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

A new stegosaur (Dinosauria: Ornithischia) from the Upper Jurassic Qigu Formation of Xinjiang, China and a revision on Chinese stegosaurs phylogeny

Stegosaurs are a small but iconic clade of ornithischian dinosaurs. They and their sister taxa, the ankylosaurs, formed the clade Eurypoda which means broad-footed. Here, we describe a stegosaur from the Upper Jurassic Qigu Formation of Xinjiang, China, based on an associated partial skeleton that includes axial, pectoral girdle, pelvic girdle, limb and armor elements. It can be diagnosed as a new taxon, Angustungui, based on numerous autapomorphies. Some morphologies of Angustungui are more similar to the taxa from Europe, Africa and North America than to those from Asia. Our phylogenetic analysis recovers it as the sister taxon of Loricatosaurus. More importantly, the narrow and claw-shaped ungual of Angustungui proves that Eurypoda, at least stegosaur, has claw-shaped unguals. Besides, we revised the character scores for Chinese stegosaurs based on observations of the specimens.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

A remarkable psyllomorph family from Cretaceous Burmese amber, Miralidae stat. nov. (= Dinglidae syn. nov.; Hemiptera: Sternorrhyncha)

Cretaceous resins have preserved a remarkable diversity of sternorrhynchans. Burmese amber, formed in the mid-Cretaceous tropics, contains more numerous and diverse Psyllomorpha than all other fossil localities of the period together. The genus Dingla Szwedo et Drohojowska, 2020, previously placed into a separate family and infraorder, turned out to be similar in all essential characters to Mirala Burckhardt et Poinar, 2019 and Burmala Liu et al., 2021; therefore we synonymize Dinglidae Szwedo et Drohojowska, 2020 with Miralinae Shcherbakov, 2020 and raise the last subfamily to the full family status. A sister-group relationship between Dinglomorpha and Aleyrodomorpha in the cladistic analysis of Drohojowska et al. (2020a) was based on incorrect interpretation of characters. @@ala @@ioides gen. et sp. nov. from Burmese amber differs from other miralid genera by spotted forewings without pterostigma and the structure of terminalia in both sexes. In Miralidae, we discovered a long annulated labium and compound wax pores on the ventral side of the abdomen--for the first time among Hemiptera. The compound wax pores may have helped prevent miralids from sticking to the honeydew excreted. The long, flexible second labial segment, reinforced by sclerotized rings, probably allowed the protrusible length of the stylet bundle to be increased by arching the labium, as in mosquitoes.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

Automated segmentation of synchrotron-scanned fossils

Computed tomography has revolutionised the study of the internal three-dimensional structure of fossils. Historically, fossils typically spent years in preparation to be freed from the enclosing rock. Now, X-ray and synchrotron tomography reveal structure that is otherwise invisible and data acquisition can be fast. However, manual segmentation of these 3D volumes can still take months to years. This is especially challenging for resource-poor teams, as scanning may be free, but the computing power and (AI-assisted) segmentation software required to handle the resulting large data sets are complex to use and expensive. Here we present a free, browser-based segmentation tool that reduces computational overhead by splitting volumes into small chunks, allowing processing on low-memory, inexpensive hardware. Our tool also speeds up collaborative ground-truth generation and 3D visualization, all in-browser. We developed and evaluated our pipeline on various open-data scans of differing contrast, resolution, textural complexity, and size. Our tool successfully isolated the Thrinaxodon and Broomistega pair from an Early Triassic burrow. It isolated cranial bones from the Cretaceous acipenseriform Parapsephurus willybemisi on both 45.53 {micro}m and 13.67 {micro}m resolution scanning data. We also isolated bones of the Middle Triassic sauropterygian Nothosaurus and a challenging scan of a squamate embryo inside an egg dating back to the Early Cretaceous. Our tool reliably reproduces expert-supervised segmentation at a fraction of the time and cost, offering greater accessibility than existing tools. Beyond the online tool, all our code is open source, enabling contributions from the palaeontology community to further this emerging machine learning ecosystem.

paleontology↗
bioRxiv2024

Using a citizen science approach for research-informed teaching of evolution and palaeontology

Over the past few decades, citizen science has proven to be a valuable tool for research projects by involving the public in large-scale data collection. This collaboration between researchers and volunteers has been shown to be highly beneficial, allowing for efficient data collection in shorter time frames than possible for individual researchers. This study introduces a citizen science-inspired approach to teaching and curriculum design, involving undergraduate students directly in active research. Using a case study on dinosaur eye size, integrated into a first-year undergraduate course in Geology and Palaeontology at a UK university, the study presents the advantages of this approach for both teachers and learners. As part of the study, 22 undergraduate students were involved in data collection, analysis, and the subsequent publication processes, emphasizing active student participation in research. A subsequent survey demonstrated high student engagement and perceived relevance of the citizen science-style teaching approach. Results indicate that students found the approach appealing, engaging, and beneficial for understanding scientific concepts and methods. The case study shows that a citizen science approach to research-informed teaching can enhance student engagement and learning by providing meaningful, hands-on research experiences. This approach allows students to apply theoretical knowledge in a realistic context, fostering independence in quantitative research skills and collaborative learning. Despite potential challenges related to data accuracy and student motivation, the benefits of integrating such approaches into higher education curricula are substantial, offering a valuable model for teaching in Earth Sciences and beyond.

paleontology↗