The Florida Museum of Natural History, a research and educational unit within the University of Florida, has an active program in paleontology and paleobiology. There are three large, relevant research collections, including invertebrate paleontology, paleobotany and vertebrate paleontology, which taken together, include over one million specimens. The research facilities within the museum or in the affiliate departments are modern, comprehensive and include screenwashing and preparation laboratories, stereo, light, and scanning electron microscopes, mass spectrometer, image analysis systems, and paleomagnetic laboratory. In addition to the main UF libraries, the FLMNH includes the George Gaylord Simpson and Paleobotany research libraries, which together contain about 3,000 books, runs of 25 specialized journals, and 50,000 reprints.
Prospective graduate students intending to pursue Master's or Doctoral studies in paleontology and paleobiology can apply to the departments of Anthropology, Biology, or Geology, depending upon their particular background and research interests. Financial support is available in the form of graduate teaching assistantships and museum assistantships. For application materials and further information about these programs contact:
Graduate Coordinator
(appropriate department as listed above)
University of Florida
Gainesville FL 32611
It is also helpful during the application process to contact one of the faculty members with interests similar to yours listed below.
There are many graduate courses in paleontology, paleobiology, and related disciplines taught at UF. Each program of graduate coursework is quite flexible, depending upon the particular needs and interests of the student. Courses taught by FLMNH paleobiologists include:
BOT 5115/GLY 5678; Paleobotany, 3 credits (Manchester, Dilcher)
BOT 6927; Evolution and Paleoecology of Plants: Terrestrial Plants and their Environment, 1 credit
(Dilcher and Manchester)
BOT 6927; Evolutionary Processes in Plants, 1 credit (Dilcher, co-taught)
GLY 6660; Paleoecology, 3 credits (Jones)
GLY 6698; Topics in Paleobiology, 2 credits (Jones, MacFadden)
PCB 4674; Evolution, 3 credits (MacFadden, co-taught with Zoology Faculty)
ZOO 4926/GLY 6932; Vertebrate Macroevolution, 3 credits (MacFadden)
ZOO/GLY 5640; Vertebrate Paleontology, 3 credits (Bloch and/or MacFadden)
GLY 5786; Topics in Field Geology: Florida Vertebrate Paleontology, 2 credits (Bloch)
BOT/GLY/ZOO 6905; Individual studies
BOT/GLY/ZOO 6910; Supervised research
BOT/GLY/ZOO 6971 & 7980; Master's and Doctoral Research
Other related courses available to paleobiology graduate students include, e. g., systematics, mammalogy, herpetology, ornithology, ichthyology, community ecology, morphometrics, micropaleontology, invertebrate paleontology, paleomagnetism, vertebrate paleoecology, biological photography, human osteology, isotope geology, and zooarchaeology.
Museum Faculty in Paleontology and Paleobiology
Jonathan I. Bloch (Ph.D., University of Michigan),
Associate Curator of Vertebrate Paleontology and
Associate Professor of Biology, Geology, and Anthropology; First appearance and early evolution of the modern orders of mammals including Primates.
Email: jbloch@flmnh.ufl.edu
David L. Dilcher (B.S., Minnesota; Ph.D., Yale),
Graduate Research Professor of Paleobotany
and Professor of Botany, Geology, and Zoology; Evolutionary biology of flowering plants, phytogeography,
plant-animal interactions and paleoclimate.
Email: dilcher@flmnh.ufl.edu
Douglas S. Jones (B.S., Rutgers; M.A., Ph.D.,
Princeton), Curator of Invertebrate Paleontology,
Professor of Geology, and Director of the Florida Museum of Natural History; molluscan paleoecology;
paleoclimatology; marine ecology; biogeochemistry of marine invertebrates; Cenozoic invertebrates of Florida.
Email: dsjones@flmnh.ufl.edu
Steven R. Manchester (B.S., Oregon State,
M.S., Ph.D., Indiana), Associate Curator of Paleobotany and
Associate Professor of Botany and Geology; Angiosperm paleobotany, systematics, and paleobiogeography of the Northern
Hemisphere, Eocene floras of North America.
Email: steven@flmnh.ufl.edu
Bruce J. MacFadden (B.S., Cornell; M.Phil.,
Ph.D., Columbia), Curator of Vertebrate Paleontology and
Professor of Geology, Latin American Studies, and Zoology; Systematics, geochronology, and paleoecology
(particularly using stable isotopes) of late Cenozoic mammals from the New World.
Email: bmacfadd@flmnh.ufl.edu
David W. Steadman (Ph.D., Univ. Arizona),
Associate Curator of Ornithology, Chair of Department of
Natural Sciences, and Associate Professor of Zoology; Avian paleontology and biogeography, extinction on oceanic
islands.
Email: dws@flmnh.ufl.edu