Systematics and biogeography of fossil and living teleost fishes

我研究鱼类的进化，特别是那些在化石记录中很有代表性的鱼类。特别令人感兴趣的是恐龙时代在热带和北美水域游泳的鱼类。在恐龙灭绝后，这些鱼类中的许多继续繁衍生息。在这段特别有趣的时间间隔里，不仅发生了影响恐龙的大灭绝事件，而且世界上的大陆也经历了相当大的重新排列，最终形成了我们今天所熟悉的样子。在灭绝事件发生之前，有一条从墨西哥湾延伸到北冰洋的大海道，将北美的东部和西部完全分开。有些大陆靠得更近，南美洲和非洲连为一块陆地。大陆构造的变化，如南大西洋的扩大最终将非洲与南美洲分开，以及随着海道的退缩，北美的东部和西部被合并，极大地改变了海洋和淡水鱼的分布。通过研究这一时期的鱼类化石，我们可以确定特定鱼类的古代分布模式，并将其与不断变化的全球环境联系起来。

I study the evolution of fishes, particularly those that are well represented in the fossil record. Of particular interest are fishes that were swimming in the waters of the tropics and North America during the time of the dinosaurs. Many of these fish continued to flourish after the dinosaurs became extinct. During the interval of time that is of particular interest, not only was there the major extinction event that effected the dinosaurs, but the continents of the world were also undergoing considerable rearrangement to eventually come to be placed in the manner that is familiar to us today. Prior to the extinction event, there was a large seaway stretching from the Gulf of Mexico to the Arctic Ocean, completely separating the eastern and western parts of North America. Some continents were closer together, with South America and Africa united in a single land mass. The changes in the continental configurations, such as the widening southern Atlantic Ocean eventually splitting Africa from South America, and the east and west parts of North American being united as the seaway retreated, drastically altered the distribution of both marine and freshwater fishes. By studying the fish fossils from this time period, we can determine ancient distribution patterns of particular fishes, and link these to changing global environments.