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4/23/10

Tetrapod Zoology


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For as long as I've been able, I have been writing and publishing popular, semi-technical and technical articles on the animals that interest me. My technical research on the Lower Cretaceous theropod dinosaurs of southern England led to my first efforts in the peer-reviewed literature: namely, a series of papers on isolated limb bones and vertebrae, and on historical taxonomy. In 2001 Dave Martill and I produced Dinosaurs of the Isle of Wight, a large, comprehensive overview to the dinosaurs of the Lower Cretaceous rocks of the Isle of Wight (and certainly not a field guide as suggested by the title of the series it belongs to). Though one reviewer described this work as over-indulgent and essentially over-detailed, it has generally been well received, and I know that I would be happy if other workers were to produce volumes like this on the dinosaurs (or other vertebrates) of their local geological units. Partly because it was produced in a tremendous rush (it had to be published prior to the 2001 opening of the dinosaur museum at Sandown on the Isle of Wight), Dinosaurs of the Isle of Wight contains numerous errors and is also now out of date in many places. A second edition may be produced in the future: certainly the sections on iguanodonts and sauropods will be completely different. More to be added soon.
Note: this page is a work in progress and will be expanded over time.
Current research interests and future plans
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The origin and evolution of tyrant dinosaurs;YaverlandiaBecklespinax and Valdoraptor; Lower Cretaceous pliosaurs and ornithocheiroid pterosaurs; British dinosaur diversity (see Naish & Martill 2007 and this blog article); basal coelurosaur evolution; the palaeobiology of azhdarchoid pterosaurs (see Witton & Naish 2008 and this blog article) [adjacent Eotyrannus image provided by Luis Rey].
The history of Tetrapod Zoology
Tetrapod Zoology started its life on Saturday 21st January 2006 when, entirely on a whim, I decided to start blogging. For a review of TZ's first year in operation, go here. During December 2006 I was invited to join the scienceblogs network: this was finalized on 22nd January 2007, and I first posted on sb here. Unlike many bloggers, I sort of blog to a plan. Sure, I write about things that I bump into during the course of research, and I also write about brand-new discoveries that grab my interest. Anyway, the list of topics that I plan to cover is now horribly long and getting longer. Rest assured that, if something is promised it will appear one day.