“THE RISE OF ANIMAL LIFE: THE CAMBRIAN ‘EXPLOSION’ AND THE GOBE IN AUSTRALIA AND GONDWANA”

The Cambrian fossils of Kangaroo Island are among the most important in the Southern Hemisphere, and they represent the earliest complex animals in the planet.

The green paddocks of KI provide a window to the oceans of half a billion years ago, in which the ancestors of today’s lobsters, clams and whiting lived. However, these ancient marine organisms look very different from their modem descendants…

The large Cambrian radiation was echoed in the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event (or GOBE), and the fossils of this age found in the other end of Gonwana, what is now Spain, Portugal and Morocco, where not only strange, but also grew to gigantic size.

These amazing fossils have appeared in National Geographic Society and BBC documentaries, and have awed even the most experienced figures, like Sir David Attenborough. Come to hear about them!!

Diego Garcia-Bellido is an Associate Professor at the University of Adelaide, School of Biological Sciences and an Honorary Research Associate at the South Australian Museum.

Venue: Plympton Community Centre, 34 Long Street, Plympton – 200 metres east of Marion Rd, and 300 metres north of Anzac Highway
Entry by donation (minimum of $2).
Bookings not required
Please bring supper to share, tea/coffee will be supplied.
Meetings should conclude by 8.30pm.
At the start of each meeting a ten minute presentation on a ‘Butterfly of the Month’ will be given by a BCSA committee member.

Printable (PDF) 2019 public talks schedule