Robert L. Carroll
Encyclopedia
Robert Lynn Carroll is a vertebrate paleontologist who specialises in Paleozoic
and Mesozoic
amphibian
s and reptile
s.
Carroll was an only child and grew up on a farm near Lansing, Michigan
. He was introduced to paleontology
by his father shortly after his fifth birthday, and by the time he was eight he had decided he wanted to be a vertebrate paleontologist. In that same year he received as a Christmas present the left femur
of an Allosaurus
, courtesy of Edwin H. Colbert, whom his father had told about his interest. In his teen years his parents took him on many fossil hunting trips to Wyoming
and South Dakota
. Allosaurus was discovered by Edwin Harris Colbert at the year 1942 in Wyoming
.
After high-school, he went to Michigan State University
, where he received a BSc in 1959, majoring in Geology
. From there he went to Harvard University
where he studied biology and paleontology under Alfred Sherwood Romer. His thesis dealt with the Dissorophidae
, a group of Paleozoic amphibian
s are considered the closest relatives of present day amphibians
.
After obtaining his Ph.D., he held a two-year postdoctoral fellowship at Redpath Museum
at McGill University
in Montréal, and then at the Natural History Museum
in London. During this time he studied tetrapod remains from the Pennsylvanian lycopod “tree stumps” at Joggins, Nova Scotia
(a variety of temnospondyls
, microsaurs
, and basal
amniote
s). Most of this material was collected and first studied by Sir William Dawson
, the first Principal of McGill University, in the nineteenth century.
Returning from London, in 1964 Carroll joined the permanent staff of McGill University as curator of vertebrate paleontology at the Redpath Museum. He was appointed Strathcona Professor of Zoology in 1987. From 1985 to 1991 he was director of the Redpath Museum.
Dr Carroll is the author or co-author of a large number of scientific papers on fossil vertebrates, as well as a number of important monographs, text-books and more general books. His areas of research include the origins of terrestrial vertebrates, the origin and early evolutionary radiation of amniotes, the origin and interrelationships of the Lissamphibia
n groups, the anatomy and relationship of Paleozoic and Mesozoic amphibians and reptiles, large scale patterns and processes of vertebrate evolution, and the use of Mesozoic marine reptiles as a model for investigating factors controlling the patterns and rates of evolution.
He currently lives in Montreal. He is married to Anna DiTuri, a retired business school teacher, and they have one child, David.
Paleozoic
The Paleozoic era is the earliest of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic eon, spanning from roughly...
and Mesozoic
Mesozoic
The Mesozoic era is an interval of geological time from about 250 million years ago to about 65 million years ago. It is often referred to as the age of reptiles because reptiles, namely dinosaurs, were the dominant terrestrial and marine vertebrates of the time...
amphibian
Amphibian
Amphibians , are a class of vertebrate animals including animals such as toads, frogs, caecilians, and salamanders. They are characterized as non-amniote ectothermic tetrapods...
s and reptile
Reptile
Reptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...
s.
Carroll was an only child and grew up on a farm near Lansing, Michigan
Lansing, Michigan
Lansing is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located mostly in Ingham County, although small portions of the city extend into Eaton County. The 2010 Census places the city's population at 114,297, making it the fifth largest city in Michigan...
. He was introduced to paleontology
Paleontology
Paleontology "old, ancient", ὄν, ὀντ- "being, creature", and λόγος "speech, thought") is the study of prehistoric life. It includes the study of fossils to determine organisms' evolution and interactions with each other and their environments...
by his father shortly after his fifth birthday, and by the time he was eight he had decided he wanted to be a vertebrate paleontologist. In that same year he received as a Christmas present the left femur
Femur
The femur , or thigh bone, is the most proximal bone of the leg in tetrapod vertebrates capable of walking or jumping, such as most land mammals, birds, many reptiles such as lizards, and amphibians such as frogs. In vertebrates with four legs such as dogs and horses, the femur is found only in...
of an Allosaurus
Allosaurus
Allosaurus is a genus of large theropod dinosaur that lived 155 to 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic period . The name Allosaurus means "different lizard". It is derived from the Greek /allos and /sauros...
, courtesy of Edwin H. Colbert, whom his father had told about his interest. In his teen years his parents took him on many fossil hunting trips to Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
and South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
. Allosaurus was discovered by Edwin Harris Colbert at the year 1942 in Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
.
After high-school, he went to Michigan State University
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
, where he received a BSc in 1959, majoring in Geology
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
. From there he went to Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
where he studied biology and paleontology under Alfred Sherwood Romer. His thesis dealt with the Dissorophidae
Dissorophidae
Dissorophidae is an extinct family of medium-sized, temnospondyl amphibians that flourished during the Late Pennsylvanian and early Permian periods in what is now North America and Europe...
, a group of Paleozoic amphibian
Amphibian
Amphibians , are a class of vertebrate animals including animals such as toads, frogs, caecilians, and salamanders. They are characterized as non-amniote ectothermic tetrapods...
s are considered the closest relatives of present day amphibians
Lissamphibia
The subclass Lissamphibia includes all recent amphibians and means smooth amphibia.Extant amphibians fall into one of three orders — the Anura , the Caudata or Urodela , and the Gymnophiona or Apoda .Although the ancestry of each group is still unclear, all share certain common characteristics,...
.
After obtaining his Ph.D., he held a two-year postdoctoral fellowship at Redpath Museum
Redpath Museum
The Redpath Museum is a museum of natural history belonging to McGill University and located on the university's campus at 859 Sherbrooke Street West in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It was built in 1882 as a gift from the sugar baron Peter Redpath. It houses collections of interest to ethnology,...
at McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
in Montréal, and then at the Natural History Museum
Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum is one of three large museums on Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London, England . Its main frontage is on Cromwell Road...
in London. During this time he studied tetrapod remains from the Pennsylvanian lycopod “tree stumps” at Joggins, Nova Scotia
Joggins, Nova Scotia
Joggins is a Canadian rural community located in western Cumberland County, Nova Scotia. On July 7, 2008 a 15 km length of the coast constituting the Joggins Fossil Cliffs was officially inscribed on the World Heritage List.- History :...
(a variety of temnospondyls
Temnospondyli
Temnospondyli is a diverse order of small to giant tetrapods—often considered primitive amphibians—that flourished worldwide during the Carboniferous, Permian, and Triassic periods. A few species continued into the Cretaceous. Fossils have been found on every continent...
, microsaurs
Microsauria
Microsauria is an extinct order of lepospondyl amphibians from the late Carboniferous and early Permian periods. It is the most diverse and species-rich group of lepospondyls. Recently, Microsauria has been considered paraphyletic, as several other non-microsaur lepospondyl groups such as...
, and basal
Basal (phylogenetics)
In phylogenetics, a basal clade is the earliest clade to branch in a larger clade; it appears at the base of a cladogram.A basal group forms an outgroup to the rest of the clade, such as in the following example:...
amniote
Amniote
The amniotes are a group of tetrapods that have a terrestrially adapted egg. They include synapsids and sauropsids , as well as their fossil ancestors. Amniote embryos, whether laid as eggs or carried by the female, are protected and aided by several extensive membranes...
s). Most of this material was collected and first studied by Sir William Dawson
John William Dawson
Sir John William Dawson, CMG, FRS, FRSC , was a Canadian geologist and university administrator.- Life and work :...
, the first Principal of McGill University, in the nineteenth century.
Returning from London, in 1964 Carroll joined the permanent staff of McGill University as curator of vertebrate paleontology at the Redpath Museum. He was appointed Strathcona Professor of Zoology in 1987. From 1985 to 1991 he was director of the Redpath Museum.
Dr Carroll is the author or co-author of a large number of scientific papers on fossil vertebrates, as well as a number of important monographs, text-books and more general books. His areas of research include the origins of terrestrial vertebrates, the origin and early evolutionary radiation of amniotes, the origin and interrelationships of the Lissamphibia
Lissamphibia
The subclass Lissamphibia includes all recent amphibians and means smooth amphibia.Extant amphibians fall into one of three orders — the Anura , the Caudata or Urodela , and the Gymnophiona or Apoda .Although the ancestry of each group is still unclear, all share certain common characteristics,...
n groups, the anatomy and relationship of Paleozoic and Mesozoic amphibians and reptiles, large scale patterns and processes of vertebrate evolution, and the use of Mesozoic marine reptiles as a model for investigating factors controlling the patterns and rates of evolution.
He currently lives in Montreal. He is married to Anna DiTuri, a retired business school teacher, and they have one child, David.
Partial bibliography
- Carroll, R.C. 1987. Vertebrate Paleontology and Evolution. W. H. Freeman and Co. New York.
- Stearn, C. and Carroll, R.C. 1989. Paleontology: The Record of Life. John Wiley and Sons. New York.
- Carroll, R.C. 1997. Patterns and Processes of Vertebrate Evolution. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
- Carroll, R.L., Bossy, K.A., Milner, A.C., Andrews, S.M., and Wellstead, C.F. 1998. "Lepospondyli". Encyclopedia of Paleoherpetology, P. Wellnhofer (ed.). Dr. Friedrich Pfeil, München.
- Carroll, R.C. 2000. Amphibian Biology, vol 4, Palaeontology, The Evolutionary History of Amphibians, Surrey Beatty & Sons,