The Triassic Transition: Analyzing niche replacement between major clades of fossil vertebrates

• Applicant: Professor Jörg Fröbisch, Ph.D., since 9/2017
• Subject Area: Palaeontology
• Term: from 2014 to 2020
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 261812059

The shift between Paleozoic and modern faunas during the Triassic Period (c. 252-200 Ma) was one of the most important biological transitions in Earth history. Taxonomic turnover during this transition is well known, but the evolutionary processes underlying it remain obscure. There are two competing hypotheses of the evolutionary dynamics of this transition in major terrestrial vertebrate groups: competition vs. ecological opportunism. I will quantitatively test these hypotheses directly for the first time, using geometric morphometric analysis of lower jaw shape (a known correlate of dietary niche) in terrestrial vertebrates from the Permian, Triassic, and Jurassic periods. The results of this research will have important implications for understanding the origins of dinosaurs and mammals. They will also more generally elucidate the dynamics of replacement following mass extinctions, vital information for modelling the long-term effects of current human-mediated vertebrate extinctions.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: United Kingdom
• Participating Institution: Museum für Naturkunde; Leibniz-Institut für Evolutions- und Biodiversitätsforschung (MfN)
• Participating Persons: Professor Dr. Roger Benson; Professor Dr. Richard Butler
• Ehemaliger Antragsteller: Christian Kammerer, Ph.D., until 9/2017