Dorris Seegets-Villiers

PhD candidate

Project title
Taphonomy, palynology, dendrology and sedimentology of the Inverloch Fossil Site, Victoria, Australia

Supervisor
Prof. Pat Vickers-Rich & Dr. Barbara Wagstaff

Research

During the Early Cretaceous the south coast of Australia lay far south of its present position - some estimates placing it as far south as 69o to 70o South Latitude, thus for at least two and a half months of the year in Winter darkness 24 hours a day. The discovery of periglacial structures within the fluvial sediments by Dr Andrew Constantine, a previous student at Monash, a few meters below the vertebrate bone bearing level at the Inverloch Site, suggests that mean annual temperatures 110-120 million years ago in this area may have been between -2o to +3o C. Seegets-Villiars studies concentrate on the palynology and sedimentology of the vertebrate bearing beds and those immediately above and below as well as in the region as a whole. Large fossil tree trunks, stratigraphically above the bone horizon suggest the presence of tall, extensive forests and their rings mirror a quick shut down time, probably in the autumn when day length quickly shortened and temperatures dropped rapidly towards the polar winter. Biodiversity of the pollen floras associated with these polar conditions show a correlation: lower temperatures, permafrost sedimentary structures, low biodiversity in the floras. Seeget-Villiars studies are building a picture of climatic change through the Early Cretaceous in the polar regions of Gondwana.

Research Interests

• Taphonomy
• Palynology
• Palaeobotany
• Palaeoclimate

Professional Affiliations

• Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
• Geologische Vereinigung (Germany)

Computer Skills

• Microsoft Office, Adobe Illustrator, TG View

Technical Skills

• Preparation of palynological slides
• Preparation of thin sections, peels

Personal Interests

• Craft, cooking, travel, reading