An Investigation of Silurian Plant Remains from the Central Appalachians

对阿巴拉契亚中部志留纪植物遗骸的调查

• 批准号: 9526568
• 负责人: Paul Strother
• 金额: $ 10万
• 依托单位: Boston College
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 1996
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 1996-03-15 至 1999-02-28
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9526568&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Investigation; Silurian; Plant; Remains; Central

Strother 9526568 Evidence from fossil spores indicates that land-dwelling plants probably originated during the Ordovician and diversified throughout the Silurian. This transition in Earth history had profound consequences for all subsequently evolving terrestrial organisms, yet we really know very little about the origin and primary radiation of the land plants. The proposal is designed to document and substantiate the presence of land plants throughout the Silurian of the central Appalachian Basin. Such evidence consists fo sporomorphs (cryptospores and trilete spores), microscmpic plant fragments, and macroscopic plant thalli. The proposed work involves field collection, sample extraction and preparation, microscopic examination, description, and comparison similar remains known from Europe and Canada. Computer-based techniques in the analsis and description of fossil spores and plant remains will developed and applied for the first time to fossil spore studies. Results of this research will provide the broader scientific community with basic facts about the origin and early evolution of terrestrial ecosystems. Specialists will benefit from the systematics and documentation of the plant fossil record during a period of initial adaptive responses to the terrestrial habitat.

来自孢子化石的证据表明，陆生植物可能起源于奥陶纪，并在志留纪期间多样化。地球历史上的这一转变对随后进化的所有陆生生物都产生了深远的影响，但我们对陆生植物的起源和主要辐射知之甚少。该提案旨在记录和证实整个阿巴拉契亚盆地中部志留纪的陆地植物的存在。这些证据包括孢子体（隐孢子和三孢子）、微观植物碎片和宏观植物菌体。拟议的工作包括实地收集、样品提取和制备、显微镜检查、描述和比较欧洲和加拿大已知的类似遗骸。以计算机为基础的分析和描述化石孢子和植物遗骸的技术将首次发展并应用于化石孢子研究。这项研究的结果将为更广泛的科学界提供有关陆地生态系统起源和早期演化的基本事实。专家们将受益于植物化石记录的系统分类和文献记录，在对陆地栖息地的初始适应反应时期。