Dr Lara Sciscio
Senior Lecturer
JURASSICA Museum
Route de Fontenais 21
2900 Porrentruy
Switzerland
lara.sciscio[at]jurassica.ch
and
Department of Geosciences
University of Fribourg
Chemin du musée 6
1700 Fribourg
Switzerland
Lara Sciscio is a geoscientist with special interests in sedimentology, palaeoecology, and ichnology. Her current work focuses on the expansive Late Jurassic Jura dinosaur track and trackway collection under the Jurassic Globetrotters project. Here, she will use the unique JURASSICA Museum track archive and also European and American tracks and track sites to understand the palaeoecology and palaeobiogeography of animals living over 150 million years ago. Before arriving at JURASSICA, Lara obtained her Ph.D. from the University of Cape Town (2016) and has done several postdoctoral fellowships in South Africa (2016–2020). In general, Lara’s research has focused on understanding the Triassic-Jurassic transition in southern Africa with a special interest in trace fossils. Lara enjoys fieldwork and has completed several field seasons in South Africa, Lesotho, Zimbabwe, and now, here in Switzerland!
Research thematics
- Continental ichnology (particularly from the Upper Triassic, Lower Jurassic and Upper Jurassic)
- Diving into understanding Triassic-Jurassic palaeo-ecosystems
- Sedimentology and magnetostratigraphy
- Karoo and Karoo-aged basin stratigraphy, sedimentology and ichnology
Keywords
Ichnology, Sauropod, Tridactyl, Tracks, Triassic, Jurassic, Palaeoecology, Karoo BasinPublications
Employment history
| 2021–2023 | SNSF Postdoctoral Research Fellow, JURASSICA Museum, Porrentruy, Switzerland |
| 2019–2020 | Claude Leon Foundation Research Fellow, University of Johannesburg (South Africa) |
| 2018 |
GES Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Johannesburg (South Africa)
Project: Early Jurassic climate change and magnetostratigraphy across the boundary of the Elliot and Clarens Formations (Stormberg Group) in southern Africa
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| 2016–2017 |
DST-CoE Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Cape Town (South Africa)
Project: Ichnostratigraphy of the Elliot Formation, Stormberg Group, Karoo Basin
|
Academic background
| 2016 |
PhD in Geology, Université of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
PhD thesis: Position of the Triassic-Jurassic boundary in South Africa and Lesotho: A multidisciplinary approach aimed at improving the chronostratigraphy and biostratigraphy of the Elliot Formation, Stormberg Group
|
| 2011 |
MSc in Geology, University Rhodes, Grahamstown, South Africa
MSc thesis: Neogene fluvial deposits along the south-west coast of South Africa: understanding the palaeoclimate through proxies
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| 2008 | BSc Honours in Geology (with distinction), University Rhodes, Grahamstown, South Africa |
| 2005–2007 | BSc in Geology and Botany (with distinction), University Rhodes, Grahamstown, South Africa |