Towards a morphological metric of assemblage dynamics in the fossil record: a test case using planktonic foraminifera.

ABSTRACT: With a glance, even the novice naturalist can tell you something about the ecology of a given ecosystem. This is because the morphology of individuals reflects their evolutionary history and ecology, and imparts a distinct 'look' to communities--making it possible to immediately discern between deserts and forests, or coral reefs and abyssal plains. Once quantified, morphology can provide a common metric for characterizing communities across space and time and, if measured rapidly, serve as a powerful tool for quantifying biotic dynamics. Here, we present and test a new high-throughput approach for analysing community shape in the fossil record using semi-three-dimensional (3D) morphometrics from vertically stacked images (light microscopic or photogrammetric). We assess the potential info

SUBMITTER: Hsiang AY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4810820 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature