Conodont biostratigraphy, paleoecology & isotope geochemistry applied to models of early paleozoic palegeography, paleoceanography & tectono-eustacy; cenozoic offshore basins, BC

一个长期目标是促进了解早古生代(5.5亿-3.5亿年)地球上的生物和物理过程，特别是导致寒武纪进化动物群被古生代进化动物群深刻取代并导致后者早期多样化的事件和控制。主要的方法是利用主要古板块的标本，通过对分类学、生物地层学、古生态学、生物地理学和同位素地球化学的综合、连续的研究，利用牙形刺微化石。许多项目旨在确定沿着环境梯度(例如，从平台到盆地的横断面)的动物群变化，阿巴拉契亚、科迪勒拉和因努蒂斯边缘的研究现在将与克拉通内陆克拉通内和前陆盆地的新研究相结合。这将使我们能够对劳伦斯板块在早古生代大部分时间内的生物事件和相关的地层、构造和海平面事件进行精细分析。将扩大处理牙形刺中锶和氧同位素以及钙/镁比值的项目；地球化学研究正在调查海水历史的变化，并测试现有的古地理模型。特别考虑了奇异的地体以及主要的古板块。这项研究将在牙形刺系统发育、分支学、生物地层学、古生态学和古生物地理学方面取得重大进展，并将现有的大型动物群数据库与古海洋学和古气候模型联系起来，以解释早古生代生物圈-海洋-气候系统的性质和变化。在不列颠哥伦比亚省近海的托菲诺盆地，类似的盆地研究正在进行中，并将扩大到夏洛特女王盆地，利用有孔虫和鱼鳞石微古生物学和同位素地球化学来了解复杂的新生代盆地演化。

One long-term objective is to contribute toward the understanding of biological and physical processes operating on the Earth during the Early Paleozoic (550-350 million years), especially the events and controls that led to the profound replacement of the Cambrian Evolutionary Fauna by the Paleozoic Evolutionary Fauna and the early diversification of the latter. The principal approach is to use conodont microfossils through integrated, sequential studies of taxonomy, biostratigraphy, paleoecology, biogeography, and isotope geochemistry, using collections from the principal paleoplates. Many projects are designed to establish faunal changes along environmental gradients (e.g. platform to basin transects) with studies in the Appalachians, Cordillera and Innuitian margins now to be integrated with new ones on intracratonic and foreland basins of the interior craton. These will allow a refined analysis of the bioevents and related stratigraphic, tectonic and sea level events for the Laurentian plate during much of the Early Paleozoic. Projects will be expanded that deal with strontium and oxygen isotopes and Ca/Mg ratios from conodonts; geochemical research is investigating changes in seawater history and testing existing models of paleogeography. Particular consideration is given to exotic terranes as well as the main paleoplates. The research will lead to significant advances in conodont phylogeny, cladistics, biostratigraphy, paleoecology and paleobiogeography and will link the existing large faunal database to paleoceanographic and paleoclimatic models to interpret the nature and changes in the Early Paleozoic biosphere-ocean-climate system. Similar basin studies are underway for the Tofino Basin, offshore BC, and will be expanded to the Queen Charlotte basin, using foraminifera and ichthyolith micropaleontology and isotope geochemistry to understand the complex Cenozoic basin evolution.