Lindsey Leighton
Contact
Professor, Faculty of Science - Earth & Atmospheric Sciences Admin
- lleighto@ualberta.ca
- Phone
- (780) 492-3983
- Address
-
1-01B Earth Sciences Building
11223 Saskatchewan Drive NWEdmonton ABT6G 2E3
Overview
Research
Research Interests
- Evolution and ecology of predator-prey systems, and their effects on biodiversity, through time
- Identifying those organismal features that facilitate survivorship through mass-extinction events
- Functional morphology and biomechanics of marine invertebrates, with special attention to animal-substrate and animal-flow interactions
- Integrating modern and fossil data to address ecological questions
Although the planet faces a shocking biodiversity crisis, we are struggling to understand which factors control biodiversity. Given the urgency of the crisis, understanding the processes that influence biodiversity should be a primary task not only for conservation but for paleobiology as well. However, we currently lack an explicit connection between the global, deep-time scales of paleobiology and the fine spatial and temporal scales of ecology. Filling this gap should be a pressing concern, we need more explorations of fine-scale processes through deep time and more comparisons with modern ecology. Much of my research is designed to fill that gap.
Courses
EAS 230 - Introduction to Invertebrate Paleontology
Systematics of important groups of invertebrate fossils. Introduction to biostratigraphy, paleoecology, and the study of mass extinctions and faunal radiations. Mechanisms and patterns of evolution. Groups covered include: Porifera, Cnidaria, Brachiopoda, Mollusca, Trilobita, Echinodermata, and some microfossil groups. Prerequisite: EAS 103, 105 or SCI 100. [Faculty of Science]
PALEO 414 - Paleontology
Morphology, paleoecology and evolution, with emphasis on both the theoretical aspects and practical techniques of paleontology. Concentration on invertebrate paleontology, but examples from vertebrate paleontology and paleobotany included. Prerequisite: EAS 230. [Faculty of Science]
PALEO 513 - Advanced Paleontology
Morphology, paleoecology and evolution, with emphasis on both the theoretical aspects and practical techniques of paleontology. Concentration on invertebrate paleontology, but examples from vertebrate paleontology and paleobotany included. Classes concurrent with PALEO 414. Not available to students with credit in PALEO 414. [Faculty of Science]