Paleoart!

I am a firm believer in the mutual fertilization of science and art, and I think some of my nature photographs bridge that gap – they are aesthetic (I hope), and show some aspects of animal anatomy or behavior. The situation gets more tricky when the animal we  are interested in is already extinct – like the giant marine turtle Archelon.

Yes, it’s impressive to stand next to a humongous skeleton, like this one, on display in the Natural History Museum in Vienna. But it’s not the same as facing a living, breathing, moving animal performing its natural behavior.

Compare the skeleton to the illustration below, by renowned paeloartist Alice Turner: Here Archelon is laying eggs on a Cretaceous beach.

It’s not a coincidence that I chose the example of Archelon to make the point about paleoart bringing paelontology to life. This turtle is an interesting example of gigantism. I have been interested in the evolution of animal body sizes for a while. Also, the North American inland sea where Archelon was found is a highly interesting place…

Stay tuned…..