The ecology of the first animals and a comparison to modern soft coral communities
The oldest known animal fossils had no shells or bones, were immobile and lived on the sea-floor. They have no known modern relatives, making understanding their ecology challenging. Soft corals are a poorly understood component of modern reef ecosystems, with little known about the factors influencing their communities - yet! We aim to understand the broad-scale ecological and environmental processes controlling soft coral community structures, with the aim of applying these principles to understanding the first animal fossil communities.
Date:
Tuesday, 18 March, 2025 - 11:30 to 12:00