Roadkill as Teaching Aids in Historical Geology and Paleontology

Abstract

One of the basic elements of historical geology that must be taught to students of the earth sciences is fossils, and their significance to taxonomy and paleontology, including paleoecology, paleoenvironmental interpretation, and stratigraphy. Compared to their living counterparts, the most obvious physical attributes of fossils are that they are partially dismembered and flat. Partial dismemberment is accomplished by predators and scavengers, by wave, current, or wind action, as well as by biological and chemical decay. Burial by sediments then leads to flattening. Eventually, species identification of the remains can be difficult, which leads to the many well known problems in taxonomic classification and paleontologic interpretation.Roadkills, once rim over by a sufficient number of cars, have the essential physical attributes of most fossils. Dismemberment and flattening usually happen simultaneously via the action of cars (“predators”), aided by bacterial and chemical decay and by the feeding action of some daring scavengers (which sometimes join their meals in mortal camaraderie). The extent of dismemberment and flattening is, thus, roughly proportional to time and traffic density. After one to three weeks the remains of most roadkills are nearly two-dimensional, and many are poorly identifiable.Sequential photographs of individual roadkill, taken minutes to weeks after death and demonstrating the progressive dismemberment and flattening of various species of mammals, reptiles, birds, and fish, can thus be used to demonstrate the essential aspects of fossilization. Over the last eight years, such photographs with a light-hearted narrative have proven to be extremely popular with students of historical geology at the University of Alberta.