Until ground breaking fossil discoveries in the Kimberley region of Western Australia in 2008, seeking evidence of fossil sex has been perhaps one of the most difficult endeavours in palaeontology.
Professor Kate Trinajstic, QEII Research Fellow at Curtin University, will speak at the WA Museum – Perth on those fossil discoveries and the sophisticated technologies that give insight into the previously enigmatic sexual behaviour of vertebrate millions of years ago.
Professor Trinajstic said the breakthrough toward evidence of fossil sex began in the Kimberley region where she and fellow palaeontologist Prof. John Long recovered Materpiscis attenboroughi, a 380 million year old fossil fish.
“When examining the tail end of the fossil we were astounded to find evidence of an embryo and umbilical cord inside the fish,” Prof. Trinajstic said.
“This discovery represents the earliest evidence of live birth within a vertebrate.”
So monumental was this discovery that many of Prof. Trinajstic’s colleagues initially thought it an April fools’ hoax. However it soon became internationally recognised as one of the top 10 species discoveries for 2009 by the International Institute for Species Recognition based at Arizona State University.
The find inspired Prof. Trinajstic and Prof. Long, with their team from Curtin University, Australian National University, Museum Victoria and the Natural History Museum (UK), to continue the difficult search for information on the intimate lives of fossil ancestors.
“A big drawback in the study of vertebrate fossils is that usually only one component of the morphology, namely the bones, is preserved. Soft tissues of sexual organs on the other hand are biodegradable and virtually never preserved in fossil records.
“Despite this drawback the limited amount of information fossils provide is now being overcome by sophisticated modern technology, such as the micro computerised tomography or CT scanner, which I will further explore in my lecture.”
Prof. Trinajstic’s work at Curtin University includes use of ultra-high resolution technology to reconstruct the lost soft anatomy of the world’s earliest vertebrates. She was recently awarded the Malcolm McIntosh Prize for Physical Scientist of the Year by the Prime Minister of Australia.
This lecture is part of The Harry Butler lecture series: In the Wild West and is proudly presented by the WA Museum in partnership with Chevron Australia. The series showcases the work of Museum scientists, curators and associates in the areas of natural and social sciences.
LECTURE: Caught in the act: sex and the fossil record
WHEN: Friday 25 November 2011, 12:30pm
WHERE: Western Australian Museum – Perth, Perth Cultural Centre, James Street, Northbridge
BOOKINGS: 9212 3813 or www.museum.wa.gov.au/inthewildwest
COST: By gold coin donation.
NB: Interview opportunities available
Media contact:
Flora Perrella, Western Australian Museum T: 9212 3856 M: 0424 027 646
