Selfie of Kiersten Formoso in museum collections. A seal pelvis, calipers, and an iPad screen are behind her.

Research

My broad research questions focus on the functional morphological controls that facilitate, enable, or constrain major evolutionary transitions, particularly the controls of locomotion in evolving from land to water.

I also study the biomechanics and kinematics of aquatic tetrapods, and dabble in mass extinctions and recovery, particularly the end-Triassic and end-Permian.

Read more about my lab's research by clicking the button below to my lab website!

Lab Website

Photo of Kiersten Formoso measuring a mosasaur.

Tanystropheus photograph taken in Zurich.

Publications

Alison T. Cribb, Kiersten K. Formoso, C. Henrik Woolley, James Beech, Shannon Brophy, Paul Byrne, Victoria C. Cassady, Amanda L. Godbold, Ekaterina Larina, Philip-peter Maxeiner, Yun-Hsin Wu, Frank A. Corsetti and David J. Bottjer. 2023. Contrasting terrestrial and marine ecospace dynamics after the end-Triassic mass extinction event, Proceedings B. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2023.2232

Kiersten K. Formoso, Michael B. Habib, Jorge Velez-Juarbe. 2023. The role of locomotory ancestry on secondarily aquatic transitions, Integrative and Comparative Biology. https://doi.org/10.1093/icb/icad112

Paul C. Sereno, Nathan Myhrvold, Donald M. Henderson, Frank E. Fish, Daniel Vidal, Stephanie L. Baumgart, Tyler M. Keillor, Kiersten K. Formoso, Lauren L. Conroy. 2022. Spinosaurus is not an aquatic dinosaur, eLife. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.80092

Griffin, C.T., Stocker, M.R., Colleary, C., Stefanic, C.M., Lessner, E.J., Riegler, M., Formoso, K., Koeller, K. and Nesbitt, S.J. 2021, Assessing ontogenetic maturity in extinct saurian reptiles, Biology Reviews. https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.12666

Formoso, Kiersten K., Nesbitt, Sterling J., Pritchard, Adam C., Stocker, Michelle R., and Parker, William G. 2019. A long-necked tanystropheid from the Middle Triassic Moenkopi Formation (Anisian) provides insights into the ecology and biogeography of tanystropheids. Palaeontologia Electronica. https://doi.org/10.26879/988 palaeo-electronica.org/content/2019/2824-long-necked-moenkopi-tanystropheid