Applications of Palaeontology: Techniques and Case Studies

Palaeontology, the scientific study of fossils, has developed from a descriptive science to an analytical science used to interpret relationships between earth and life history. This book provides a comprehensive and thematic treatment of applied palaeontology, covering the use of fossils in the ordering of rocks in time and in space, in biostratigraphy, palaeobiology and sequence stratigraphy. Robert Wynn Jones presents a practical workflow for applied palaeontology, including sample acquisition, preparation and analysis, and interpretation and integration. He then presents numerous case studies that demonstrate the applicability and value of the subject to areas such as petroleum, mineral and coal exploration and exploitation, engineering geology and environmental science. Specialist applications outside of the geosciences (including archaeology, forensic science, medical palynology, entomopalynology and melissopalynology) are also addressed. Abundantly illustrated and referenced, Applications of Palaeontology provides a user-friendly reference for academic researchers and professionals across a range of disciplines and industry settings.

Robert Wynn Jones gained his BSc in geological sciences at the University of Birmingham in 1979 and his Ph.D. at the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, in 1982. Since then, he has worked as a micropalaeontologist and biostratigrapher in the petroleum industry and has been a Principal Consultant Biostratigrapher at the BG Group since 2009. His industrial work involves analysis of micropalaeontological samples; interpretation of micro- and macro-palaeontological data; and integration of palaeontological interpretations into geological models for petroleum exploration and reservoir exploitation. He has worked on petroliferous sedimentary basins from all around the world and on rocks and fossils from wide ranges of ages and facies. Outside work, Dr Jones also maintains an active interest in academic research, especially in the study of foraminiferal taxonomy, palaeobiology, biostratigraphy and historical micropalaeontology. He has over 100 scientific publications to his name, including six books. He is a Scientific Associate in the Department of Palaeontology at the Natural History Museum in London.