The Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), ~56 million years ago, is the largest and most abrupt global warming event in Earth history, and the best geological analogue for understanding anthropogenic climate change and its impacts. Injection of carbon into the atmosphere led to major changes in the oceans, including: rapid warming (>5°C), reduced pH and dissolved oxygen content, and large changes in nutrient availability and stratification as seasonality and the hydrological cycle intensified. Such dramatic environmental change should have had a substantive impact on marine ecosystems. However, at present there is little or no evidence for widespread extinction across multiple marine groups. Our understanding of the impact of the PETM on the diversity and functioning of ecosystems is surprisingly limited given ~30 years of study, and it being arguably the most highly resolved and best sampled of the major deep-time climatic events. This is because researchers primarily focus on individual sites or organismal groups, working within traditional disciplinary silos (e.g., micropalaeontology vs macropalaeontology; stratigraphy vs palaeontology; ecologists vs taxonomists). Thus, the full potential of this exceptional event to answer questions about the resilience of marine ecosystems to abrupt environmental change has yet to be realised.
We will address this, knowledge gap, by integrating disparate marine microfossil, macrofossil, and environmental records from across the globe from before, during and after the PETM for the first time (~55-57 Myrs; Fig. 1). These data will be synthesised in a cutting-edge statistical framework drawn from the fields of palaeobiology and palaeoecology to best quantify changes in biodiversity and ecosystem function. Together with state-of-the-art climate model outputs, we will determine the relative roles of physical versus biological drivers of PETM biodiversity change. Our research will answer fundamental questions about how and why marine ecosystems are impacted by past abrupt environmental change, of direct relevance to understanding the patterns and mechanisms of major warming events throughout Earth history and today.
How to apply
Applications need to be submitted via the University of Birmingham postgraduate portal by midnight on 11.01.2021. Please first check whether the primary supervisor is within Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, or in Biosciences, and click on the corresponding PhD program on the application page.
This application should include
• a brief cover letter, CV, and the contact details for at least two referees
• a CENTA application form
• the supervisor and title of the project you are applying for under the Research Information section of the application form.
Referee’s will be invited to submit their references once you submit your application, but we strongly encourage applicants to ensure referees are aware of your submission and expecting a reference request from us. Students are also encouraged to visit and explore the additional information available on the CENTA website.
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