Paleontology at OHIO

Faculty	Elizabeth Hermsen	Dan Hembree	Gene Mapes	Royal Mapes	Pat O'Connor
Faculty	Gar Rothwell	Nancy Stevens	Alycia Stigall	Susan Williams	Larry Witmer
Researchers	Sara Burch	Eric Lund	Jacob McCarthy	Emily Naylor	Ryan Ridgely
Researchers	Karie Whitman

Faculty

Elizabeth Hermsen	Department of Environmental & Plant Biology	back to top
My research focuses on plant evolution and systematics from the perspective of the fossil record. I am currently especially interested in exploring the evolution of Southern Hemisphere floras. My research includes field collecting, documentation of newly discovered diversity through taxonomic descriptions, performing phylogenetic analyses to place fossil taxa within the plant tree of life, and exploration of other issues such as the morphological evolution and the biogeography of plants.

Daniel I. Hembree	Department of Geological Sciences	back to top
I investigate organism-substrate interactions in the geologic record through the study of ichnofossils and paleosols. I am interested in determining the response of ancient soil ecosystems to paleoenvironmental and paleoclimatic change. My research involves the study of both trace and body fossils as well as experimental work with modern organisms.

Gene K. Mapes	Department of Environmental & Plant Biology	back to top
Dr. Mapes investigates the paleobiology and paleoecology of ancient conifers and other seed plants, and their environmental stresses throughout geologic time, which requires integrated geological and botanical investigations, emphasizing plant anatomy, morphology, and systematics, combined with analyses of depositional environments, geochemistry, taxonomy, and plant/animal associations, in terrestrial and marine ecosystems.

Royal H. Mapes	Department of Geological Sciences	back to top
I am primarily an Invertebrate Paleontologist and my research program primarily combines paleobiology, paleoecology, biostratigraphy and depositional interpretation of primarily Midcontinent Upper Paleozoic rocks, with an emphasis on cephalopod paleobiology.

Patrick M. O'Connor	Department of Biomedical Sciences	back to top
My research integrates comparative anatomy, systematics, and biogeography with field paleontology to address topics in archosaurian (bird, crocodyliform, dinosaur) evolutionary morphology. Encompassing a variety of laboratory and museum approaches my morphological research examines the systematic variability and functional significance of postcranial pneumaticity in living birds and extinct archosaurs, including dinosaurs and pterosaurs. For several years I have been conducting paleontological field research in Tanzania and Madagascar, with the principle interest of elucidating the biogeographic history of vertebrate clades living in Gondwana during the Cretaceous and early Tertiary.

Gar W. Rothwell	Department of Environmental & Plant Biology	back to top
Gar conducts studies of fossil and living land plants that are directed toward a fuller understanding of phylogeny and evolution. These are explored using data from morphological, anatomical, ultrastructural, developmental, and molecular characters. Particular emphasis is placed on evolutionary developmental biology, reproductive biology, and organismal interactions to interpret the modern flora within the context of evolutionary ecology.

Nancy J. Stevens	Department of Biomedical Sciences	back to top
My research explores relationships between form and function in mammalian evolution. Vertebrate paleontological field research in sub-equatorial Africa and the Arabian Peninsula aims to unravel the roles of phylogeny and environment for shaping the development of morphological differences associated with specific locomotor and dietary regimes.

Alycia L. Stigall	Department of Geological Sciences	back to top
My research examines the interaction between paleobiogeography, paleoecology, and macroevolution during biodiversity crises. My research focuses on applications of GIS methods in paleobiogeography, phylogenetic reconstruction, long term effects of invasive species, and brachiopod and crustacean evolution.

Susan H. Williams	Department of Biomedical Sciences	back to top
My current research focuses on musculoskeletal biomechanics in the vertebrate head. Using a variety of techniques including comparative anatomy and morphology, electromyography and strain gauge applications, current projects seek to understand the evolution and function of the mammalian feeding apparatus. In addition to lab-based research, I currently lead two field projects. I recently initiated vertebrate paleontological fieldwork in the intermontane basins of southern Ecuador. The second project focuses on the feeding ecology and functional morphology of extant howling monkeys in Costa Rica.

Lawrence M. Witmer	Department of Biomedical Sciences	back to top
Research in my lab proceeds along a number of directions, but the overarching theme is functional morphology of the heads of vertebrates. A major focus for years has been the reconstruction of soft tissues (e.g., muscles, blood vessels, nerves, air sinuses, skin, etc.) in dinosaurs. Since fossils tend to preserve only hard parts like bones and teeth, much of the effort in the lab is devoted to studying modern animals.

Post-doctoral Researchers, Afiliated Researchers and Technicians


Sara Burch	Department of Biomedical Sciences	back to top
My primary research interests and expertise lie in the areas of functional morphology, biomechanics, and paleontological field research. Within these areas, I have focused on two major topics: the form and function of the limbs of theropod dinosaurs and extant birds, and the evolution of Malagasy Cretaceous vertebrates. I use analytical techniques such as morphometrics, gross dissection, phylogenetic comparative methods, and 3D modeling to investigate the musculature of the archosaurian forelimb and it's influence on the osteology. I also conduct field research in two basins of Madagascar, Mahajanga and Morondava, to study the evolution of the vertebrate faunas of Madagascar across the Cretaceous.

Eric Lund	Department of Biomedical Sciences	back to top
Currently I am the paleontology lab coordinator for the O’Connor laboratory at Ohio University. I oversee the practical functions of the lab. I am interested in taphonomy of archosaurian fossil localities, as well as the comparative anatomy, systematics, biostratigraphy, and biogeography of late Cretaceous ceratopsid (horned) dinosaurs. I have been fortunate enough to participate in paleontological field research all over the world including North America, Mexico, Tanzania, and Madagascar.

Jacob McCarthy	Department of Biomedical Sciences	back to top
Jacob is an instructor for the Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine. His research includes fossil snakes in the Cretaceous of Africa.

Emily Naylor	Department of Biomedical Sciences	back to top
Emily is a post-graduate researcher and lab coordinator for the Stevens laboratory. Her work includes the digital preparation of fossils as well as the maintenance of a digital library including fossil and extant species. Her current research focuses on the functional morphology of the tarsal complex in extinct and extant micromammals. Emily completed her undergraduate degree in Biology at Ohio University, and has participated in paleontological field teams in the Rukwa Rift Basin of Tanzania.

Ryan Ridgely	Department of Biomedical Sciences	back to top
Ryan is the an integral member of the Witmer lab where he is a research technician participating in NSF grant collaboratotions on dinosaur brain and vestibular evolution, as well as operating the µCT scanner. His major area of work is in digital morphology, which is working with CT (CAT) scans and MR imaging to produce 3D visualization models of internal anatomy in modern and extinct vertebrates.

Karie Whitman	Department of Biomedical Sciences	back to top
Karie is a fossil preparator within the Stevens and O'Connor laboratories at Ohio University. Her primary job is to prepare, mold, and cast fossil vertebrates from the Cenozoic and Mesozoic of Africa. Karie is also a graduate student in the Environmental Studies graduate program at Ohio University. Karie is interested in environmental change through time and human-environment interactions.