Project Highlights:
- Use new techniques to shed fresh light on a long-standing evolutionary question – the diversity of mammals after the extinction of dinosaurs
- Acquire a suite of skills for quantitative statistical analysis of textures, morphology and evolutionary patterns
- Opportunities to travel to collect data from fossil collections across Europe and the US, and conduct fieldwork in New Mexico
Overview
This project will use new techniques to address one of the perennial questions in palaeontology: the impact of dinosaurs and their extinction on mammal evolutionary history. A number of recent studies have focussed on the timing of mammal diversification (e.g. Wilson et al. 2012, Close et al. 2015, Grossnickle 2019), but it is more difficult to test hypotheses of ecological diversity. Morphological analysis of well-preserved articulated mammal skeletons of Jurassic age is starting to paint a picture of mammals occupying a broader range of ecological niches than previously thought, but the majority of fossil mammals are known only from disarticulated remains and teeth, and are not amenable to this type of functional analysis. Consequently, the degree to which their ecological diversity was affected by the K-Pg extinction, and the pattern of ecological diversification during the Palaeocene, have been difficult issues to address.
This project will employ a powerful new approach, analysis of Dental Microwear Texture (DMT), the application of which to early mammals was pioneered by the supervisors (Purnell et al. 2013, Gill et al. 2014). You will combine this with other dietary proxies (isotopic data, mesowear and quantitative shape analysis of teeth) in phylogenetic context, to conduct multidisciplinary, multiproxy investigation of the dietary diversity of Palaeocene mammals, and of the patterns of trophic niche occupation and partitioning. You will establish the dietary guilds to which the early members of modern mammal lineages belong. DMTA has revealed hidden trophic diversity in Jurassic mammals, indicating that lineage splitting during the earliest stages of mammalian evolution was associated with ecomorphological specialization and niche partitioning (Gill et al. 2014). This project, applying the approach to Palaeocene fossils, will similarly yield new insights into the evolutionary.
Academic entry requirements:
- Applicants must have or expect to obtain a first class or upper second class BSc and/or M-level degree (or an equivalent overseas qualification) in a relevant subject.
- University of Leicester English language requirements apply as necessary.
Informal enquiries/Contact details:
- Mark Purnell - [Email Address Removed]
- Stephen Brusatte - [Email Address Removed]
For general enquiries please email [Email Address Removed]
How to apply
Please read carefully the application advice under the How to Apply section at https://le.ac.uk/study/research-degrees/funded-opportunities/centa-phd-studentships before submitting your application.
Eligibility
Applicants who meet or are expected to meet the academic entry requirements can apply.
To be eligible for a full (Home) award a student must have no restrictions on how long they can stay in the UK and have been ordinarily resident in the UK for at least 3 years prior to the start of the studentship.
If you do not meet the criteria for UK Fees you will need to fund the difference between UK and International fees for the duration of your studies. A limited number of top up studentships to fund the fee difference may become available but are not guaranteed.
If you are unsure of your fee status please email [Email Address Removed] and include a copy of your passport and any immigration permission you may hold.
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