Project description
Sea scorpions, or eurypterids, were among the most formidable arthropods to inhabit ancient aquatic ecosystems, ranging from small benthic predators to giant apex hunters exceeding two metres in length. Yet despite their evolutionary significance and remarkable diversity, their growth patterns, moulting strategies, and developmental pathways remain incompletely resolved. Much of what is currently understood derives from scattered observations across individual species, deposits, and ontogenetic stages, leaving a need for a broader synthesis of eurypterid growth. This project will use the published literature to develop an overarching framework for understanding sea scorpion growth through deep time. The student (Masters) will compile and analyse evidence from morphology, segment proportions and possibly moulting patterns across eurypterid taxa, integrating these data with insights from modern arthropods such as horseshoe crabs and scorpions. Outcomes will provide the first comprehensive assessment of eurypterid ontogeny, clarify how growth varied across environments and lineages, and generate new perspectives on the evolution of gigantism, ecology, and arthropod development in Palaeozoic seas.
Note: You need to register interest in projects from different supervisors (not a number of projects with the one supervisor).
You must also contact each supervisor directly to discuss both the project details and your suitability to undertake the project.