Paleontologists and anatomists convened at Mizzou for Paleo Connected, a regional meeting of the American Association for Anatomy (AAA), October 3-4, hosted by interdisciplinary researchers in the University of Missouri Paleobiology Group. 

Researchers from across the region – including the University of Kansas, Missouri State, and the University of Chicago — presented their work over the course of two days, discussing topics ranging from changing views on human evolution, to advancements in digital morphology and CT imaging techniques for fossil analysis.  Speaking to more than 100 attendees, Associate Professor at Mizzou’s School of Medicine and the meeting’s lead organizer Casey Holliday began with a call to build stronger paleobiological networks in the Midwest. 

For Jim Schiffbauer, the Marie M. & Harry L. Smith Endowed Professor of Geological Sciences, it also was an opportunity to showcase Mizzou’s state-of-the art resources, including MizzoµX, a College of Arts & Science facility housed in the Department of Geological Sciences. 

“While we specialize in the analysis and visualization of geological and fossil materials, we can accommodate a variety of sample types,” said Schiffbauer, the director of the X-Ray Microanalysis Laboratory. “We hope that this meeting will generate new collaborations with our lab and researchers in the region. 

The laboratory provides services in x-ray tomographic microscopy and scanning electronic microscopy. 

In addition, student researchers — undergraduate and graduate — showcased their research during a poster competition. Clare Mate, a master’s student in Geology at Mizzou, won second place for her research on scalids – spines located near the mouth of some worm species — from 500+ million-year-old rocks of the Cambrian Period.   

According to Schiffbauer, this was the first conference hosted by AAA that focused solely on paleontology and incorporated invertebrate with vertebrate paleontology.  

The event concluded with a plenary presentation on the Missouri-Ozark Dinosaur Project, highlighting Missouri’s state dinosaur, Parrosaurus missourienis and its place in Cretaceous ecosystems by Peter Makovicky, a professor and paleontologist at the University of Minnesota.