Collaborative Research: An Exceptional Window into Late Triassic Terrestrial Ecosystems from the Western United States

作者：randall Irmis， EAR-1349560，犹他大学sterling Nesbitt， EAR-1349554，霍华德大学nathan Smith， EAR-1349654, Virginia TechAlan Turner, EAR-1349667， SUNY stonybrook摘要：知识价值：晚三叠纪（约2.35 - 2.01亿年前）是地球历史上最具活力的时期之一。这一时期是古环境和生物转换的关键时期，是现代陆地生态系统的起源时期。海登采石场（HQ）提供了一个独特的机会，可以从非海相地层中建立广泛的数百万年生物-古环境档案。新墨西哥州北部上三叠统秦纪组的HQ和相关地区为陆地脊椎动物生态系统的进化提供了一个无与伦比的窗口，包括恐龙的兴起。HQ保存极为完好的化石包括至少12个主要的晚三叠纪脊椎动物群体，这些样本来自超过15,000个收集的标本。本项目主要有两个目标：1)建立新墨西哥州北部上三叠统地层古环境和动物变化的综合记录；2)利用特殊的HQ脊椎动物组合来阐明中生代早期原蜥脚类爬行动物的进化史。该项目代表了恐龙兴起期间陆地生态系统中生物对古环境变化的反应的第一个综合研究之一。更广泛的影响：pi的发现被吸收到幽灵牧场古生物学博物馆的教育课程和新展品中，让来自里约热内卢Arriba县的2000多名K-12学生接触科学（其中70%的居民属于传统上在科学方面代表性不足的人口群体），包括通过课堂实地参观海登采石场本身。迄今为止，已有来自9个不同机构的45名研究生和本科生通过我们的“幽灵牧场”实地项目参加并接受培训。该项目为至少四名研究生和六名本科生提供实地考察和研究资金，包括支持地球科学领域代表性不足的群体（例如，非洲裔美国人和妇女）。研究将通过学术和大众出版物以及媒体新闻稿（例如http://www.nsf.gov/tawa）传播。最后，该项目产生的数据将被贡献给nsf支持的公共数据库，如MorphoBank （http://www.morphobank.org）和古生物学数据库（http://paleodb.org/）。

Collaborative Research: An Exceptional Window into Late Triassic Terrestrial Ecosystems from the Western United StatesByRandall Irmis, EAR-1349560, University of UtahSterling Nesbitt, EAR-1349554, Howard UniversityNathan Smith, EAR-1349654, Virginia TechAlan Turner, EAR-1349667, SUNY StonybrookABSTRACT Intellectual Merit: The Late Triassic (~235-201 million years ago) records one of the most dynamic intervals of Earth history. A critical time of paleoenvironmental and biotic turnover, this interval witnessed the origin of modern terrestrial ecosystems. The Hayden Quarry (HQ) represents a unique opportunity to establish an extensive multi-million-year biotic-paleoenvironmental archive from nonmarine strata. HQ and associated localities in the Upper Triassic Chinle Formation of northern New Mexico provide an unparalleled window into the evolution of terrestrial vertebrate ecosystems, including the rise of dinosaurs. The extremely well-preserved fossils of HQ include at least 12 major groups of Late Triassic vertebrates sampled from over 15,000 collected specimens. This project has two major goals: 1) to establish an integrated record of paleoenvironmental and faunal change in Upper Triassic strata of northern New Mexico; and 2) utilize the extraordinary HQ vertebrate assemblage to elucidate the evolutionary history of early Mesozoic archosauromorph reptiles. This project represents one of the first integrated studies of biotic response to paleoenvironmental changes in a terrestrial ecosystem during the rise of dinosaurs. Broader Impacts: PIs discoveries are assimilated into the education curriculum and new exhibits at the Ghost Ranch Museum of Paleontology, exposing over 2,000 K-12 students from Rio Arriba County to science (where 70% of residents belong to population groups traditionally underrepresented in science), including through class site visits to the Hayden Quarry itself. To date, forty-five graduate and undergraduate students from nine different institutions have participated in and received training through our Ghost Ranch field project. This project provides funding for a minimum of four graduate students and six undergraduates in fieldwork and research, including support for underrepresented groups in the geosciences (e.g., African-Americans and women). Research will be disseminated through both scholarly and popular publications, as well as media press releases (e.g., http://www.nsf.gov/tawa). Finally, data generated by the project will be contributed to NSF-supported publically accessible databases such as MorphoBank (http://www.morphobank.org) and the Paleobiology Database (http://paleodb.org/).