A History of Life in 100 Fossils by Taylor, Paul D. -- Read -- Imperial Library of Trantor

Index

Cover Title Page Copyright Dedication Contents Introduction Precambrian

World’s oldest fossils Great Oxygenation Embryonic enigmas Precambrian paradox

Palaeozoic Era

Cambrian Explosion Worms from sea to land Early echinoderms Palaeozoic plankton Cousins of starfish Ordovician predators Early symbiosis Mystery teeth Ruling reefs Forests of stone Ancient scorpions Land grab Life sucks Early vision Avoiding predators Compete or fail Jaws Shark’s nemesis Invading the land Square jellyfish Forest fuel Continental drift Giant amphibians Whorls of teeth Sex or solar panels? Preserved by silica Mass extinctions

Mesozoic Era

The Lilliput effect Halfway to mammals Start of something big Safety in isolation Bony fish diversify Devil’s toenails Mass mortality Survivors ‘Fish lizards’ Stealth and longevity Paddling into legend Colour and fossils Larger than life Correlation Birds hatch Gigantic insects Living fossils Powered flight Dinosaur teeth Webs of silk Great monkey puzzle Sexual selection Losing a skeleton Chalk cliffs Pumping machines Arms race Hooked from deep time Parental care Polar dinosaurs Grassed up Maastricht mosasaurs Clams and oil Legendary king The K-T extinction Small and simple

Cenozoic Era

Formation of fossils First flight Back to the water Zombie death grip Crabs and concretions Amoebae and pyramids Caribbean cold seep A Darwinian snail A whale of a time Stuck in time Origins of primates Blooming plants Spinning samaras Lackadaisical turtle Punctuated equilibrium Before Consul Terrifying twitchers In and out of isolation Fossil frogs Spiral bezoar Desert sea Conserving energy Left-handed snails Bunyip at the billabong American interchange Missing links Companions in cinder Island dwarfism Directional evolution Mammoth tales Lancewood legacy Staghorn coral Sirenian slaughter Our last ancestor?

Specimen Details Geological Timescale Index Further Information Picture Credits Acknowledgements About the Authors