Mesozoic mammals from South America: their impact on mammalian evolution, phylogeny, and time calibrations.

中生代哺乳动物是罕见的，已知大多来自北方大陆。PI收集了来自南美洲（SA）的中生代和早期第三纪哺乳动物的独特收藏，包括保存完好的颅骨和颅后材料，以及孤立的牙齿，下颌骨和耳朵区域。这些化石代表了标本质量的显著提高，并使已知的南澳中生代哺乳动物总数增加了500%以上。新材料的年龄范围从中侏罗世（170 MY）到古新世早期（58 MY），来自阿根廷巴塔哥尼亚的五个不同地点，包括冈瓦纳的晚白垩世早期（Turonian）的哺乳动物的第一个记录。这个集合代表了迄今为止最好的证据，用于解决SA中哺乳动物的中生代/古新世早期多样化及其对哺乳动物进化的影响。该提案将产生新标本的详细描述，并将产生一个全面的形态数据矩阵，包括所有主要的相关中生代哺乳动物，调查所有主要的传统特征系统（牙齿，颅骨和后颅），以及新的数据，如釉质显微结构和计算机断层扫描。将分析化石数据的不同子集对进化历史的影响，并与分子数据进行比较，以探索一致性和差异性。新的数据将为哺乳动物的早期进化提供更多的见解。该项目的一个重要组成部分是培训一名研究生和让本科生参与研究机会。标本的铸造将捐赠给主要收藏，并将准备一个展览，路由到多个博物馆和类似的机构。有关结果的信息和一般大众信息将通过网络提供，而更多的技术数据和插图也将通过MORPHOBANK在线提供。PI和学生计划参加科学教育计划开放给各级学生，但重点是K-12教师后，最近的项目由肯塔基州科学院组织的成功。

Mesozoic mammals are rare and known mostly from Northern continents. The PI has made a unique collection of Mesozoic and early Tertiary mammals from South America (SA) that includes exquisitely preserved cranial and postcranial material, as well as isolated teeth, mandibles, and ear regions. These fossils represent a dramatic improvement in the quality of specimens and an increase of more than 500% in the total number of known SA Mesozoic mammals. The new materials range in age from the Middle Jurassic (170MY) to the early Paleocene (58MY) from five different localities in Patagonia, Argentina, and include the first record of mammals (with some new groups) for the early Late Cretaceous (Turonian) in Gondwana. This collection represents the best evidence to date for tackling the Mesozoic/early Paleocene diversification of Mammalia in SA and its impact on mammalian evolution. The proposal will produce detailed descriptions of the new specimens and will generate a comprehensive morphological data matrix including all major relevant Mesozoic mammals surveying all major traditional character systems (dental, cranial, and postcranial) in addition to new data such as enamel microstructure and Computer Tomography. The impact of different subsets of fossil data on evolutionary histories will be analyzed and compared with molecular data to explore agreements and discrepancies. The new data will provide additional insight into the early evolution of mammals. This project will have as an important component the training of a graduate student and the participation of undergraduates in research opportunities. Casts of the specimens will be donated to major collections, and an exhibit will be prepared for routing to multiple museums and similar institutions. Information on the results and general popular information will be made available via the web, while more technical data and illustrations will also be accessible on-line via MORPHOBANK. The PI and students plan to participate in science education programs open to students of every level, but with an emphasis on K-12 teachers following the success of recent projects organized by the Kentucky Academy of Sciences.