The Late Devonian and Permian-Triassic intervals are among the most dynamic episodes of Earth history, marked by large secular changes in continental ecosystems, dramatic fluctuations in ocean oxygenation, major phases of biotic turnover, volcanism, bolide impact events, and rapid fluctuations in stable isotope systems and sea level. This volume highlights contributions from a broad range of geological sub-disciplines currently striving to understand these critical intervals of geologically rapid, global-scale changes.* Provides updated, current models for the mid-Late Devonian and Permian-Triassic mass extinction episodes* Highlights several new analytical approaches for developing quantitative datasets* Takes an integrated approach presenting datasets from a broad range of sub-disciplines

The geological and palaeontological records of climate change and evolutionary events reflect Earth’s widely fluctuating climate systems. Past climates hold the clues to understanding future developments. In this context, research on linked climate, biodiversity and sea-level fluctuations of the Devonian contributes to the general knowledge of deep-time climate dynamics. A fruitful co-operation between the International Geoscience Programme IGCP 596 and the International Subcommission on Devonian Stratigraphy (SDS) addressed the complex succession of climate-linked Devonian global events of varying magnitude. The primary goal of IGCP 596 was to assess mid-Palaeozoic climate changes and their impact on marine and terrestrial biodiversity using an interdisciplinary approach. The focus of SDS includes a revision of the eustatic sea-level curve and the integration of refined chrono- and biostratigraphy with modern chemo-, magneto-, cyclo-, event- and sequence stratigraphy. This enabled the much improved dating and correlation of abiotic perturbations, evolutionary changes, organism and ecosystem ranges. Results by 37 authors are presented in 14 chapters, which cover the entire Devonian.

This book serves as an up-to-date introduction, as well as overview to modern trace fossil research and covers nearly all of the essential aspects of modern ichnology. Divided into three section, Trace Fossils covers the historical background and concepts of ichnology, on-going research problems, and indications about the possible future growth of the discipline and potential connections to other fields. This work is intended for a broad audience of geological and biological scientists. Workers new to the field could get a sense of the main concepts of ichnology and a clear idea of how trace fossil research is conducted. Scientists in related disciplines could find potential uses for trace fossils in their fields. And, established workers could use the book to check on the progress of their particular brand of ichnology. By design, there is something here for novice and veteran, insider and outsider, and for the biologically-oriented workers and for the sedimentary geologists.* Presents a review of the state of ichnology at the beginning of the 21st Century* Summarizes the basic concepts and methods of modern trace fossil research* Discusses crucial background information about the history of trace fossil research, the main concepts of ichnology, examples of current problems and future directions, and the potential connections to other disciplines within both biology and geology

Carbon Isotope Stratigraphy, Volume Five in the Advances in Sequence Stratigraphy series, covers research in stratigraphic disciplines, including the most recent developments in the geosciences. This fully commissioned review publication aims to foster and convey progress in stratigraphy with its inclusion of a variety of topics, including Carbon isotope stratigraphy - principles and applications, Interpreting Phanerozoic d13C patterns as periodic glacio-eustatic sequences, Stable carbon isotopes in archaeological plant remains, Review of the Upper Ediacaran-Lower Cambrian Detrital Series in Central and North Iberia: NE Africa as possible Source Area, Calibrating d13C and d18O chemostratigraphic correlations across Cambrian strata of SW, and much more. - Contains contributions from leading authorities in the field - Informs and updates on all the latest developments in the field - Aims to foster and convey progress in stratigraphy, including geochronology, magnetostratigraphy, lithostratigraphy, event-stratigraphy, and more

While sponges represent a very simple group of organisms, which are represented by over 8000 species, there is considerable interest in the increasing role they may play in future marine ecosystems. While we still have a comparatively limited understanding of how sponges will respond to ocean warming and acidification there is evidence that some species may have the ability to acclimate or even adapt to these stressors. This comprehensive collection of articles describes our current understanding of the impacts of ocean acidification and warming on sponges across multiple levels of biological organisation, and from the geological past to the present. With expert contributions from across the world this book represents the most up-to-date view on sponge responses to climate change. This book will be of interest to a wide audience of marine scientists and managers, who are grappling with how to manage, conserve and protect marine ecosystems.

Picture a world of dog-sized scorpions and millipedes as long as a car; tropical rainforests with trees towering over 150 feet into the sky and a giant polar continent five times larger than Antarctica. That world was not imaginary; it was the earth more than 300 million years ago in the Carboniferous period of the Paleozoic era. In Carboniferous Giants and Mass Extinction, George R. McGhee Jr. explores that ancient world, explaining its origins; its downfall in the end-Permian mass extinction, the greatest biodiversity crisis to occur since the evolution of animal life on Earth; and how its legacies still affect us today. McGhee investigates the consequences of the Late Paleozoic ice age in this comprehensive portrait of the effects of ancient climate change on global ecology. Carboniferous Giants and Mass Extinction examines the climatic conditions that allowed for the evolution of gigantic animals and the formation of the largest tropical rainforests ever to exist, which in time turned into the coal that made the industrial revolution possible—and fuels the engine of contemporary anthropogenic climate change. Exploring the strange and fascinating flora and fauna of the Late Paleozoic ice age world, McGhee focuses his analysis on the forces that brought this world to an abrupt and violent end. Synthesizing decades of research and new discoveries, this comprehensive book provides a wealth of insights into past and present extinction events and climate change.

Over 4.5 billion years, Earth’s climate has transformed tremendously. Before our more temperate recent past, the planet swung from one extreme to another—from a greenhouse world of sweltering temperatures and high sea levels to a “snowball earth” in which glaciers reached the equator. During this history, we now know, living things and the climate have always influenced and even shaped each other. But the climate has never changed as rapidly or as drastically as it has since the Industrial Revolution. In this lively and entertaining book, Donald R. Prothero explores the astonishing connections between climate and life through the ages, telling the remarkable stories of the scientists who made crucial discoveries. Journeying through the intertwined evolution of climate and life, he tackles questions such as: Why do we have phytoplankton to thank for the air we breathe? What kind of climate was necessary for the rise of the dinosaurs—or the mammals, their successors? When and how have climatic changes caused mass extinctions? Prothero concludes with the Ice Ages and the Holocene, the role of climate in human history, and the perils of anthropogenic climate change. Understanding why the climate has changed in the past, this timely book shows, is essential to grasping the gravity of how radically human activity is altering the climate today.

The invasion of land by ocean-dwelling plants and animals was one of the most revolutionary events in the evolution of life on Earth, yet the animal invasion almost failed—twice—because of the twin mass extinctions of the Late Devonian Epoch. Some 359 to 375 million years ago, these catastrophic events dealt our ancestors a blow that almost drove them back into the sea. If those extinctions had been just a bit more severe, spiders and insects might have become the ecologically dominant forms of animal life on land. This book examines the profound evolutionary consequences of the Late Devonian extinctions, which shaped the composition of the modern terrestrial ecosystem. Only one group of four-limbed vertebrates now live on Earth while other tetrapod-like fishes are extinct. This gap is why the idea of “fish with feet” seems so peculiar yet these animals were once a vital part of our world.

In 1980, the science world was stunned when a maverick team of researchers proposed that a massive meteor strike had wiped the dinosaurs and other fauna from the Earth 66 million years ago. Scientists found evidence for this theory in a “crater of doom” on the Yucatán Peninsula, showing that our planet had once been a target in a galactic shooting gallery. In Cataclysms, Michael R. Rampino builds on the latest findings from leading geoscientists to take “neocatastrophism” a step further, toward a richer understanding of the science behind major planetary upheavals and extinction events. Rampino recounts his conversion to the impact hypothesis, describing his visits to meteor-strike sites and his review of the existing geological record. The new geology he outlines explicitly rejects nineteenth-century “uniformitarianism,” which casts planetary change as gradual and driven by processes we can see at work today. Rampino offers a cosmic context for Earth’s geologic evolution, in which cataclysms from above in the form of comet and asteroid impacts and from below in the form of huge outpourings of lava in flood-basalt eruptions have led to severe and even catastrophic changes to the Earth’s surface. This new geology sees Earth’s position in our solar system and galaxy as the keys to understanding our planet’s geology and history of life. Rampino concludes with a controversial consideration of dark matter’s potential as a triggering mechanism, exploring its role in heating Earth’s core and spurring massive volcanism throughout geologic time.

Geologic Time Scale 2020 (2 volume set) contains contributions from 80+ leading scientists who present syntheses in an easy-to-understand format that includes numerous color charts, maps and photographs. In addition to detailed overviews of chronostratigraphy, evolution, geochemistry, sequence stratigraphy and planetary geology, the GTS2020 volumes have separate chapters on each geologic period with compilations of the history of divisions, the current GSSPs (global boundary stratotypes), detailed bio-geochem-sequence correlation charts, and derivation of the age models. The authors are on the forefront of chronostratigraphic research and initiatives surrounding the creation of an international geologic time scale. The included charts display the most up-to-date, international standard as ratified by the International Commission on Stratigraphy and the International Union of Geological Sciences. As the framework for deciphering the history of our planet Earth, this book is essential for practicing Earth Scientists and academics. - Completely updated geologic time scale - Provides the most detailed integrated geologic time scale available that compiles and synthesize information in one reference - Gives insights on the construction, strengths and limitations of the geological time scale that greatly enhances its function and its utility