Fossil Collections & Research

Devonian Fossil Collections

The Paleontological Research Institution (PRI) cares for one of the largest fossil invertebrate collections in the United States, with about seven million specimens. Many of these specimens are marine invertebrates from the Devonian Period, collected in New York. PRI’s Devonian collection is divided into two sections: a systematic collection of specimens organized by taxonomic classification, and a stratigraphic collection with specimens that were collected together and grouped by stratigraphy (age and rock layer).

The first Devonian fossils at PRI were collected by Cornell professor Henry Shaler Williams (1847–1918) and his students in the late 1800s. In the mid–late 20th century, Cornell paleontologists John Wells and John Cisne also made collections that eventually added to PRI’s Devonian collection. Over the past 30 years, the collection has grown with donations from PRI staff, avocational paleontologists, academic scientists, and nearby institutions, such as Alfred University, Binghamton University, and Syracuse University. Some of this material was collected more than a century ago, and much of it is irreplaceable. Many localities represented in the collection are no longer accessible due to land development and changes in land ownership. PRI is unusual in having a lot of stratigraphic samples, which were often collected as large slabs of rock. The crown jewel of the Devonian stratigraphic holdings at PRI is the Carl Brett and Gordon Baird collection. It contains an estimated 4,000 stratigraphic Devonian samples (about 30% of the entire PRI stratigraphic collection) from the northeastern United States, particularly New York.

The Brett and Baird collection was assembled largely with support from the National Science Foundation (NSF) over the past 45 years. It has served as the basis for a large and varied range of important paleobiological research projects, many focused on the evolutionary responses of ancient species to environmental changes such as climate change and sea level fluctuations. These collections also provide support for the idea of Coordinated Stasis (see below), which was researched by Brett and Baird and their colleagues.

We are working to realize the considerable research and educational value of the Brett and Baird Devonian collection. PRI collections staff, interns, and volunteers are currently working on a two-year NSF-funded project to upgrade the collection’s physical storage as well as digitize its records and data. When the project is complete, the data will be made available online to the research community and general public.

Paleontologist Spotlight

Carl Brett (left in photo) and Gordon Baird (right in photo) are internationally-recognized experts on Devonian fossils and rocks from New York.

Dr. Carlton Brett’s research involves the study of how ancient marine ecosystems—and the communities of animals that lived within them—evolved over time, and how the fossil record of these ecosystems and communities is preserved. At the age of 10, Carl’s family moved to Buffalo and he got hooked on fossils while exploring nearby Silurian- and Devonian-aged rocks. In 1973, Carl met Gordon Baird, and they have been doing research together ever since! Carl is the author of over 300 scientific papers and has provided mentorship to hundreds of students over his career.

Dr. Gordon Baird is an expert on the layer-by-layer stratigraphy of Paleozoic rocks in New York. He grew up in Rochester and as a child became interested in the fossil- rich rocks that could be found near his home. Over his career, Gordon amassed huge collections of rock and fossil specimens that are special because of the stratigraphic data that are associated with them. These samples, along with many of those collected by his close colleague Carl Brett, are now housed at PRI.

Coordinated Stasis

Ideas in Paleontology

In the mid-1990s, Carlton Brett and Gordon Baird developed the concept of “Coordinated Stasis” from their studies of the Devonian fossil record of New York. Coordinated stasis is the idea that entire groups of species in an ecosystem show very little evidence of change in their forms (or, morphologies) over long periods of geologic time. This stability, or stasis, is then followed by the abrupt extinction of these groups and their replacement by other species. Many people think that evolution should cause the morphology of species to gradually change over time. In fact, the fossil record shows that the opposite is usually true!

Most fossil species exhibit morphological stasis for most of their existence, with rapid evolutionary changes only happening during the origin of new species. The fossil species of the Hamilton Group, which includes the especially fossiliferous Moscow and Ludlowville formations, provide important data in support of Coordinated Stasis. Many of these Hamilton species survived largely unchanged for millions of years.

Whodunit?

Devonian CSI: Mass Extinction in the Late Devonian Period

Earth’s environment changed dramatically in the Late Devonian, between around 379 and 359 million years ago. Two major extinction events resulted in a huge decline in global biodiversity. Together, these extinctions comprise one of the “big five” mass extinctions of the past 541 million years. Learn more about this in the permanent exhibits!

The largest of the two late Devonian extinctions took place around 372 million years ago. Known as the “Kellwasser Event,” it destroyed most of the world’s reef makers and many other marine species. The second extinction, known as the “Hangenberg Event,” happened around 360 million years ago. During this event, armored placoderm fishes (the group that included Dunkleosteus) and many other marine organisms were lost. Together, these events eliminated about 19% of all families, 50% of all genera, and at least 70% of all species.

The exact cause of these extinctions remains a mystery, and scientists around the world are still trying to figure out what happened!

There was no asteroid impact or widespread volcanic activity, but it does appear that global climate cooled, and sea level fluctuated. As plants grew larger and the first forests appeared, new influxes of high-nutrient runoff washed into the oceans. This may have led to reduced oxygen levels in the ocean, the same way that human-caused pollution today can cause low-oxygen “dead zones” in lakes and coastal areas. All of these factors may have contributed to this two-phase mass extinction. The Devonian rocks of New York are some of the best in the world for studying this event!

Paleontologist Spotlight

DIANA BOYER is a Professor of Geology at Winthrop University in South Carolina where she teaches Historical Geology and other courses. Diana is trained as a paleontologist, but uses a wide range of tools, in particular inorganic geochemistry and sedimentology, to better understand ocean conditions surrounding the late Devonian mass extinctions, as well as other questions involving Paleozoic marine communities. Diana’s research has been funded by the Petroleum Research Fund and the National Science Foundation.