Dr. Jisuo Jin, University of Western Ontario

Research interests 
a) Ordovician-Silurian brachiopod taxonomy and diversity patterns through time;

b) Origin, radiation, mass extinction, and recovery of brachiopod faunas in the epicontinental seas of North America during the Ordovician and Silurian periods;

c) Paleoecolgy and environmental control on the evolution of brachiopod communities and faunas;

d) Comparative study of Ordovician-Silurian brachiopod faunas of North America and other regions – applications to global biodiversity patterns and paleobiogeography.

Study of Cincinnatian brachiopods

The Late Ordovician brachiopods of Cincinnati and surrounding areas have long been known as one of best preserved and most diverse shelly faunas in the world. The Cincinnati brachiopod fauna holds key information for the invasion, diversification, and extinction of shelly benthos in the epicontinental seas of North America during the major greenhouse-icehouse climate change (and the accompanying marine transgression and regression) during the Late Ordovician. The study of the exceptional diversification and tropical gigantism exhibited by the Cincinnatian brachiopods will help us better understand the pattern and process of origin, radiation, isolation, and extinction of shelly benthos in epicontinental seas that form during major sea level rises in Earth history. My research interest in the Cincinnatian brachiopods lies in their role in the overall paleogeographic gradients in terms of shell morphology and faunal diversity from the paleoequator to subtropics and from continental margin shelves to inland seas, as well as the paleoecological factors controlling such gradients.

Monday, August 18, 2008