Robert L. Carroll (b. May 5, 1938, Kalamazoo, Michigan) is a vertebrate paleontologist who specialises in Paleozoic and Mesozoic amphibians and reptiles. May 5 is the 125th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (126th in leap years). ... 1938 was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... Kalamazoo is a city located in Kalamazoo County in southwest Michigan. ... A paleontologist carefully chips rock from a column of dinosaur vertebrae. ... The Paleozoic is a major division of the geologic timescale, one of four geologic eras. ... The Mesozoic is one of three geologic eras of Phanerozoic eon. ... Orders Subclass Labyrinthodontia - extinct Subclass Lepospondyli - extinct Subclass Lissamphibia   Anura   Caudata   Gymnophiona Amphibians (class Amphibia) are a group of animals that include all tetrapods (four-legged vertebrates) that do not have amniotic eggs. ... It has been suggested that Prehistoric reptile be merged into this article or section. ...

Carroll was an only child and grew up on a farm near Lansing, Michigan. He was introduced to paleontology by his father shortly after his fifth birthday, and by the time he was eight he had decided want to be a vertebrate paleontologist. In that same year he received as a Christmas present the left femur of an Allosaurus, courtesy of Edwin H. Colbert, whom his father had told about his interest. In his teen years his parents took him on many fossil hunting trips to to Wyoming and South Dakota . Lansing is the name of several places in the United States of America: Lansing, Illinois Lansing, Kansas Lansing, Michigan Lansing (town), New York Lansing, North Carolina Lansing, Iowa Lansing is the name of several settlements: Lansing, a former settlement that is part of Toronto Lansing, West Virginia, north of Oak... A paleontologist carefully chips rock from a column of dinosaur vertebrae. ... Anterior view of the femur The femur or thigh bone is the longest (length), largest (volume) and strongest (mechanical ability to resist deformity) bone of the human body. ... Species (type) Allosaurus (AL-oh-sore-us) was a large carnivorous dinosaur with a length of up to 12 m (39 ft). ...

After high-school, he went to Michigan State University, where he received a BSc, majoring in Geology. From there he went to Harvard where he studied biology and paleontology under Alfred Sherwood Romer. His thesis delt with the Dissorophidae, a gropup of Paleozoic amphibians. Michigan State University Michigan State University is a university in East Lansing, Michigan near the state capital of Lansing. ... Geology (from Greek γη- (ge-, the earth) and λογος (logos, word, reason)) is the science and study of the Earth, its composition, structure, physical properties, history, and the processes that shape it. ... Alfred Sherwood Romer (December 28, 1894 _ November 5, 1973) was an American paleontologist and comparative anatomist and a specialist in vertebrate evolution. ...

Dr Carroll is professor of biology at McGill University, and the author or co-author of a large number of scientific papers on fossil vertebrates, as well as a number of important monographs, text-books and more general books. McGill University is a publicly funded, research-intensive, non-denominational, co-educational university located in the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. ...

His areas of research include the the origins of terrestrial vertebrates, the origin and early evolutionary radiation of amniotes, the origin and interrelationships of the Lissamphibian groups, the anatomy and relationship of Paleozoic and Mesozoic amphibians and reptiles, large scale patterns and processes of vertebrate evolution, and the use of Mesozoic marine reptiles as a model for investigating factors controlling the patterns and rates of evolution. Extant subgroups Synapsida     Mammalia (mammals) Sauropsida    Anapsida        Testudines (turtles)    Diapsida        Lepidosauria           Squamata (lizards and snakes)           Sphenodontida (tuatara)        Archosauria           Crocodilia (crocodiles and alligators)           Aves (birds) The amniotes are a group of vertebrates that have an amnion during embryonic development. ... Orders Subclass Labyrinthodontia - extinct Subclass Lepospondyli - extinct Subclass Lissamphibia   Urodela   Anura   Gymnophiona Amphibians (class Amphibia) are a group of animals that include all tetrapods (four-legged vertebrates) that do not have amniotic eggs. ...

He currently lives in Montreal, Quebec. He is married to Anna DiTuri, a retired business school teacher, and they have one child, David Please visit and contribute to the Montreal Wikiportal See and add to this ongoing discussion about English Names in Montreal {{Canadian City/Disable Field={{{Disable Motto Link}}}}} Motto: Concordia Salus (Well-being through harmony) Ville de Montréal, Québec, Canada Location. ...

Partial Bibliography

• Carroll, R.C. 1987. Vertebrate Paleontology and Evolution. W. H. Freeman and Co. New York.
• Stearn, C. and Carroll, R.C. 1989. Paleontology: The Record of Life. John Wiley and Sons. New York.
• Carroll, R.C. 1997. Patterns and Processes of Vertebrate Evolution. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
• Carroll, R.L., Bossy, K.A., Milner, A.C., Andrews, S.M., and Wellstead, C.F. 1998. "Lepospondyli". Encyclopedia of Paleoherpetology, P. Wellnhofer (ed.). Dr. Friedrich Pfeil, München.
• Carroll, R.C. 2000. Amphibian Biology, vol 4, Palaeontology, The Evolutionary History of Amphibians, Surrey Beatty & Sons,

External Links

• Robert L. Carroll Home page
• science.ca Profile : Robert L. Carroll
• 2004 A. S. Romer-G. G. Simpson Medal