Palaeoecologist

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A scientist who investigates how ancient environments and the living communities within them functioned, using fossils and geological evidence
2. A researcher specializing in the study of prehistoric ecosystems, reconstructing past relationships between organisms and their surroundings
3. Someone who examines the ecological conditions of earlier geological periods by analyzing remains preserved in rock and sediment

Etymology: Palaeoecologist is a plain compound, built from "palaeo-" and "ecologist." The first part comes from Ancient Greek "pálai," meaning "long ago," which gave the adjective "palaiós," meaning "old" or "ancient." English adopted this combining form as "palaeo-" to mark anything concerned with the distant past. The second part, "ecologist," is a modern term for a specialist in ecology, the study of organisms and their relationships with their environment. Joined together, the two elements describe a scientist who studies ecological systems of ancient times, reconstructing past plant and animal communities from evidence such as fossil pollen, sediments and preserved remains. The word therefore needs no special story. Its meaning follows directly from its parts: an ecologist working on deep time.

Synonyms: paleoecologist