Project description
A large-scale palaeontological project in Sudan
Palaeontological research in Africa has revealed a rich Pleistocene fossil record. However, most fossil sites are located in the East African Rift Valley (EARV), which creates a geographic bias. Therefore, our knowledge of regional faunas as well as the role of dispersal and geographic variation in the emergence of modern ecosystems (including humans) is limited. Moreover, the role of the Nile River in faunal and cultural dispersal is understudied. The EU-funded PALEONILE project will combine palaeontological, geological, geochronological and archaeological approaches to reveal a new fossil record from Sudan's Nile River Basin. Moreover, it will test hypotheses on Pleistocene zoogeographic regionalisation in the Nile Basin with respect to the EARV and surrounding areas.
Objective
Over a century of paleontological investigation in Africa has revealed a rich Pleistocene fossil record that includes the evolution of hominins and their material cultures. However, the vast majority of fossil sites are located in the East African Rift Valley (EARV), and our knowledge is heavily skewed by this geographic bias. Poor continental geographic sampling means we lack an understanding of faunal regional variations, and the role of dispersal and geographic variation in the emergence of modern ecosystems. Furthermore, many have questioned the role of the Nile, the longest river in the world, in promoting faunal and cultural dispersal between Subsaharan and North Africa, and beyond to Eurasia. For decades such questions have been answered speculatively, with little data to stand on. PALEONILE is an ambitious project that will address these major gaps in our knowledge through large-scale surveys to reveal a new fossil record from the Middle Nile River Basin in Sudan. This project will test an overarching hypothesis of Pleistocene zoogeographic regionalization in the Nile Basin with respect to the EARV and surrounding areas, and will use an interdisciplinary array of paleontological, geological, geochronological, and archaeological approaches to reach its objectives. The geographic scale of the project is large and the techniques are cutting edge, including high-risk experimental methodologies such as paleobiomolecular recovery and new developments in sedimentary dating. PALEONILE forms the first ever large-scale systematic paleontological project to be conducted in Sudan, where the Cenozoic fossil record remains largely undiscovered, and its potential overlooked. PALEONILE will generate a new paradigm of zoogeographic dynamics and evolution in the African Pleistocene that represents a new synthesis of hydrographic, phylogenomic, archaeological, and paleontological evidence.
Fields of science
Programme(s)
- HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme
Funding Scheme
HORIZON-AG - HORIZON Action Grant Budget-BasedHost institution
10115 Berlin
Germany