- Project title
- Bourgueticrinina: Past and present morphological diversity of the ‘stalked-unstalked’ clade
- Description of the project
- Because of their rich fossil record, stalked crinoids have been used to explore large-scale
evolutionary processes and paleobathymetry. However, the robustness of evolutionary studies using a model organism depends on this organism’s own phylogeny’s robustness. Latest attempts in reconstructing the phylogeny of stalked crinoids have shown that traditional morphology-based classifications often contrast with results from molecular studies. These insights indicate the need for an in-depth critical revision of the phylogenetic relations among stalked crinoids, conciliating morphological, ontogenic, and molecular approaches. In this project we want to focus on the Bourgueticrinina clade known for its abundant Cenozoic fossil record and extant stalked and unstalked deep-sea species. Using fossils from Eocene lagerstätte we aim at a better understanding of the impact of the largescale environmental changes of the Eocene-Oligocene boundary on bourgueticrinins and the benthos.
Works done by the platform AST-RX
