Society of Vertebrate Paleontology Annual Meeting

The Society, known as SVP, was founded in 1940 by only 34 paleontologists as an informal gathering where vertebrate paleontologists could gather and discuss their findings and hypotheses about paleontology. SVP now has over 2,000 members all over the globe, and publishes the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.

SVP is organized for scientific and educational purposes. The mission of SVP is to "advance the science of vertebrate paleontology and to serve the common interests and facilitate the cooperation of all persons concerned with the history, evolution, comparative anataomy, and taxonomy of vertebrate animals, as well as field occurence, collection, and study of fossil vertebrates and the stratigraphy of the beds in which they are found." Conservation and preservation of fossils and fossil sites are also a concern of SVP, as is the education of young people about paleontology.

This year's SVP meeting included symposia on recent advances in the origin and early radiation of the vertebrates, paleoichnology (the study of trace fossils), origin, timing, and relationships of major extant placental clades, and the continental Permian Period (280 to 230 million years ago). The annual Preparator's Symposium gave preparators a chance to discuss the latest techniques for preparing fossils. (Be sure to read my series of articles about Fossil Preparation.) Technical Sessions on a variety of topics concerned with vertebrate animals were held the 10th through the 12th. Students and professionals presented posters on their research during three poster sessions.

Among the regular events of the meeting were the annual SVP Auction, which raises money for SVP's educational programs, a reception at the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History which allowed attendees a chance to view the exhibits., and the annual banquet and awards ceremony. The awards ceremony honors not only young students for their recent contributions to the science of paleontology, but also long-time members for their life-time achievements and contributions. Before the conference, field trips to nearby paleontological sites were held. Teachers attended a workshop on Learning from the Fossil Record.

The 2003 meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology will be held at the Science Museum of Minnesota in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Be sure to read my next article, "A Visit to the Sam Noble Oklahoman Museum of Natural History"!

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