North American Early Cretaceous Vertebrates

9870173 Cifelli早白垩世(约1.4亿至1亿年前)代表着地球历史上的一个关键时期：许多现代动物群体(如高等哺乳动物、蜥蜴、鸟类和两栖动物)出现或经历了最早的辐射。这种变化的来源尚不清楚，但人们认为它与开花植物的出现导致植物区系的戏剧性变化、气候变化以及北美和亚洲等主要大陆之间的移民事件有关。现有的解释白垩纪中期变化的数据非常少，因为这一时期的化石记录非常糟糕。拟议的项目重点是从鹿角和克洛弗利地层中恢复不同的脊椎动物组合，这两个地层据信都有大约1.1亿年的历史。该项目包括一个为期3年的收集和管理计划，使用不同的方法，以最大限度地对所有脊椎动物群体进行采样。初步调查表明，总共将发现70-100个物种，代表约5000个标本，其中约20个物种将被诊断为科学上的新物种。该项目的结果将通过向感兴趣的研究人员出借标本、向世界各地的相关机构分发铸件以及在万维网上放置标本数据(连同图像)的方式提供。该项目的教育方面包括研究生和本科生的研究，以及学生和社区成员参与实地、实验室和研究活动的所有方面。这些收集及其数据将构成将引起普遍关注的主要研究资源。这些标本将为各种脊椎动物的起源、关系和生物地理提供新的证据。更广泛地说，该资源将为影响多样性的自然过程提供证据--例如动植物相互作用的性质和规模，以及大陆规模的移民对北美本土动物的影响。

9870173 Cifelli The Early Cretaceous (about 140 to 100 million years ago) represents a pivotal time period in Earth history: many modern groups of animals (such as higher mammals, lizards, birds, and amphibians) appeared or underwent their earliest radiations. The source of this change is not well understood, but it is thought to be linked to dramatic changes in the flora that resulted from the appearance of flowering plants, to climatic change, and to immigration events between major landmasses such as North America and Asia. Existing data for interpreting the mid-Cretaceous change is extremely slim because the fossil record for this time period is so poor. The proposed project focuses on the recovery of diverse vertebrate assemblages from the Antlers and Cloverly formations, both of which are believe to be about 110 million years old. The project involves a 3-year program of collecting and curation, using diverse methods in order to maximize sampling of all vertebrate groups. Preliminary investigations suggest that a total of 70-100 species, represented by about 5,000 specimens, will be recovered, including about 20 that will be diagnosable as new to science. Results of the project will be made available through loan of specimens to interested investigators, distribution of cast sets to relevant institutions worldwide, and placement of specimen data (together with images) on the WWW. Educational aspects of the project include graduate and undergraduate research, and involvement of both students and members of the community in all aspects of field, laboratory, and research activities. The collection and its data will constitute a major research resource that will be of general interest. The specimens will provide new evidence as to the origin, relationships, and biogeography of diverse kinds of vertebrates. More broadly, the resource will provide evidence for natural processes that affect diversity--such as the nature and magnitude of plant-animal interactions, and the effects of co ntinental-scale immigration on North America's native fauna.