Ology of the Month: Paleontology

Well, it’s that time again. The calendar has flipped, the sun appeared, and the groundhog did not see his shadow so spring evidently is upon us, almost.* The ‘Ology of the month is once more upon us as well, get excited! This month we will delve into…wait for it….PALEONTOLOGY!

Now, before you stop reading because you assume that of all the ‘ologies you’ve got this one pegged, I’d like us all to be clear on a few things:

Paleontology is not:

• Archaeology (the study of past cultures)
• Indiana Jones’ profession (yep, that’s still archaeology)

• Irrelevant to modern humans (paleontology affects you, yes, you!) Finds such as Lucy require the expertise of anthropologists, archaeologists and paleontologists to figure out the whole story
• Only the study of dinosaurs-basically it covers ALL old, dead, plant and animal specimens
• A sure-fire career path to sweat and sunburns—check out this link to read about the Burke’s curator Christian Sidor and his team’s latest paleontological research in ANTARCTICA

Paleontology is the study of past life forms, based on plant and animal fossils and their geological contexts.

Here to tell you more about what paleontology is and what paleontologists actually do is the Burke’s curator of vertebrate paleontology, Christian Sidor (pictured above next to Lego Indiana).

ES: How would you describe paleontology in ten words or less?

CS: It's the study of the history of life on Earth.

ES: Most people think they may know a little about what it’s like to study paleontology--what is something unusual or random that most people would not know?

CS: The fossil record consists of more than just bones.  Some of the most interesting fossils are the fossilized remains of animal behavior- like footprints, trackways, burrows, or poop-things that paleontologists call trace fossils.

ES: When you tell people you are a paleontologist, what is usually the first thing they ask or say?

CS: Like Ross? (from Friends - but that's fading now that the show is no longer on TV.)

ES: What are some common misconceptions about paleontology?

CS: The single biggest misunderstanding is between paleontology and archaeology - THEY'RE NOT THE SAME!  (ES here: again, please refer to the above diptych of Sidor vs. the Lego if this point needs any further clarification!)

ES: What’s the most interesting research project you’ve worked on this year?

CS: My students and I just got back from looking for fossils in Antarctica.  We found lots of great material from the Early and Middle Triassic - about 245 million years ago - a time when Antarctica formed part of the supercontinent Pangea and was devoid of glaciers.

Kryostega collinsoni, a Triassic amphibian discovered by Sidor on a previous expedition to Antarctica

ES: Why should reader’s care about paleontology (outside of the fact that people seem to really dig dinosaurs)? 

CS: The fossil record documents how animals and plants responded to climate change in the past, and this type of knowledge could be very important to have in the face of future changes to the Earth. 

If you would like to learn more about the paleontological work that happens at the Burke Museum, or want to meet Christian Sidor, come to the Burke on Saturday, March 5^th for Dino Day! In addition to the opportunity to see real dinosaur and dinosaur-era fossils, there will be digging, dino dress-up, and drawing occurring all day!

ES: One final question, anything you want to plug for Dino Day? 

CS: I think the “Expeditions” theme is great and hopefully will show people that the Burke Museum is actively collecting from all over the world.

Read more about the Burke Paleontology department here.

*please note that the Burke Museum does not take a position on the relative merits or lack thereof of groundhog shadow watching as a scientifically verifiable seasonal indicator…but we really would like spring to come soon.

Posted by: Emily Sparling

Ology of the Month: Ichthyology

Introducing a new Burke Blog feature:

Each month the Burke Blog will introduce a new "-ology." The suffix -ology simply means "the study of ______." Hook up -ology with the scientific name of your area of interest and voilà, an -ology is born. For a complete list of  -ologies ranging from acarology to zymology click here.

This month, I'd like to introduce you to one of my favorite -ologies: ICHTHYOLOGY. Contrary to its pronunciation, it is not the study of things that gross people out (unless fish fall into that category for you in which case you’re looking for ichthyophobia.) I digress.

Simple, right? In name yes, in scope no. Fish make up close to half of all vertebrate species in existence today. They can be found in salty, sandy, fresh, sewage-y, pristine and polluted waters from Antarctica to the Arctic. The classification, preservation and conservation of these creatures are a major concern for ichthyologists around the world. At the Burke Museum, ichthyologists use the enormous UW Fish Collection to add to our growing understanding of the amazing ecosystems here in the Northwest and beyond.


Ichthyology = the study of fish

I asked the Burke’s fish collection manager and professional ichthyologist, Katherine Maslenikov, to tell me a bit more about the fishes:

ES: What are some common misconceptions about ichthyologists?
KM: I guess most people assume that if you work on fish it is the commercial species, such as salmon. We spend most of our time in the Burke Fish Collection trying to educate people about the other 30,000 species of fishes in the world.


Katherine Maslenikov manages the Burke fish collection.

 ES: Why should people care about ichthyology?
KM: There are more species of fishes than all other vertebrates combined. They are fascinating to study in terms of evolution and adaptation. Most people have some connection with fishes- whether it is to eat them in a restaurant, go catch them in the wild, or keep them in an aquarium. Fishes are valuable resources that need to be well managed and conserved.

ES: What is your favorite fish?

KM: There are so many fascinating fishes, but I guess my favorite would have to be the Pacific Spiny Lumpsucker (Eumicrotremus orbis).

Pacific Spiny Lumpsucker

ES: What's one small step we can take to assist your research or preserve/conserve fish diversity?

KM: Just be respectful of the resource: if you eat fish, don't take more than you need and try to only eat fishes caught in sustainable fisheries; if you keep fish in aquaria, make sure they are not rare or threatened and were raised in a sustainable way--not blasted out of a reef with dynamite. People often think the ocean is an endless resource, but we know this is clearly not the case. There are plenty of examples of fisheries crashing because we just took too many fish out of the populations. Treating the resources with respect will ensure that future generations can enjoy them as well.

ES: What is the most interesting research project to use the Fish Collection this year?
KM: One of our graduate students, Chris Kenaley, just finished up his Ph.D. on a group of deep-sea dragonfishes (family Stomiidae), showing the unique visual system using far-red light-producing cephalic photophores. Basically, there are many deep-sea animals that produce light (bioluminescence), but these fishes have special organs on their heads that produce a red light, which is very different from other fishes. It enables them to sneak up on their prey using this light without being detected.\

Read more about the Burke Ichthyology department here.

Do you have a favorite fish story? Post it in the comments below!

Posted by: Emily Sparling