The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology (SVP) is a professional organization that was founded in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

in 1940 to advance the science of vertebrate paleontology around the world.

Mission and Activities

SVP has about 2,300 members internationally and holds annual scientific conferences in North America and elsewhere. It is organized for educational and scientific purposes with a mission to "advance the

science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

of vertebrate paleontology and to serve the common interests and facilitate the cooperation of all persons concerned with the history,

evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...

comparative anatomy Comparative anatomy is the study of similarities and differences in the anatomy of different species. It is closely related to evolutionary biology and phylogeny (the evolution of species). The science began in the classical era, continuing in t ...

, and

taxonomy Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

of vertebrate animals, as well as field occurrence, collection, and study of fossil vertebrates and the

stratigraphy Stratigraphy is a branch of geology concerned with the study of rock (geology), rock layers (Stratum, strata) and layering (stratification). It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary rock, sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks. Stratigrap ...

of the beds in which they are found." SVP is also concerned with the conservation and preservation of fossil sites. SVP publications include the '' Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology'', the ''SVP Memoir Series'', the ''News Bulletin'', the''Bibliography of Fossil Vertebrates'' and most recently ''

Palaeontologia Electronica ''Palaeontologia Electronica'' is a triannual peer-reviewed open-access scientific journal published by Coquina Press covering paleontology. It was established in 1998 and is the oldest fully open-access electronic journal of paleontology. The jour ...

''.

History

SVP was founded as an independent society in 1940 by a group of scientists who had formed the 'section of vertebrate paleontology' in the Paleontological Society six years earlier. Among the founding members were George Gaylord Simpson, who was nine years later also a founding member of the Society for the Study of Evolution, and Alfred Sherwood Romer. SVP's members wanted to maintain a strong focus on evolution and zoology at a time when the Paleontological Society was becoming increasingly biostratigraphic and industry focused. SVP's first president was Al Romer (served 1940-41), and its current president is Jessica Theodor. Six out of the last eight of SVP's presidents have been women (

Annalisa Berta Annalisa Berta (born 23 July 1952) is an American paleontologist and professor emerita in the Department of Biology at San Diego State University. The focus of her research is the evolution and fossil history of whales and other marine mammals, a ...

Catherine E. Badgley Catherine E. Badgley (born November 15, 1950) is an American paleontologist and professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. The focus of Badgley's research is the evolution and fossi ...

Blaire Van Valkenburgh Blaire Van Valkenburgh is an American paleontologist and holds the Donald R. Dickey Chair in Vertebrate Biology in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at University of California Los Angeles. She is a former president of Society of ...

Catherine Forster Catherine Ann Forster is an American paleontologist, taxonomist and expert in ornithopod evolution and ''Triceratops ''Triceratops'' ( ; ) is a genus of herbivore, herbivorous Chasmosaurinae, chasmosaurine Ceratopsidae, ceratopsid dinosaur ...

Emily Rayfield Emily Rayfield is a British palaeontologist, who is a Professor in Palaeobiology in the School of Earth Sciences at the University of Bristol. Her research primarily focuses on the functional anatomy of extinct vertebrates, especially dinosaur ...

, and Jessica Theodor), as is the president-elect (Margaret Lewis).

Public policies

SVP considers that "vertebrate Fossils are significant nonrenewable paleontological resources that are afforded protection by federal, state and local environmental laws and guidelines", and that scientifically important fossils, especially those found on public land, should be held in the public trust, preferably in a museum or research institution, where they can benefit the scientific community as a whole. The

Paleontological Resources Preservation Act. S. 546 The Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (, ) is a land management law passed in the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 30, 2009. The bill designates millions of acres in the US as protected an ...

and H. R. 2416 were introduced in the

US Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washingto ...

with the support of SVP. SVP has also been involved in legal action to protect the original boundaries of Grand Staircase–Escalante and

Bears Ears The Bears Ears are a pair of buttes located in San Juan County in southeastern Utah, United States. They are protected as part of and the namesake of the Bears Ears National Monument, managed by the Bureau of Land Management and United States F ...

national monuments, both of which were established to provide protection for paleontological resources. The ethics by-law of SVP states "The barter, sale, or purchase of scientifically significant vertebrate fossils is not condoned, unless it brings them into or keeps them within a public trust." Because of this, SVP has advocated that scientifically important fossils, such as the theropod skeleton auctioned in Paris in 2018, be placed in public trust repositories like those at major museums and universities. The position of the SVP is that "The fossil record of vertebrates unequivocally supports the hypothesis that vertebrates have evolved through time" and that evolution is "the central organizing principle of

biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary i ...

, understood as descent with modification" and is important to

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...

as well. The Society believes only scientifically supported evolutionary theory should be taught in school and that

creationism Creationism is the religious belief that nature, and aspects such as the universe, Earth, life, and humans, originated with supernatural acts of divine creation. Gunn 2004, p. 9, "The ''Concise Oxford Dictionary'' says that creationism is 't ...

and

intelligent design Intelligent design (ID) is a pseudoscientific argument for the existence of God, presented by its proponents as "an evidence-based scientific theory about life's origins". Numbers 2006, p. 373; " Dcaptured headlines for its bold attempt to ...

have no place in the scientific curriculum. To this end, SVP has set up programs to train educators in teaching evolution.

Publications

*''The Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology'' (JVP) is the society's flagship publication. JVP was founded in 1980 at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...

and continued in 1984 by SVP. JVP contains original contributions on all aspects of the vertebrate paleontology; including vertebrate origins, evolution,

functional morphology Functional may refer to: * Movements in architecture: ** Functionalism (architecture) ** Form follows function * Functional group, combination of atoms within molecules * Medical conditions without currently visible organic basis: ** Functional s ...

, taxonomy,

biostratigraphy Biostratigraphy is the branch of stratigraphy which focuses on correlating and assigning relative ages of rock Stratum, strata by using the fossil assemblages contained within them.Hine, Robert. “Biostratigraphy.” ''Oxford Reference: Dictiona ...

, paleoecology,

paleobiogeography Biogeography is the study of the distribution of species and ecosystems in geographic space and through geological time. Organisms and biological communities often vary in a regular fashion along geographic gradients of latitude, elevation, ...

, and

paleoanthropology Paleoanthropology or paleo-anthropology is a branch of paleontology and anthropology which seeks to understand the early development of anatomically modern humans, a process known as hominization, through the reconstruction of evolutionary kinship ...

. *The ''SVP Memoir Series'' publishes monographic papers that are longer than JVP articles. *''The News Bulletin'' has been published for SVP since its founding. ''The News Bulletin'' contains minutes of annual business meetings, news from members around the world, address changes, new members, job advertisements, and obituaries. *''The Bibliography of Fossil Vertebrates'' is an index for publications on all subjects related to vertebrate paleontology. *''Palaeontologia Electronica'' is the world's first electronic journal of paleontology and is sponsored in part by SVP.

Awards and prizes

The SVP issues the following awards, grants and prizes: *Cohen Award for Student Research (after Steven Cohen) *Colbert Prize Student Poster Prize (after Edwin H. and Margaret Colbert) *Dawson Predoctoral Fellowship Grant (after

Mary R. Dawson Mary R. Dawson (February 27, 1931 – November 29, 2020) was a vertebrate paleontologist and curator emeritus at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Education and career Dawson was raised in Michigan, received h ...

) *Estes Memorial Grant (after Richard Estes) *Gregory Award (after

Joseph T. Gregory Dr. Joseph Tracy Gregory (July 28, 1914 – November 18, 2007) was an American paleontology, paleontologist and professor. Joseph Tracy Gregory was born in Eureka, California, the only child of Frank Gregory, a civil engineer, and Edith Tracy, ...

) *Hix Preparators' Grant (after Marvin and Beth Hix) *Honorary Membership *Institutional Membership (a program for institutions in developing nations) *Lanzendorf-National Geographic PaleoArt Prizes (after John Lanzendorf) *Patterson Memorial Grant (after

Bryan Patterson Bryan Patterson (born 10 March 1909 in London; died 1 December 1979 in Chicago) was an American paleontologist at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. Life and career Bryan Patterson was the son of the soldier, engineer and author ...

) *Program for Scientists from Economically Developing Nations *Romer Prize (after Alfred Romer) *

Romer-Simpson Medal The Romer-Simpson Medal is the highest award issued by the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology for "sustained and outstanding scholarly excellence and service to the discipline of vertebrate paleontology". The award is named in honor of Alfred S. Ro ...

(after

Alfred S. Romer Alfred Sherwood Romer (December 28, 1894 – November 5, 1973) was an American paleontologist and biologist and a specialist in vertebrate evolution. Biography Alfred Romer was born in White Plains, New York, the son of Harry Houston Romer an ...

and

George G. Simpson George Gaylord Simpson (June 16, 1902 – October 6, 1984) was an American paleontologist. Simpson was perhaps the most influential paleontologist of the twentieth century, and a major participant in the modern synthesis, contributing ''Tempo a ...

) *Skinner Award (after Morris Skinner) *Wood Award (after Albert E. Wood) *Jackson School of Geosciences Travel Grant *SVP Futures Award *Carroll Award (after Robert Carroll)

References

External links

SVP's websiteSVP's Blog "Old Bones"Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology
{{authority control Paleontological institutions and organizations Scientific societies based in the United States Geology societies Natural Science Collections Alliance members Bethesda, Maryland Paleontology in the United States Scientific organizations established in 1940