Collaborative Research: RUI: An Integrative Paleontological And Paleoenvironmental Study Of The Middle Cambrian Spence, Wheeler, And Marjum Soft-Bodied Faunas

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The study of Cambrian soft-bodied faunas has greatly enhanced our understanding ofsome key events in metazoan evolution. However, enigmas and incompletely describedCambrian Burgess Shale-type soft-bodied faunas still remain, as does the question of why andhow Burgess Shale-type preservation occurs. The immediate objectives of the proposed researchfor which funding is requested are: 1) to prepare, describe, monograph, and fit into aphylogenetic and paleobiogeographic framework new taxa from the Middle Cambrian softbodiedfaunas of the Spence Member and the Wheeler and Marjum Formations using recentcollections made from Utah; 2) to use microanalytical techniques to determine the taphonomy ofthe fossils at the specimen-level; and 3) to place the soft bodied organisms and the taphonomicprocesses involved in their preservation into a detailed paleoenvironmental framework usingnewly developed microstratigraphic techniques.The intellectual merit of this research is to address some enigmas in Cambrianpaleontology and geology, allowing multiple objectives to be attained. First, identifying andcharacterizing the elements of the Utah faunas will help establish which taxa are shared betweenthese formations and other Cambrian soft-bodied faunas distributed throughout the globe. Thus,the stratigraphic and geographic ranges of these species and genera can be determined. Second,in conjunction with pre-existing information, the phylogenetic relationships of the variousarthropods in the Spence, Wheeler, and Marjum can be evaluated. These objectives will increaseour understanding of Cambrian biogeography and also the nature and topology of importantearly episodes in animal evolution. Additionally, intensive taphonomic and microstratigraphicstudy of three of the principal Burgess Shale-type localities will lead to a refined understandingof the paleoenvironmental factors and taphonomic processes that controlled the preservation ofBurgess Shale faunas in the Cambrian, and will contribute to our understanding of why this typeof preservation is unique to the Cambrian. Due to the richness and significance of these poorlyknownfaunas, the excellent exposure across the study areas and the relatively low metamorphicgrade of mudstones hosting the soft-bodied faunas, this project also provides a rare opportunityto address phylogeny, paleoecology, and preservation in Burgess Shale-type deposits in aninterrelated context.Some of the faunas that will be studied are in collections housed at the University ofKansas (KU), and they are accompanied by precise locality data. There is also an emeritusprofessor at the University of Kansas, Dick Robison, with significant expertise in areas related tothis grant. Sue Halgedahl and Richard Jarrard, professors at the University of Utah, have alsoagreed to make their extensive collections of soft-bodied, Cambrian Burgess Shale-type faunasfrom Utah available to us for study; again, these are accompanied by precise locality data. Eachof these factors will greatly facilitate this proposed research.In terms of broader impacts, this project will contribute to the training of two graduatestudents, one at KU and one at the University of California, Riverside, who will participate in theproposed research activities and attend scientific meetings. Through the RUI program, thisproject will also contribute to the field and analytical training of multiple undergraduates fromPomona College, an undergraduate-only institution and member of the Keck geologyconsortium.