Paleontology Commons^™

Utilizing Phylogenetic And Geochemical Techniques To Examine Echinoderms Through Time, Maggie Ryan Limbeck

Doctoral Dissertations

Understanding biotic changes through Earth’s history has been the goal of paleobiology since the inception of the field. Advances in science and technology have progressed allowing us to reassess old questions and new questions that could have not been addressed without these new methods. Echinoderms (sea stars, sea urchins, etc.) appear in the fossil record during the early Cambrian and are still abundant in marine ecosystems today. This persistence through time has made echinoderms model organisms to answer questions about Earth’s past and present. Despite this role as a model organism there are many questions that remain with respect to …