Methods in Paleoecology

This volume focuses on the reconstruction of past ecosystems and provides a comprehensive review of current techniques and their application in exemplar studies. The 18 chapters address a wide variety of topics that span vertebrate paleobiology and paleoecology (body mass, postcranial functional morphology, evolutionary dental morphology, microwear and mesowear, ecomorphology, mammal community structure analysis), contextual paleoenvironmental studies (paleosols and sedimentology, ichnofossils, pollen, phytoliths, plant macrofossils), and special techniques (bone microstructure, biomineral isotopes, inorganic isotopes, 3-D morphometrics, and ecometric modeling). A final chapter discusses how to integrate results of these studies with taphonomic data in order to more accurately characterize an ancient ecosystem. Current investigators, advanced undergraduates, and graduate students interested in the field of paleoecology will find this book immensely useful. The length andstructure of the volume also makes it suitable for teaching a college-level course on reconstructing Cenozoic ecosystems.

Autorentext
Dr. Darin A. Croft is an Associate Professor in the Department of Anatomy at the Case School of Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio.
Dr. Scott Simpson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Anatomy at the Case School of Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio.
Dr. Denise F. Su is the Curator and Head of Paleobotany and Paleoecology at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.

Inhalt
1Introduction to Paleoecological ReconstructionDarin A. Croft, Denise F. Su, and Scott W. Simpson.-
2Estimation of Body Size in Fossil MammalsSamantha S.B. Hopkins.-
3Functional Morphology of the Postcranial SkeletonRachel H. Dunn.-
4Evolutionary Dental MorphologyAlistair R. Evans and Silvia Pineda-Munoz.-
5Using Dental Mesowear and Microwear for Dietary Inference: A Review of Current Techniques and ApplicationsJeremy L. Green and Darin A. Croft.-
6Permanent Record: The Use of Dental and Bone Microstructure to Assess Life History Evolution and EcologyRussell Hogg.-
7Isotopic Ecology from BiomineralsPennilyn Higgins.-
8Reconstructing Terrestrial Paleoenvironments Using Sedimentary Organic BiomarkersMelissa A. Berke.-
9Paleopedology as a Tool for Reconstructing Paleoenvironments and Emily J. Beverly, William E. Lukens, and Gary E. Stinchcomb.-
10The Role of Continental Trace Fossils in Cenozoic Paleoenvironmental and Paleoecological ReconstructionsDaniel Hembree.-
11Fossil Pollen and Spores in PaleoecologyLuke Mander and Surangi W. Punyasena.-
12Phytoliths in Paleoecology: Analytical Considerations, Current Use, and Future DirectionsCaroline A.E. Strömberg, Regan E. Dunn, Camilla Crifò, and Elisha B. Harris.-
13Reconstructing Paleoclimate and Paleoecology Using Fossil Daniel J. Peppe, Aly Baumgartner, Andrew Flynn, and Benjamin Blonder.-
14Three-Dimensional Geometric Morphometrics in PaleoecologySabrina C. Curran.-
15EcomorphologyW. Andrew Barr.-
16Mammal Community Structure AnalysisKris Kovarovic, Denise F. Su, and Kari Lintulaakso.-
17Ecometrics: A Trait-based Approach to Paleoclimate and Paleoenvironmental ReconstructionWesley A. Vermillion, P. David Polly, Jason J. Head, Jussi T. Eronen, and A. Michelle Lawing.-
18Summary and Synthesis Denise F. Su and Darin A. Croft.-