∞ generated and posted on 2020.08.24 ∞
The study of ancient life.
| Paleontology involves especially the study of the fossils of extinct species but also can be inferred from the comparative study of still-living (extant) species, in terms of their anatomy but also, today especially, in terms of the sequences of their genomes. |
Paleontology is studied primarily in terms of the fossil recordin combination with comparison both of and with extant species.
Paleontology, systematics, and the study of macroevolution go hand in hand because a paleontologist attempts to characterize, identify, and classify fossils, thus working out an understanding of what species of organisms lived as well as when and where. See also paleoecology.