Morocco meeting: summary and photos

IGCP Project 653 had an outstanding workshop and field excursion in Marrakech and Zagora region of Morocco from February 12-16, 2018.

The workshop was an excellent introduction to Ordovician geology and paleontology with a particular focus on Moroccan deposits.  Dr. Khadija El Hariri and her associates at Cadi Ayyad University, Faculty of Sciences and Technics did an excellent job organizing the workshop, which was attended by 25 international participants plus 20+ local students.  We all enjoyed examining and discussing Fezouata and other specimens, engaging in fruitful discussions during the coffee breaks, and the final musical ceremony.  It was an honor to be joined by Mohommad “Ou Said” Ben Moula, the discoverer of the Fezouata Biota, as he received the Mary Anning Award from the Palaeontological Association.

A group of 28 international scientists followed the workshop with a field excursion to the Fezouata Formation that was expertly organized by Bertrand Lefebvre.  We crossed the High Atlas Moutains via the Tizi n’Tichka Pass then descended to the Ternata Plain.  En route to Zagora, we stopped for an  overview of the stratigraphy and structural geology of the Jbel Kissing and the Draa Valley.

A highlight of the trip was examining the Fezouata Formation at You Izargane, where participants were able to examine the late Tremadocian (A. murrayi zone) portion of the Fezouata replete with trilobites, incredibly well preserved graptolites, and the lagerstatte bearing layers.  In the afternoon, we visited Jbel Bou Zeroual (with directional assistance from a  local camel shepherd on a motorbike), the Floian section of the Fezouata Formation.  Here we collected many trilobites, echinoderms, and other typical Ordovician shelly fauna.

On the return drive to Marrekech, the group stopped to examine the spectacular Late Neoproterozoic stromatolites at Amane n’Tourhart.

Overall, the workshop and field excursion provided a tremendous opportunity to learn more about the transition from a Cambrian to Paleozoic world and expand our understanding of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event.  The ability to connect and collaborate with a diverse group of scientists from more than 10 nations, truly enhanced the scientific understanding and progress of the event.

2018 Annual Meeting in Athens, Ohio, USA: Second Circular

The third annual meeting of IGCP 653: The Onset of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event will be hosted on the campus of Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, June 3-7, 2018.

The scientific sessions in Athens include a mid-conference field trip to classic Cincinnatian (Katian) sections.  The indoor sessions preceded by an excursion to late Cambrian through Ordovician outcrops of the Great Basin and followed by an excursion through Katian stratigraphy and paleontology of Kentucky.  Participants will discuss and observe sedimentological, biological, and ecological changes across the GOBE and the resulting ecosystems.

We welcome contributions on all aspects of the late Cambrian through Ordovician earth system.

The Second Circular is now available and online registration is open.

Abstract and early registration deadlines are March 15th, 2018.  Space is limited on pre- and post-conference field excursions, so please let us know if you intend to participate on either of these but plan to register later in the registration process.

More information is available on the meeting website: http://igcp653athens2018.wordpress.com

We look forward to welcoming you to Ohio.  GO BE in Ohio!

Alycia Stigall
on behalf of the organizing committee and Project 653 co-leaders

International Paleontological Congress 5: Abstracts due

Dear IGCP 653 community,

The conveners of the 5th International Palaeontological Congress, to be held from July 9th to 13th in Paris, France, warmly invite you to submit an abstract the the IGCP 653 sponsored scientific session: The onset of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification (GOBE): fossils, radiations and Lagerstätten (S37).

Much more information is available on the conference website: https://ipc5.sciencesconf.org

Abstract submission is closing in less than two weeks on on February 15th. 

We hope to see you in Paris,
T. Servais, D. Harper, B. Lefebvre, A. Hunter
(session conveners)

IGCP 653 @ Seattle GSA

Hello IGCP 653-ers,
We have a strong lineup of over 30 presentations in sessions sponsored by our project at the upcoming Geological Society of America meeting.  Please be sure to join us if you are attending the meeting in Seattle.
Our primary session “The onset of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event (GOBE): Testing hypotheses with diverse data sets” will convened by Alycia Stigall and Rebecca Freeman on Monday afternoon.
Please also join us Sunday afternoon for “Life and Times in the Early Paleozoic” convened by Erik Sperling, Stephen Leslie, and Matt Saltzman, Steve Leslie.  Information about that session is here: https://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2017AM/webprogram/Session42735.html
We look forward to vibrant discussions and exciting new science in Seattle!
IGCP 653 co-organizers

Morocco 2018: Workshop and Fezouata field excursion

A regional workshop and field excursion of IGCP 653: The Onset of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event will be organized at Marrakech, February 12-16, 2018.

 

February 12-13, 2018, an IGCP 653 workshop at Marrakech University, similar to the workshop that took place at Nanjing, May 15-16, 2017 (link), will be organized for students from Morocco, but all Moroccan scientists and participants from IGCP 653 are welcome. 

After the workshop, a three-day field trip is organized February 14-16, with geological excursions to some of the classic sections of the Lower Ordovician Fezouata Fossil-Lagerstätte, allowing participants to observe the geological context of the exceptional Fezouata Biota.

Download the First Circular here.  Further information will be available at on the IGCP 653 project website.

Please indicate your interest in attending either the workshop or the excursion by sending an e-mail message to bertrand.lefebvre@univ-lyon1.fr and thomas.servais@univ-lille1.fr. Space for the excursion is limited, and we apply a ‘first come first serve’ basis.

We look forward to welcoming you to Marrakech.

Thomas Servais
on behalf of the organizing committee and Project 653 co-leaders

2018 Annual Meeting: First Circular

The third annual meeting of IGCP 653: The Onset of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event will be hosted on the campus of Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, June 3-7, 2018.

The scientific sessions in Athens include a mid-conference field trip and will be preceded and followed by geological excursions to classic sections ranging from Cambrian through Katian in age, allowing participants to observe sedimentological, biological, and ecological changes across the GOBE and the resulting ecosystems.

We welcome contributions on all aspects of the late Cambrian through Ordovician earth system.

Download the First Circular.  The meeting website is http://igcp653athens2018.wordpress.com

Please indicate your interests by filling in the following the form below and send to IGCP653@gmail.com

Download fillable PDF form: click here

We look forward to welcoming you to Ohio.  GO BE in Ohio!

Alycia Stigall
on behalf of the organizing committee and Project 653 co-leaders

Abstract deadline for IGCP 653 Annual meeting approaching

The early registration and abstract deadline for the Annual meeting in Yichang, China is August 15, only two weeks away!  
Register here: http://igcp653-china2017.geobiodiversity.com

The organizers are planning a scientifically exciting and productive meeting.  We hope that you will be able to join us!

Funding is available through the IGCP program to provide partial travel support for students and scientists from developing nations participating in the Annual meeting.  To to apply for support, email Project Leader Thomas Servais (Thomas.Servais@univ-lille1.fr) .

More information here:
Second circular
IGCP 653 project website

We hope to see you in Yichang in October!

GSA deadline approaching and publications update

Dear IGCP 653 members,

The deadline is quickly approaching for submitting an abstract to the  “The onset of the Great Ordovician Biodiversity Event (GOBE): Testing Hypotheses with Diverse Data Sets” session at upcoming 2017 Geological Society of America conference in Seattle, Washington. Abstract submission is open now and will close on August 1st.  For more information about the GSA meeting visit: http://community.geosociety.org/gsa2017/home.

There are many other session at GSA that will be of interest to this group, and we hope to see you there!

In other news, the first papers from the Lethaia special volume stemming from the Durham meeting are now available in Early View.  A list of IGCP 653 related publications is maintained on our website here: http://www.igcp653.org/publications/

We are eager to document all papers related to the project. Please make Alycia Stigall (stigall@ohio.edu) aware of any IGCP 653 related papers you publish so she can keep the list updated.  We encourage all members to identify related work as part of this project in the acknowledgements section using the sentence “This paper is a contribution to the International Geoscience Programme (IGCP) Project 653 – The onset of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event.

Best wishes,
IGCP co-leaders

Second circular for Annual IGCP meeting in Yichang, China

The second annual meeting of the International Geoscience Programme Project 653 “Filling the gap between Cambrian Explosion and the GOBE” will be held in Yichang, China from October 8 through 18, 2017.

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The second circular is now available with details of registration, abstract submission, publication venue, field trip itineraries, travel and accommodations, and visa information.
Key dates:
  • August 15, 2017: Deadline for submitting abstracts or extended summary through the web of the Yichang meeting (http://igcp653-china2017.geobiodiversity.com/) or to the e-mail box of the meeting (IGCP653.China2017@nigpas.ac.cn)
  • September 15, 2017: Distribution of Third (last) Circular
  • October 8, 2017: Icebreaker of the meeting
  • October 13, 2017: Start of the post-conference field excursion
  • December 31, 2017: Deadline for submitting proceeding paper to Palaeoworld
Contact information
Any questions or suggestions related to the meeting and field trips should be directed to the e-mail box of the meeting: IGCP653.China2017@nigpas.ac.cn
or if necessary, to:Dr. FAN Junxuan (Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology): fanjunxuan@gmail.com

Dr. ZHANG Yuandong (Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology): ydzhang@nigpas.ac.cn

For further and updated information of the Yichang meeting, please visit the website of the meeting: http://igcp653-china2017.geobiodiversity.com/