Professor Charles H Wellman
School of Biosciences
Professor of Palaeobiology
c.wellman@sheffield.ac.uk
+44 114 222 3689
+44 114 222 3689
Alfred Denny Building
Full contact details
Professor Charles H Wellman
School of Biosciences
Alfred Denny Building
Western Bank
Sheffield
S10 2TN
School of Biosciences
Alfred Denny Building
Western Bank
Sheffield
S10 2TN
- Profile
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- BSc (1987) University of Southampton, UK
- PhD (1991) Cardiff University, Wales, UK
- Postdoctoral Research Assistant, The Natural History Museum, London (1991-1992)
- Postdoctoral Research Assistant, Cardiff University, Wales, UK (1994-1997)
- Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, Reader and Professor, School of Biosciences, University of Sheffield (1997-present)
- Research interests
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My research addresses the origin and early evolution of land plants. My research integrates evidence from both fossil and living plants. Fossil evidence is in the form of early land plant megafossils and dispersed microfossils (spores and fragments). I am currently working on material from the Ordovician-Devonian of China, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Spain and Spitsbergen. I study living plants in order to interpret the earliest land plant fossils through, specifically:
- cladistic analyses of evolutionary relationships
- molecular clock analyses of evolutionary divergence times
- analysis of physiological adaptations required for plants to invade the land (particularly Evo-Devo studies on the molecular genetics of spore/pollen wall development).
I am also exploring the impact of the invasion of the land by plants on global change. This has led to research into developing a novel (and currently only) proxy for past UV-B radiation.
In recent years I have also extended my research back in time to examine a previously neglected research area considering the ‘algal scum’ that inhabited the land before it was invaded by plants. This has lead to work on microbial remains from the billion year old deposits of the Torridonian and Nonesuch Shale.
- Publications
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Show: Featured publications All publications
Featured publications
Journal articles
- A novel reproductive strategy in an Early Devonian plant. Current Biology, 30(9), R388-R389. View this article in WRRO
- Mid-Devonian Archaeopteris roots signal revolutionary change in earliest fossil forests. Current Biology, 30(3), 421-431.e2. View this article in WRRO
- The timescale of early land plant evolution. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 115(10), E2274-E2283. View this article in WRRO
- The Interrelationships of Land Plants and the Nature of the Ancestral Embryophyte. Current Biology, 28(5), 733-745.e2. View this article in WRRO
- Palaeoecology and palaeophytogeography of the Rhynie chert plants: Further evidence from integrated analysis of in situ and dispersed spores. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 373(1739). View this article in WRRO
- Palaeoecology of a billion-year-old non-marine cyanobacterium from the Torridon Group and Nonesuch Formation. Palaeontology, 59(1), 89-108. View this article in WRRO
- Investigating Devonian trees as geo-engineers of past climates: linking palaeosols to palaeobotany and experimental geobiology. Palaeontology, 58(5), 787-801. View this article in WRRO
- The terrestrial biota prior to the origin of land plants (embryophytes): a review of the evidence. Palaeontology, 58(4), 601-627.
- Conservation ofMale Sterility 2function during spore and pollen wall development supports an evolutionarily early recruitment of a core component in the sporopollenin biosynthetic pathway. New Phytologist, 205(1), 390-401.
- The nature and evolutionary relationships of the earliest land plants.. New Phytol, 202(1), 1-3.
- Earth's earliest non-marine eukaryotes. Nature.
- The invasion of the land by plants: when and where?. New Phytol, 188(2), 306-309.
- SPORE WALL ULTRASTRUCTURE IN THE EARLY LYCOPSID LECLERCQIA (PROTOLEPIDODENDRALES) FROM THE LOWER DEVONIAN OF NORTH AMERICA: EVIDENCE FOR A FUNDAMENTAL DIVISION IN THE LYCOPSIDS. AM J BOT, 96(10), 1849-1860.
- Origin and Radiation of the Earliest Vascular Land Plants. SCIENCE, 324(5925), 353-353.
- Plant spore walls as a record of long-term changes in ultraviolet-B radiation. NAT GEOSCI, 1(9), 592-596.
- Fragments of the earliest land plants.. Nature, 425(6955), 282-285. View this article in WRRO
All publications
Journal articles
- A palynological investigation of the Early-Middle Devonian transition and associated Choteč Event in Northern Spain. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 332, 105222-105222.
- Acritarch Palynomorph Darkness Index (PDI) as an indicator of thermal maturity in Silurian sections from Saudi Arabia. Marine and Petroleum Geology, 169, 107049-107049.
- Recognition of an extended record of euglenoid cysts: Implications for the end-Triassic mass extinction. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 322, 105043-105043.
- A pectinal tooth with peg sensilla from an Early Devonian scorpion. The Journal of Arachnology, 51(3).
- Evolution of phenotypic disparity in the plant kingdom. NATURE PLANTS.
- Dispersed spore assemblages from the Lower Devonian Rañeces - La Vid groups of Northern Spain: Palaeogeographical implications. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 310.
- Terrestrialization in the Ordovician. Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 532(1).
- Morphological Relationships of Ancyrospora Species from the Givetian and Frasnian Deposits of the Pan-Arctic Region. Paleontological Journal, 56(9), 1032-1054.
- Morphology and Wall Ultrastructure of the Devonian Spore Acinosporites macrospinosus Richardson 1965 and Its Bearing on the Origin of the Megaspore Apical Prominence. International Journal of Plant Sciences, 000-000.
- Low tropical diversity during the adaptive radiation of early land plants. Nature Plants, 8(1), 104-109.
- A possible billion-year-old holozoan with differentiated multicellularity.. Current Biology.
- The Devonian landscape factory : plant–sediment interactions in the Old Red Sandstone of Svalbard and the rise of vegetation as a biogeomorphic agent. Journal of the Geological Society, 178(5).
- The Nonesuch Formation Lagerstätte: a rare window into freshwater life one billion years ago. Journal of the Geological Society, 178(2).
- The use of spore–pollen assemblages to reconstruct vegetation changes in the Permian (Lopingian) Zechstein deposits of northeast England. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 104399-104399.
- Early land plant phytodebris. Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 511. View this article in WRRO
- Pellicle ultrastructure demonstrates that Moyeria is a fossil euglenid. Palynology, 44(3), 461-471.
- A novel reproductive strategy in an Early Devonian plant. Current Biology, 30(9), R388-R389. View this article in WRRO
- Bernard Owens (1938–2019). Palynology, 44(2), 195-204.
- Reconstructing the terrestrial flora and marine plankton of the Middle Devonian of Spain : implications for biotic interchange and palaeogeography. Journal of the Geological Society, 177(2), 315-324.
- Mid-Devonian Archaeopteris roots signal revolutionary change in earliest fossil forests. Current Biology, 30(3), 421-431.e2. View this article in WRRO
- Professor Bernard Owens (1938–2019). Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 276, 104184-104184.
- Wall ultrastructure of the Permian pollen grain Lueckisporites virkkiae Potonié et Klaus 1954 emend. Clarke : Evidence for botanical affinity. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology. View this article in WRRO
- Colonial palynomorphs from the Upper Ordovician of north-eastern Iran : ‘thalli’, coenobial Chlorophyceae (Hydrodictyaceae) or cyanobacteria?. Palynology. View this article in WRRO
- Filamentous green algae from the Early Devonian Rhynie chert. PalZ. View this article in WRRO
- Palynological analysis of Upper Ordovician to Lower Silurian sediments from the Diyarbakir Basin, southeastern Turkey. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 263, 28-46. View this article in WRRO
- Edwin George (‘Ted’) Spinner (1938–2018). Palynology, 43(2), 184-187. View this article in WRRO
- Palaeontology: The Rhynie Chert Is the Gift that Keeps on Giving. Current Biology, 29(3), r93-r95. View this article in WRRO
- An endemic flora of dispersed spores from the Middle Devonian of Iberia. Papers in Palaeontology. View this article in WRRO
- Reply to Hedges et al.: Accurate timetrees do indeed require accurate calibrations. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 115(41), E9512-E9513.
- The timescale of early land plant evolution. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 115(10), E2274-E2283. View this article in WRRO
- The Interrelationships of Land Plants and the Nature of the Ancestral Embryophyte. Current Biology, 28(5), 733-745.e2. View this article in WRRO
- Dinosaur-plant interactions within a Middle Jurassic ecosystem—palynology of the Burniston Bay dinosaur footprint locality, Yorkshire, UK. Palaeobiodiversity and Palaeoenvironments, 98(1), 139-151. View this article in WRRO
- Palaeoecology and palaeophytogeography of the Rhynie chert plants: Further evidence from integrated analysis of in situ and dispersed spores. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 373(1739). View this article in WRRO
- Ultrastructure and Probable Botanical Affinity of the Enigmatic SporomorphFroelichsporites traverseifrom the Norian (Late Triassic) of North America. International Journal of Plant Sciences, 179(2), 100-114. View this article in WRRO
- The classic Lower Devonian plant-bearing deposits of northern New Brunswick, eastern Canada: Dispersed spore taxonomy and biostratigraphy. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 249, 24-49. View this article in WRRO
- A key for the identification of cryptospores. Palynology. View this article in WRRO
- Palynology of the Middle Ordovician Hawaz Formation in the Murzuq Basin, south-west Libya. Palynology, 41(sup1), 31-56. View this article in WRRO
- Discussion on ‘Tectonic and environmental controls on Palaeozoic fluvial environments: reassessing the impacts of early land plants on sedimentation’ Journal of the GeologicalSociety, London, https://doi.org/10.1144/jgs2016-063. Journal of the Geological Society, 174(5), 947-950. View this article in WRRO
- Middle Ordovician acritarchs and problematic organic-walled microfossils from the Saq-Hanadir transitional beds in the QSIM-801 well, Saudi Arabia. Revue de Micropaléontologie, 60(3), 289-318. View this article in WRRO
- New Palynological investigations in the Paleozoic of Saudi Arabia and adjoining areas (Saudi Aramco – CIMP Joint Project). Revue de Micropaléontologie, 60(3), 279-280.
- Episodic river flooding events revealed by palynological assemblages in Jurassic deposits of the Brent Group, North Sea. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. View this article in WRRO
- A distinctive marginal marine palynological assemblage from the Přídolí of northwestern Saudi Arabia. Revue de Micropaléontologie. View this article in WRRO
- Middle Ordovician cryptospores from the Saq-Hanadir transitional beds in the QSIM-801 well, Saudi Arabia. Revue de Micropaléontologie, 60(3), 319-331. View this article in WRRO
- Provincial Devonian spores from South China, Saudi Arabia and Australia. Revue de Micropaléontologie. View this article in WRRO
- Palaeoecology of a billion-year-old non-marine cyanobacterium from the Torridon Group and Nonesuch Formation. Palaeontology, 59(1), 89-108. View this article in WRRO
- Middle Jurassic vegetation dynamics based on quantitative analysis of spore/pollen assemblages from the Ravenscar Group, North Yorkshire, UK. Palaeontology, 59(2), 305-328. View this article in WRRO
- Cryptospores from the Katian (Upper Ordovician) of the Tungus basin: The first evidence for early land plants from the Siberian paleocontinent. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 224, 4-13.
- A quantitative comparison of dispersed spore/pollen and plant megafossil assemblages from a Middle Jurassic plant bed from Yorkshire, UK. Paleobiology, 41(4), 640-660. View this article in WRRO
- Investigating Devonian trees as geo-engineers of past climates: linking palaeosols to palaeobotany and experimental geobiology. Palaeontology, 58(5), 787-801. View this article in WRRO
- The terrestrial biota prior to the origin of land plants (embryophytes): a review of the evidence. Palaeontology, 58(4), 601-627.
- Morphology and wall ultrastructure of a new and highly distinctive megaspore from the Middle Jurassic of Yorkshire, UK. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 216, 33-43.
- Spore assemblages from Upper Ordovician and lowermost Silurian sediments recovered from the Qusaiba-1 shallow core hole, Qasim region, central Saudi Arabia. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 212, 111-126.
- Palaeozoic palynostratigraphy of the Arabian plate [a joint project between Saudi Aramco and the Commission Internationale de Microflore du Paléozoïque (CIMP)]. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 212, 1-2.
- Late Ordovician–earliest Silurian chitinozoans from the Qusaiba-1 core hole (North Central Saudi Arabia) and their relation to the Hirnantian glaciation. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 212, 60-84.
- Conservation ofMale Sterility 2function during spore and pollen wall development supports an evolutionarily early recruitment of a core component in the sporopollenin biosynthetic pathway. New Phytologist, 205(1), 390-401.
- Spore assemblages from the Lower Devonian ‘Lower Old Red Sandstone’ deposits of the Northern Highlands of Scotland: the Berriedale Outlier. Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, 105(3), 227-238.
- Devonian spores from an intra-oceanic volcanic arc, West Junggar (Xinjiang, China) and the palaeogeographical significance of the associated fossil plant beds. REVIEW OF PALAEOBOTANY AND PALYNOLOGY, 206, 10-22.
- The nature and evolutionary relationships of the earliest land plants.. New Phytol, 202(1), 1-3.
- Lacustrine Nostoc (Nostocales) and associated microbiome generate a new type of modern clotted microbialite. Journal of Phycology. View this article in WRRO
- SPORE WALL ULTRASTRUCTURE OF THE LOWER DEVONIAN ZOSTEROPHYLLS RENALIA HUEBERI AND ZOSTEROPHYLLUM DIVARICATUM. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PLANT SCIENCES, 174(9), 1302-1313.
- Reply to Discussion on 'A high-precision U-Pb age constraint on the Rhynie Chert Konservat-Lagerstätte: Time scale and other implications': Journal, 168, 863-872. Journal of the Geological Society, 170(4), 703-706.
- Resistance of filamentous chlorophycean, ulvophycean, and xanthophycean algae to acetolysis: Testing Proterozoic and Paleozoic microfossil attributions. International Journal of Plant Sciences, 174(6), 947-957.
- Reproductive organs and in situ spores of asteroxylon mackiei kidston & lang, the most complex plant from the lower devonian Rhynie chert. International Journal of Plant Sciences, 174(3), 293-308.
- Palaeophytogeography of Ordovician-Silurian land plants. Geological Society Memoir, 38(1), 461-476.
- Pennsylvanian (mid-Bolsovian to Asturian) megaspores and large pollen of the Bristol Coalfield, UK. JOURNAL OF MICROPALAEONTOLOGY, 32, 87-106.
- ACETOLYSIS AS A SCREEN FOR DEGRADATION-RESISTANT MODERN ALGAL STRUCTURES FOR PALEONTOLOGICAL COMPARISONS. JOURNAL OF PHYCOLOGY, 48, S33-S34.
- A timeline for terrestrialization: consequences for the carbon cycle in the Palaeozoic. PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES, 367(1588), 519-536.
- Mid Devonian megaspores from Yunnan and North Xinjiang, China: Their palaeogeographical and palaeoenvironmental significances. Palaeoworld, 21(1), 11-19.
- Palaeobotany of the Pennsylvanian (mid-Bolsovian-Cantabrian; Moscovian) Warwickshire Group of the Bristol Coalfield, U.K.: Biostratigraphy and palaeoecology. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 179, 17-43.
- Spore assemblages from the Lower Devonian Xujiachong Formation from Qujing, Yunnan, China. Palaeontology, 55(3), 583-611.
- Pennsylvanian (mid/late Bolsovian-Asturian) permineralised plant assemblages of the Pennant Sandstone Formation of southern Britain: Systematics and palaeoecology. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 173, 23-45.
- A high-precision U-Pb age constraint on the Rhynie Chert Konservat-Lagerstatte: time scale and other implications. J GEOL SOC LONDON, 168(4), 863-872.
- Evolutionary development of the plant and spore wall.. AoB Plants, 2011, plr027. View this article in WRRO
- UV-B absorbing pigments in spores: biochemical responses to shade in a high-latitude birch forest and implications for sporopollenin-based proxies of past environmental change. POLAR RESEARCH, 30.
- Earth's earliest non-marine eukaryotes. Nature.
- Dryland plant communities in the Pennsylvanian (mid- to late Bolsovian) Winterbourne Formation of Bristol, southern Britain: Further evidence for taphonomic megabias. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 166(3-4), 268-285.
- The invasion of the land by plants: when and where?. New Phytol, 188(2), 306-309.
- Spore assemblages from the Lower Devonian 'Lower Old Red Sandstone' deposits of Arran, Scotland. EARTH ENV SCI T R SO, 100, 391-397.
- Palaeogeographic and palaeoclimatic considerations based on Ordovician to Lochkovian vegetation. Geological Society Special Publication, 339, 49-58.
- Wall ultrastructure in three species of the dispersed spore Emphanisporites from the Early Devonian. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology.
- SPORE WALL ULTRASTRUCTURE IN THE EARLY LYCOPSID LECLERCQIA (PROTOLEPIDODENDRALES) FROM THE LOWER DEVONIAN OF NORTH AMERICA: EVIDENCE FOR A FUNDAMENTAL DIVISION IN THE LYCOPSIDS. AM J BOT, 96(10), 1849-1860.
- Morphology and wall ultrastructure of the megaspore Lagenicula (Triletes) mixta (Winslow 1962) comb. nov from the Carboniferous (Early Mississippian: mid Tournaisian) of Ohio, USA. REV PALAEOBOT PALYNO, 156(1-2), 51-61.
- Studies of spore/pollen wall ultrastructure in fossil and living plants: A homage to Bernard Lugardon, a talented palynologist. REV PALAEOBOT PALYNO, 156(1-2), 1-1.
- Studies of spore/pollen wall ultrastructure in fossil and living plants: A review of the subject area and the contribution of Bernard Lugardon. REV PALAEOBOT PALYNO, 156(1-2), 2-6.
- Origin and Radiation of the Earliest Vascular Land Plants. SCIENCE, 324(5925), 353-353.
- ULTRASTRUCTURE OF ENIGMATIC PHYTOCLASTS (BANDED TUBES) FROM THE SILURIAN-LOWER DEVONIAN: EVIDENCE FOR AFFINITIES AND ROLE IN EARLY TERRESTRIAL ECOSYSTEMS. PALAIOS, 24(3-4), 167-180.
- ULTRASTRUCTURE OF DISPERSED AND IN SITU SPECIMENS OF THE DEVONIAN SPORE RHABDOSPORITES LANGII: EVIDENCE FOR THE EVOLUTIONARY RELATIONSHIPS OF PROGYMNOSPERMS. PALAEONTOLOGY, 52, 139-167.
- When scum ruled the Earth. Planet Earth(WINTER), 12-13.
- Plant spore walls as a record of long-term changes in ultraviolet-B radiation. NAT GEOSCI, 1(9), 592-596.
- Palaeophytogeographical and palaeoecological implications of a miospore assemblage of earliest Devonian (Lochkovian) age from Saudi Arabia. PALAEOGEOGR PALAEOCL, 250(1-4), 237-254.
- Rapid determination of spore chemistry using thermochemolysis gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and micro-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.. Photochem Photobiol Sci, 6(6), 689-694.
- Morphology and wall ultrastructure of the megaspore Lagenicula (Triletes) variabilis (Window, 1962) Arioli et al. (2004) from the Lower Carboniferous of Ohio, USA. REV PALAEOBOT PALYNO, 144(3-4), 231-248.
- Early to Middle Devonian miospores from northern Saudi Arabia. Revue de Micropaleontologie, 50(1), 27-57.
- Spores of the Rhynie chert plant Aglaophyton (Rhynia) major (Kidston and Lang) D.S Edwards, 1986. REV PALAEOBOT PALYNO, 142(3-4), 229-250.
- Spore assemblages from the Lower Devonian 'Lower Old Red Sandstone' deposits of the Rhynie outlier, Scotland. T ROY SOC EDIN-EARTH, 97, 167-211.
- The origin and early evolution of land plants: Palynological evidence. PALYNOLOGY, 30, 230-231.
- Half a century of palynology at the University of Sheffield. Geological Society Special Publication, 241, 259-279.
- New directions in Palaeozoic palynology. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 130(1-4), 1-15.
- Palaeoecology and palaeophytogeography of the rhynie chert plants: evidence from integrated analysis of in situ and dispersed spores.. Proc Biol Sci, 271(1542), 985-992.
- Fragments of the earliest land plants.. Nature, 425(6955), 282-285. View this article in WRRO
- Morphology and wall ultrastructure in Devonian spores with bifurcate-tipped processes. INT J PLANT SCI, 163(3), 451-474.
- Lower Devonian spore assemblages from the Arbuthnott Group at Canterland Den in the Midland Valley of Scotland. REV PALAEOBOT PALYNO, 118(1-4), 157-180.
- Cryptospores and trilete spores from the Llandovery, Nuayyim-2 borehole, Saudi Arabia. GeoArabia Special Publication, 1, 92-115.
- Spore assemblages from a Silurian sequence in borehole Hawiyah-151 from saudi Arabia. GeoArabia Special Publication, 1, 116-133.
- The microfossil record of early land plants.. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci, 355(1398), 717-731.
- A new plant assemblage (microfossil and megafossil) from the Lower Old Red Sandstone of the Anglo-Welsh Basin: its implications for the palaeoecology of early terrestrial ecosystems.. Rev Palaeobot Palynol, 109(3-4), 161-196.
- Tetrads in sporangia and spore masses from the Upper Silurian and Lower Devonian of the Welsh Borderland. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 130(2), 111-156.
- Tetrads in sporangia and spore masses from the upper Silurian and Lower Devonian of the Welsh Borderland. BOT J LINN SOC, 130(2), 111-156.
- Sporangia containing Scylaspora from the lower Devonian of the Welsh Borderland. PALAEONTOLOGY, 42, 67-81.
- Palynology, biostratigraphy, and depositional environments around the Ludlow-Pridoli boundary at Woodbury Quarry, Herefordshire, England. Bollettino della Societa Paleontologica Italiana, 38(2-3), 397-404.
- Ordovician land plants: Evidence and interpretation. Acta Universitatis Carolinae, Geologica, 43(1-2), 275-277.
- Ultrastructure of laevigate hilate spores in sporangia and spore masses from the Upper Silurian and Lower Devonian of the Welsh Borderland. PHILOS T ROY SOC B, 353(1378), 1983-2004.
- The Cosheston Group (Lower Old Red Sandstone) in southwest Wales: age, correlation and palaeobotanical significance. GEOL MAG, 135(3), 397-412.
- Permanent dyads in sporangia and spore masses from the Lower Devonian of the Welsh Borderland. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 127(2), 117-147.
- Curation of exceptionally preserved early land plant microfossils: problems and solutions. Curator, 39(3), 209-216.
- Ultrastructure of Synorisporites downtonensis and Retusotriletes cf. coronadus in spore masses from the Přídoli of the Welsh Borderland. Palaeontology, 39(3), 783-800.
- Cryptospores from the type area of the Caradoc Series in southern Britain. Special Papers in Palaeontology, 55, 103-136.
- Sporomorph assemblages from the 'lower old red sandstone' of Lorne, Scotland. Special Papers in Palaeontology, 55, 41-101.
- “Phytodebris” from Scottish Silurian and Lower Devonian continental deposits. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 84(3-4), 255-279.
- Palynology of the ‘Lower Old Red Sandstone’ at Glen Coe, Scotland. Geological Magazine, 131(4), 563-566.
- A land plant microfossil assemblage of Mid Silurian age from the Stonehaven Group, Scotland. Journal of Micropalaeontology, 12(1), 47-66.
- Terrestrial plant microfossils from Silurian inliers of the Midland Valley of Scotland. Palaeontology, 36(1), 155-193.
- A Lower Devonian sporomorph assemblage from the Midland Valley of Scotland. Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh: Earth Sciences, 84(2), 117-136.
- Spore assemblages from the Silurian-Lower Devonian ‘Lower Old Red Sandstone’ deposits of the Lanark Basin of the Midland Valley of Scotland. Fossil Imprint, 80(1), 9-18.
- Age of the basal ‘Lower Old Red Sandstone’ Stonehaven Group of Scotland: The oldest reported air-breathing land animal is Silurian (late Wenlock) in age. Journal of the Geological Society.
- Reconstructing the paleoenvironment of an oxygenated Mesoproterozoic shoreline and its record of life. Geological Society of America Bulletin.
- John Brian Richardson (1935–2021). Palynology.
Chapters
- Early land plant phytodebris, Geological Society Special Publication (pp. 309-320).
- Early Terrestrialization: Transition from Algal to Bryophyte Grade, Advances in Photosynthesis and Respiration (pp. 9-28). Springer Netherlands
- Miospores and the emergence of land plants In Webby BD, Paris F, Droser ML & Percival IG (Ed.), The Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event (pp. 361-366).
- Origin, function and development of the spore wall in early land plants, The Evolution of Plant Physiology (pp. 43-63). Elsevier
- Origin, function and development of the spore wall in early land plants, The Evolution of Plant Physiology (pp. 43-63).
- Embryophytes on land: The Ordovician to Lochkovian (Lower Devonian) record In Gensel PG & Edwards D (Ed.), Plants invade the land: Evolutionary and environmental perspectives (pp. 3-28).
- Extracting plant mesofossils and megafossils by bulk acid maceration In Jones TP & Rowe NP (Ed.), Fossil plants and spores: modern techniques (pp. 11-14). Geological Society, London
- The fossil record of early land plants and interrelationships between primitive embryophytes: too little and too late? In Bates JW, Ashton NW & Duckett JG (Ed.), Bryology for the Twenty-first Century (pp. 15-43). British Bryological Society
- Older plant macerals (excluding spores) In Jansonius J & McGregor DC (Ed.), Palynology: principals and applications (pp. 383-387). AASP Foundation
- How Advances in Phylogenetic Methods Change Our Understanding of the Evolutionary Emergence of Land Plants (Embryophyta) (pp. 1-11). Wiley
Conference proceedings papers
- Ptychographic nanotomography at the Swiss Light Source. X-Ray Nanoimaging: Instruments and Methods II
- Morphology and wall ultrastructure of the spores of the Lower Devonian plant Oocampsa catheta Andrews et al., 1975. REVIEW OF PALAEOBOTANY AND PALYNOLOGY, Vol. 130(1-4) (pp 269-295)
- Spores of the Rhynie chert plant Horneophyton lignieri (Kidston & Lang) Barghoorn & Darrah, 1938. TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF EDINBURGH-EARTH SCIENCES, Vol. 94 (pp 429-443)
- Dating the origin of land plants. TELLING THE EVOLUTIONARY TIME: MOLECULAR CLOCKS AND THE FOSSIL RECORD(66) (pp 119-141)
- Morphology and ultrastructure of Devonian spores: Samarisporites (Cristatisporites) orcadensis (Richardson) Richardson, 1965. REVIEW OF PALAEOBOTANY AND PALYNOLOGY, Vol. 116(1-2) (pp 87-107)
- A novel reproductive strategy in an Early Devonian plant. Current Biology, 30(9), R388-R389. View this article in WRRO
- Research group
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Current research students
Alexander Ball (2018-)
Silurian-Devonian early land plant spores and megafossils from the Anglo-Welsh Basin. Funded by a NERC ACCE award that is a CASE Studentship with the Natural History Museum, London.
Martha Gibson (2016-)
Palynology of the Permian Zechstein deposits of the UK (in association with Sirius Minerals). Funded by a NERC ACCE award.
Past students
Dr Alexander Askew (Ph.D. 2018)
Palynology of the Middle Devonian of Spain. Funded by a NERC ACCE award.
Dr David Carpenter (Ph.D. 2017)
Charcoal, forests and Earth’s Palaeozoic geochemical oxygen-cycle. Funded by NERC.
Dr Stephanie Wood (Ph.D. 2016)
Jurassic-Cretaceous palynology of the Gulf of Mexico. Funded by a NERC Open CASE award with Shell. Currently working for the British Geological Survey as a Palynology Lab Manager.
Dr Sam Slater (Ph.D. 2015)
Spore assemblages from the Yorkshire Jurassic. Funded by a NERC CASE Award with Shell Oil. Currently working as a postdoc in Sweden.
Dr Simon Wallace (Ph.D. 2013)
Evo-Devo studies of spore wall development in the extant moss Physcomitrella. Funded by a NERC award. Currently working as a postdoc in the USA.
Dr Faisal Abuhmida (PhD 2013)
Ordovician-Silurian palynology of Libya. Funded by the Libyan Petroleum Institute.
Currently working as a Stratigrapher/Palynologist for the Lybian Petroleum Institute.
Dr Janine Pendleton (PhD 2012)
Carboniferous plants and spores from the Bristol Coalfield. Funded by a NERC CASE Award with National Museum Wales, Cardiff.
Currently working as a Stratigrapher/Palynologist for PetroStrat, UK.
Dr Brian Pedder (PhD 2012)
Cambrian acritarchs from North America. Funded by a NERC Open CASE Award with the Natural History Museum, London.
Currently working as a Stratigrapher/Palynologist for Robertson, UK.
Dr Doreen Mkuu (MPhil 2012)
Tertiary palynology of Tanzania. Funded by the Tanzanian Petroleum Development Corporation.
Currently working as a Stratigrapher/Palynologist for the Tanzanian Petroleum Development Corporation.
Dr Mutusam Al-Ghammari (Ph.D. 2010)
Ordovician-Silurian acritarchs, chitinozoans and spore assemblages from Oman. Funded by Petroleum Development Oman. Currently working as a Stratigrapher/Palynologist for PDO in Oman.
Dr Khaled Gaddah (PhD 2009)
Cretaceous palynology of the Nubian Sandstone of Libya. Funded by the Libyan Education Ministry.
Currently working as a Stratigrapher/Palynologist for Waha Oil, Lybia.
Dr Issam Al-Barram (PhD 2009)
Carboniferous-Permian spore assemlages from Oman. Funded by Petroleum Development Oman.
Currently working as a Stratigrapher/Palynologist for PDO in Oman.
Dr Wesley Fraser (PhD 2008)
Development of a novel proxy for measuring past UV-B radiation.
Currently working as a Lecturer in Physical Geography at Oxford Brookes University.
Mr Abdullah Al-Ghazi (MPhil 2005)
Devonian spore assemblages of Saudi Arabia. Funded by Saudi Aramco.
Currently working as a Stratigrapher/Palynologist for Saudi Aramco in Saudi Arabia.
Dr Waleed Abusham (PhD 2001)
Carboniferous spore assemblages from Scotland. Self Funded.
Currently working as a Stratigrapher/Palynologist in Sudan.
Dr Craig Harvey (PhD 2001)
Devonian spore assemblages from Venezuela. Funded by a Hussain Farmy University of Sheffield Scholarship.
Currently working as a Principal Exploration Geologist for Qatar Shell Upstream International.
- Teaching activities
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I teach across all levels within APS.
I am APS Level 3 tutor. In 2008 I received the Departmental Teacher of Year award.
At Level 1 I am module coordinator for APS121 (Evolution) and APS122 (Biodiversity).
At Level 2 I am module coordinator for APS269 (Palaeobiology). This module aims to instil within biology undergraduates a basic understanding of palaeontological principles—why understanding past life enhances our understanding of the living world.
At Level 3 I am module coordinator for APS341 (Evolution of Terrestrial Ecosystems). This module explores my personal research specialism and provides an up to date and in depth exploration of how terrestrial ecosystems have evolved through time and the nature of the scientific enquiry that enables us to understand this.
My Level 3 Projects (APS345) generally involve a palaeobiological investigation of fossils (usually plant fossils) that are collected and prepared by the students. These studies may concern analysis of evolutionary trends, palaeoecological investigation or palaeoenvironmental reconstruction. My Level 3 Dissertations (APS331) cover any topical area of palaeobiology (human evolution, dinosaur palaeobiology, mass extinctions etc.).
Level 4 Projects (APS406) cover aspects of palaeobiology that are currently interesting me. They have included investigation of sexual dimorphism in stegosaur dinosaurs, reconstruction of Cretaceous palaeogeography, analysis of Silurian lake palaeoecology, assessing the impact of the end Devonian mass extinction on various organisms etc.
- Professional activities and memberships
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Editorial boards
- Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology (2006-present)
- Palaontologische Zeitscrift (2005-present)
- Palynos (2004-2008)
- Palaeontology (2000-2006 & 2012-2016)
Societal roles
- Commission Internationale de Microflora du Paleozoic (Secretary-Treasurer of the CIMP/Saudi Aramco joint project)
- International Federation of Palynological Societies (Past President 2016-present; President 2012-2016; Secretary-Treasurer 2008-2012; Newsletter Editor 2004-2008; Councillor 2000-2004)
- Palaeontological Association (President 2018-present)
Research council activities
- NERC Peer Review College (2007-2011)
Recent invited lectures
- European Palaeobotany & Palynology Conference (Dublin, Ireland 2018)
- XXV Congresso Brasileiro de Paleontologia (Ribeirao Preto, Brazil 2017)
- Royal Society Discussion Meeting: Rhynie Chert (London, UK 2017)
- International Palynological Congress/International Organization of Palaeobotany Conference (Salvador, Brazil 2016)
- International Palaeontological Congress (Mendoza, Argentina 2014)