ESC2032

The history of vertebrate life on planet earth

4 points - 4 hours per week - Second semester - Clayton

Objectives On the completion of this subject students will be able to characterise the comparative anatomy of the major vertebrate groups, use vertebrates as geological time pieces, have an understanding about how the major animal groups evolved, and about how environments have changed through time, about major extinction events, and about diet and habitat preferences of extinct animals.

Synopsis The subject deals with the major evolutionary patterns of vertebrate animals, emphasising Australia, for the past 500 million years. Special interest topics include the origin of the major groups (e.g. birds, marsupials and man), major extinction events and their causes (e.g. extinction of the dinosaurs, extinction of the Australian megafauna), vertebrate evidence for climatic change, especially for the development of aridity on the Australian continent. Emphasis will be placed on the philosophy behind such interpretive methods as well as the biases and the limitations of the data available in Australia relative to the rest of the world. Palaeontologists from around Australia lecture in this course.

Assessment Written (2000 words): 20% - Examinations (1 hour): 40% - Laboratory work/fieldwork: 40%

Prescribed texts

Vickers-Rich P and others (eds) Vertebrate palaeontology of Australasia Monash Science Centre, 1996

Back to the 1999 Science Handbook