Dr. Laura Wilson
Associate Professor of Geosciences, Geology
Graduate Coordinator, Geosciences
Chief Curator, Sternberg Museum of Natural History
Department Office: Tomanek Hall 219
Sternberg Office: Sternberg Museum of Natural History, 3000 Sternberg Drive
Phone:785-628-4963
Email: lewilson6@fhsu.edu
Curriculum Vitae - contact me for a current vitae
Welcome to the Department of Geosciences! My background is in geology and I specialize in vertebrate paleontology (the perfect marriage of geology and biology). I have a particular interest in paleoecology, exploring how ancient organisms interacted with each other and their physical environment. For more information about ongoing research projects and student opportunities in my paleontology program, please visit my Personal/Research Group Website .
Educational Background
- Ph.D. in Geological Sciences, University of Colorado at Boulder (2012)
Dissertation: Paleobiology of hesperonithiforms (Aves) from the Campanian Western Interior Seaway of North America, with analyses of extant penguin bone histology - M.S. in Earth Sciences, Montana State University (2006)
Thesis: Comparative taphonomy and paleoecological reconstruction of two microvertebrate accumulations from the lower Hell Creek Formation (late Maastrichtian), Garfield County, Montana - B.S. in Geology, Washington and Lee University (2003)
Thesis: Taphonomy and depositional setting of a Tyrannosaurus rex quarry from the Hell Creek Formation (late Maastrichtian), eastern Montana
Courses Taught
- Paleontology of Higher Vertebrates
- Paleontology of Lower Vertebrates
- Paleobiology
- Invertebrate Paleontology
- Historical Geology
- Introduction to Geology
Research Interests and Specializations
- Vertebrate paleontology and paleobiology
- Paleoecology
- Osteohistology of fossil and modern vertebrates
- Taphonomy and sedimentology/stratigraphy
- Paleornithology
Publications
(* denotes student author)Wilson, L.E. 2019. A bird’s eye view: Hesperornithiforms as environmental indicators in the Late Cretaceous Western Interior Seaway. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science 122(3-4): 193-213.
Field, D.J., Hanson, M., Burnham, D. Wilson, L.E., Super, K.*, Ehret, D., Ebersole, J.A., Bhullar, B-A., S. 2018. Complete Ichthyornis skull shows unforeseen mosaicism late in the dinosaur-bird transition. Nature 557: 96-100.
Wilson, L.E., Chin, K., Cumbaa, S.L. 2016. A new hesperornithiform (Aves) specimen from the Late Cretaceous Canadian High Arctic with comments on hesperornithiform diet. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 53(12): 1476-1483.
Shimada, T.R.*, Wilson, L.E. 2016. A new specimen of the Late Cretaceous bird, cf. Ichthyornis sp., from the Cenomanian of central Kansas, with comments on the size distribution of Ichthyornis in North America. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science 119(2): 231-237.
Wilson, L.E., Chin, K. 2014. Comparative osteohistology of Hesperornis with reference to pygoscelid penguins: The effects of climate and behaviour on avian bone microstructure. Royal Society Open Science 1:140245 .
Wilson, L.E., de Boef Miara, M. 2013. Chapter 6: Database standardization. In Bone Histology of Fossil Tetrapods: Issues, Methods, and Databases (eds. Padian, K, Lamm, E.-T.), University of California Press, Berkeley.
Padian, K., de Boef Miara, M., Larsson, H.C.E., Wilson, L.E., Bromage, T. 2013. Chapter 10: Research applications and integration. In Bone Histology of Fossil Tetrapods: Issues, Methods, and Databases (eds. Padian, K, Lamm, E.-T.), University of California Press, Berkeley.
Wilson, L.E., Chin, K., Cumbaa, S, Dyke, G. 2011. A high latitude hesperornithiform (Aves) from Devon Island: Paleobiogeography and size distribution of North American hesperornithiforms. Journal of Systematic Paleontology 9(1): 9-23.
Wilson, L.E., Chin, K., Jackson, F.D., and Bray, E.S. 2010. Fossil eggshell: Fragments from the past. http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/science/eggshell/index.php
Wilson, L.E. 2008. Comparative taphonomy and paleoecological reconstruction of two microvertebrate accumulations from the Hell Creek Formation (Maastrichtian), eastern Montana. Palaios 23: 289-297.
Honors and Distinctions
FHSU Faculty Member of the Year [Fall 2019]
FHSU Werth College of Science, Technology, and Math Edmund Shearer Faculty Advisor of the Year Award [Fall 2018]
FHSU Scholarly and Creative Activities Day; 1 st place: Faculty, Non-Empirical [2018]
FHSU Werth College of Science, Technology, and Math Outstanding Teaching Award [Spring 2017]
FHSU Scholarly and Creative Activities Day; 3 rd place: Faculty, Empirical [2016]
FHSU Scholarly and Creative Activities Day; 2 nd place: Faculty, Empirical [2015]
Grants Received
The Institute for Museum and Library Services, Museums for America, PI [2018]
Project Title: Curation of the Geology Collection at the Sternberg Museum of Natural History [$24,478]
The Dane G. Hansen Foundation [2017]
Project Title: Fossil Preparation Lab at the Sternberg Museum [$81,000 match; $165,000 raised]
National Science Foundation, Collections in Support of Biological Research [2016]
Project Title: Implementation of a relational database for the Sternberg Museum paleontology collections [$197,597]
National Science Foundation, Advancing Digitization of Biodiversity Collections, PI [2016]
Project Title: Digitization TCN: Collaborative Research: The Cretaceous World: Digitizing Fossils to Reconstruct Evolving Ecosystems in the Western Interior Seaway [$116,266]
FHSU, Undergraduate Research Experience Grant, PI [2015]
Project Title: Applications in Paleohistology [$3457]
FHSU, Undergraduate Research Experience Grant, Co-PI [2014]
Project Title: Paleontology Resource Map of Gove County [$4417.18]
FHSU, Undergraduate Research Experience Grant, Co-PI [2014]
Project Title: The Heinrichs Research Group: Student led discovery in remote sensing [$3073.99]
Current Research
I am interested in reconstructing Mesozoic ecosystems and Mesozoic vertebrate paleobiology. My current projects focus on paleoecological reconstructions of Western Interior Seaway (WIS) ecosystems and understanding vertebrate growth dynamics by looking at bone histology. While the bulk of my recent research has focused on flightless hesperornithiform seabirds that inhabited the Late Cretaceous WIS, I have ongoing histology projects aimed at reconstructing the growth dynamics and life histories of Protostega sea turtles, Tylosaurus mosasaurs, Pteranodon pterosaurs, and modern Pygoscelis penguins.
Graduate and undergraduate students who work with me pursue projects studying Western Interior Seaway animals/ecosystems or museum studies. Museum studies students focus on hands-on experiences in fossil preparation, collection management, exhibit design, and/or museum education and outreach. My students and I rely heavily on the paleontological, zoological, and educational resources at the Sternberg Museum of Natural History.