Information about training programme

• Title of training: Paleobotany
• Description of project: By lectures, literature study, practical examination of plant fossils and an excursion, an overview of the field of palaeobotany is presented. Topics include:
• geology and the processes of fossilization
• the development of terrestrial plant live on land and the evolution of the main higher plant groups, especially during the Devonian, illustrated by actual plant fossils
• state of the art palaeobotanical techniques, especially
• preparation work on cuticles and in situ pollen and spores
• discussion of present disputes in paleobotany
• case studies
• Duration of training: 3 weeks

Type of training

1. Practical experiences
• Examination and interpretation of fossils
• Identification of major fossil clades
• Preparation of cuticles and pollen
2. Lectures
• Major geological processes
• Fossilization processes
• Plate tectonics and continental drift
• Evolution of major land plant clades
3. Seminars
• Cross roads of phylogeny studies of extant taxa and paleobotanical studies, e.g. integrating molecular dating and fossil data

Contact information of mentor / supervisor

• Name of mentor / supervisor: Prof.dr. J.H.A. van Konijnenburg
• Institution / Organisation: Nationaal Herbarium Nederland / Naturalis
• EDIT partner number: 6/7
• Address: Einsteinweg 2, 2333 CC Leiden, The Netherlands

Target audience: for trainees at PhD or Postdoc level.

Individual training based on face-to-face and group discussions and self-activation in practicals. The content is shaped to the advanced courses organized by NHN in this matter, which usually have 1-2 lectures a day followed by a full day practicals and demonstrations.