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Paleontology pp 84–88Cite as

Biometrics in paleontology

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Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Earth Science ((EESS))

The statistical analysis of metrical characters of fossils is a useful aid to paleontologists in the study of species and infraspecific categories. The description of a type specimen, backed up by observations on a few paratypes, can often be profitably supplemented by the statistical study of an association consisting of many specimens. The quantitative assessment of such material will then be a helpful complement to the qualitative diagnosis. Such topics as the study of growth patterns, phenotypic response to environmental stimuli, predation, etc. may also be assisted by quantitative methods.

Species and Populations

A zoological species consists of an interbreeding natural population (see Species Concept ). Obviously, it is not possible to make direct inferences about the breeding habits of fossil organisms; the paleontologist is therefore obliged to reconstruct as complete a picture as possible from the fragmentary evidence available, using morphology; stratigraphic location;...

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References

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Authors
  1. R. A. Reyment
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© 1979 Dowden, Hutchinson & Ross, Inc.

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Reyment, R.A. (1979). Biometrics in paleontology . In: Paleontology. Encyclopedia of Earth Science. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-31078-9_16

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-31078-9_16

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-0-87933-185-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-540-31078-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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