19th century developments History of invertebrate paleozoology

a plate william smith s 1815 work strata organized fossils

soon thereafter, buffon s colleague chevalier de lamarck -- founder of invertebrate systematics , invertebrate paleontology -- published still-more shell fossils in systematics of animals without backbones, (1801) , natural history of animals without backbones (1815 1822), illustrate global changes in paleogeography. lamarck argued more adaptable prehistoric invertebrates animals survived environmental change -- prelude concept of survival of fittest.

next, william smith employed invertebrate index fossils map british outcrops in geological map of england , wales part of scotland (1815), , in book next year, strata identified organized fossils (1816).

trilobite fossil

sir roderick impey murchison , charles lapworth quarried middle paleozoic era index fossils, such extinct trilobites, extinct graptolites, , extinct brachiopods. efforts led latter s ground-breaking treatise, silurian system (1839), , naming of ordovician, silurian, devonian , permian geologic periods. eclipsing maurchison s inventory of silurian fossils, however, adam sedgwick s 1835 discovery of even-older cambrian period fossils. 3 years later, sedgwick proposed stratigraphic era named paleozoic.

meanwhile, yet briton, sir charles lyell, penned principles of geology (1830) , elements of geology (1838) in divided tertiary epochs of eocene, miocene, oligocene , pliocene. 1834 1838, naturalists france russia using term paleontology , , adding yet other names prehistoric eons, eras, periods, epochs, , ages.

crinoid fossil

the provocative vestiges of natural history of creation (1844 1853) then-anonymous robert chambers, alfred russel wallace s joint essay (1858) charles darwin, , darwin s origin of species (1859 1872) popularized evolutionary theories of natural selection. indeed, in first edition of origin of species (1859), darwin speculated earth might half billion years old. scientific critics, however, pressured him withdraw notion subsequent editions. in book darwin expressed frustration @ seemingly total absence of pre-cambrian creatures prior cambrian explosion of invertebrates, since many critics saw absence proof of creationism.

around same time, james hall produced comprehensive, many volumes of paleontology of new york state (1847 1894), based on years of collecting trilobites, graptolites, brachiopods, crinoids, echinoids, mollusks , other ancient marine invertebrates.

inspired darwin s manifesto, thomas henry huxley emphatically cited embryologic , fossil evidence evolution of higher invertebrates lower cnidarians, worms , mollusks, thereby elaborating concluded man s place in nature (1863). darwinist, ernst haeckel, proposed protozoa-metazoa theory of animal origins, while arguing embryonic ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny throughout organic prehistory. haeckel popularized paleozoologic ideas majestic genealogical trees of animal kingdom in general morphology of organisms (1866).

a half-century later, genetic conclusions of gregor mendel (1822 1884) revived mutation theory propounded hugo de vries, thereby fortifying darwin s 19th-century theory of evolution.