Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Paleontology
Trapped Lee-Wave Resonance Determines Antarctic Megadune Wavelength
Published: 2026-05-23
Subjects: Applied Statistics, Categorical Data Analysis, Design of Experiments and Sample Surveys, Earth Sciences, Fluid Dynamics, Geology, Geomorphology, Geophysics and Seismology, Glaciology, Mineral Physics, Other Earth Sciences, Paleontology, Physics, Planetary Geology, Planetary Geomorphology, Planetary Geophysics and Seismology, Planetary Glaciology, Planetary Hydrology, Planetary Mineral Physics, Planetary Sciences, Planetary Sedimentology, Sedimentology, Statistical Methodology, Statistical Models, Statistics and Probability, Stratigraphy
Snow megadunes cover 5×105 km2 of the East Antarctic plateau, biasing surface mass balance estimates and overprinting ice-core signals—yet their 2–5 km wavelength has lacked a quantitative selection mechanism for two decades. We first falsify the standard formula λ∗ = 2πU0/N through a calibration-free spatial test: eight REMA 2 m tiles across two independent locations at 81.5–82.0°S show no [...]
Geometrical Variations of the Skeletal Structures of Genus Pantanellium as Determined from Collected Specimens
Published: 2026-05-20
Subjects: Paleontology
Novel graph and string representations of the cortical shell structures of the genus Pantanellium, a Mesozoic radiolarian, are proposed. The representations are then used to compare the frame structures of fifty-nine specimens collected for the study. Among the fifty-nine fossil specimens, forty-seven different structures were found. It was also found that the frequency of the truncated [...]
Forest or tundra? How different vegetation reconstructions of Last Glacial landscapes in Europe may shape our perception of early human dispersal processes
Published: 2026-05-08
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geography, Human Geography, Nature and Society Relations, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Physical and Environmental Geography
Regional variability and long-term changes of past ecosystems likely had a strong impact on hunter-gatherer population dynamics, including the expansion of anatomically modern humans and the disappearance of Neanderthals. However, our understanding of these ecosystems remains limited, even when looking at large-scale patterns, such as the extent and distribution of forested areas. Vegetation [...]
Agent-based Modelling of Microbialite Formation through Sedimentation and Precipitation Dynamics
Published: 2026-04-13
Subjects: Biogeochemistry, Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Other Earth Sciences, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
Fossil microbialites resulting from the interplay of sedimentation and microbially induced precipitation are among the oldest evidence of life on Earth and help geobiologists interpret many sedimentary environments. However, the factors governing their internal structure and external morphology are still poorly understood. Additionally, abiotic processes can mimic the morphology of some [...]
Stable isotopic composition, paleoecology, and habitat of the ammonite Sphenodiscus lobatus in the Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) Western Interior Seaway
Published: 2026-03-04
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Sedimentology
Despite their abundance as fossils, the life histories of ammonites are still poorly understood. We analyzed the oxygen (δ18O) and carbon (δ13C) isotopic composition of well-preserved shell material taken from different growth stages of the streamlined oxyconic ammonite species Sphenodiscus lobatus from the Upper Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) Pierre Shale and Fox Hills Formation of South Dakota. [...]
Origin, evolution and decline of European mangroves: the Cenozoic paleobotanical record
Published: 2026-02-13
Subjects: Paleontology
This paper reviews available paleobotanical evidence (pollen and macrofossils) from 114 European sites to infer Cenozoic mangrove dynamics. European mangroves originated at the Paleocene/Eocene boundary in western Europe as relatively diverse communities comprising seven true-mangrove taxa, including the major mangrove-forming elements Rhizophoraceae, Avicennia and Nypa. Some taxa arrived from [...]
ForamJ – A Tool for the Reproducible, Semi-automated Analysis of Foraminifera Micro Computed Tomography Datasets
Published: 2026-01-11
Subjects: Paleobiology, Paleontology, Research Methods in Life Sciences
The application of micro-computed tomography (µCT) to foraminiferal test analysis has opened new avenues for high-resolution, non-destructive 3D characterisation of internal and external morphological features. However, existing workflows are typically limited by low throughput, manual segmentation, and reliance on proprietary software, constraining dataset reproducibility and scalability. Here [...]
First documented record of the ammonite Turrilites costatus LAMARCK, 1801 from the Cenomanian of northern Saudi Arabia: Implications for Arabian Plate paleogeography
Published: 2025-10-18
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Paleontology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
This study presents the first documented occurrence of the heteromorph ammonite genus Turrilites LAMARCK, 1801, from the Cretaceous strata of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In-situ fossil assemblages, identified as Turrilites costatus LAMARCK, 1801, were discovered and documented in three separate outcrops of the Aruma Formation, located south of the city of Ar'ar in northern Saudi Arabia. The [...]
Eocene lacustrine–volcaniclastic deposits at Aliabad (Central Iran): A possible Proto-basin of the Oligo-Miocene Qom Formation
Published: 2025-10-14
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy, Volcanology
Central Iran hosts intricate Cenozoic successions where the Oligo‑Miocene Qom Formation forms a major hydrocarbon reservoir. The stratigraphic and paleoenvironmental relationship of the Eocene Aliabad deposits to this formation has been controversial. This study integrates stratigraphic logging, petrography, geochemistry (XRD/XRF), and ichnology on 46 thin sections from Aliabad and 157 [...]
Author citation metrics in paleontology: the h-index and the c-score
Published: 2025-10-07
Subjects: Paleontology
The “Stanford ranking” (SR) of standardized citation indicators calculates an individual scientist’s composite c-score, addressing limitations of the h-index. Updated annually, the SR lists the top 100,000 scientists and the top 2% in each specialty. This study examines all (500) palaeontologists included in the SR (SR-palaeontologists), comparing their h-index, c-score and related productivity [...]
Unraveling Southern Ocean Diatom Diversity Across the Eocene/Oligocene Transition
Published: 2025-09-09
Subjects: Biodiversity, Earth Sciences, Paleobiology, Paleontology
The Eocene-Oligocene transition (EOT) was a critical interval of global cooling and circulation change that reshaped marine ecosystems. However, current knowledge of diatom diversity and community dynamics during this interval relies mainly on biostratigraphic compilations, which largely document common species and thus likely underestimate true diversity. This study provides a more complete [...]
Out of Afar: the first hominin migration? Long-term landscape changes in the Afar region and implications for hominin bipedalism
Published: 2025-07-18
Subjects: Paleontology
Tectonic and geomorphological processes in East Africa have long shaped the habitats and ecosystems within which hominins evolved, with the Afar Depression, created through rifting and plate reorganisation, a striking example of landscape isolation potentially shaping evolutionary opportunity. Yet climate change in Africa has traditionally been regarded as a key driver of behavioural adaptations, [...]
Continental-Scale Carbonate Sedimentation and Environmental Correlates of the Shuram-Wonoka Excursion
Published: 2025-07-01
Subjects: Biogeochemistry, Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geology, Paleontology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
Strata of the Ediacaran Period record many Earth-Life features that distinguish the Neoproterozoic-Phanerozoic transition. However, it is difficult to determine cause and effect relationships between Ediacaran events. Continental-scale patterns of sedimentation have been used as proxies to investigate controls on Phanerozoic macroevolution, including sea level drivers and potential carbon cycling [...]
Weakening of AMOC linked to past Greenland Ice Sheet retreat
Published: 2025-03-21
Subjects: Atmospheric Sciences, Climate, Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geology, Oceanography, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Paleontology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
A weakening of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is predicted to occur under multiple scenarios of future warming. However, the effect of meltwater from a decaying Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) on AMOC is uncertain. Using a basin-wide network of North Atlantic sediment cores, we show that the largescale melting of the GrIS during a previous interglacial (Marine Isotope Stage 11c [...]
Ediacaran coupling of climate and biosphere dynamics
Published: 2025-03-14
Subjects: Climate, Glaciology, Paleontology, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
Throughout the Phanerozoic (538.8 Ma to present), climate change is demonstrably linked to radiations, extinctions, and turnovers in the biosphere. Here, we show that this connection existed in the late Ediacaran (~579 to 538.8 Ma), the first interval in Earth’s history to host complex macro-organisms, including early metazoans. Current correlations of glacial sedimentary deposits have been used [...]