Geology Seminar Series - James McWilliams, MSc student - Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction based on Carbon and Hydrogen Isotopes from Amber Associated with Dinosaur Remains in Western Canada

Date and Time: Wednesday November 23rd at 4 pm

Speaker: James McWilliams (University of Regina, MSc student)

Title: Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction based on Carbon and Hydrogen Isotopes from Amber Associated with Dinosaur Remains in Western Canada

Abstract: Amber is often thought of as a medium for the great preservation of plant and animal remains, providing an exceptional window into the past. However, in more recent years the chemical work on amber has increased providing an even better view of our planet’s past. Stable isotopes of carbon and hydrogen can be measured from amber found in various deposits associated with dinosaur remains throughout Alberta and Saskatchewan, that span roughly the last 10 million years of the Cretaceous period. These isotopes allow insight into certain environmental conditions, such as paleotemperatures, paleo atmospheric conditions, botanical sources, and possible environmental stressors. This study will help determine what the environments of western Canada were doing in the last 10 million years of the Cretaceous leading up to the extinction event.