Merychippus represents a milestone in the evolution of horses. Though it retained the primitive character of 3 toes, it looked like a modern horse. Merychippus had a long face. Its long legs allowed it to escape from predators and migrate long distances to feed. It had high-crowned cheek teeth, maki
Merychippus got its name because the crests of the teeth of reminded Professor Leidy
Giant Armadillos and Ground Sloths came to North America from the south during the interchange. Like most “megafauna,” they became extinct around 11,000 years ago, but are common in fossil deposits today. Summary Giant Armadillo Skull (Holmesina floridanus) From Citrus Co., Florida Lived ~1.8
Bruce MacFadden Curator, Vertebrate Paleontology* Distinguished Professor* Florida
Aguateca Archaeological Project Project Zooarchaeologist: Kitty Emery What did the Maya nobility do with their animals? Did they eat fancy meats and exotic shellfish? Did they display „trophy heads“ like big-game hunters today? Did they buy only the best bone needles? Did they wear only the fa
Takeshi Inomata, director of the Aguateca Archaeological Project and professor at
The Florida Museum maintains five separate fossil vertebrate collections. The specimens derive mainly from the Cenozoic Era (last 65 million years), with more than 80% coming from about 1200 localities in Florida. Other major contributing regions are islands in the Caribbean Basin, Central and Sout
and the UF Department of Zoology Fossil Bird Collection (assembled by the late Professor
Jerald T. Milanich, contributing editor at Archaeology magazine and curator emeritus in archaeology at the Florida Museum of Natural History, has been named a fellow in the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. Milanich is among 229 new fellows who join one of the nation’s most prestigious
education research Awards & Honors Charles Cobb named UF Research Foundation 2025 professor
Horses evolved in North America and traveled south during the interchange, later becoming extinct in the Americas before Spaniards reintroduced the horse we know today. Saber-toothed Cats also migrated south, where they thrived on new prey options. Summary Horse Skull (Equis insulatus) From Tar
Bruce MacFadden Curator, Vertebrate Paleontology* Distinguished Professor* Florida
Jonathan Bloch has been appointed chair of the Florida Museum of Natural History department of natural history. In the new role, Bloch plans to work with the museum’s team of faculty curators, collections managers, postdoctoral researchers and students to continue documenting the world’s biodiver
co-authored more than 90 professional publications, is also a University of Florida Term Professor
These days, climate change is a hot topic. What will happen as temperatures rise more rapidly than humans have documented in modern history? Will birds and mammals flock or will they be able to acclimate? Who will become extinct? In recent years, scientists have strived to understand the a
as a postdoctoral researcher in Bloch’s laboratory before becoming an assistant professor
A 37-year survey of monarch populations in North Central Florida shows that caterpillars and butterflies have been declining since 1985 and have dropped by 80 percent since 2005. This decrease parallels monarchs’ dwindling numbers in their overwintering grounds in Mexico, said study co-author Jar
alarming in a number of different ways,” said Daniels, who is also an associate professor
Ferns are notorious for containing massive amounts of DNA and an excessively large number of chromosomes. Defying all expectations, a fern no larger than a dinner plate currently holds the title for highest chromosome count, with a whopping 720 pairs crammed into each of its nuclei. This penchant of
Every genome tells a different story,” said co-author Doug Soltis, a distinguished professor
