Locked in Time: Animal Behavior Unearthed in 50 Extraordinary Fossils
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- Create Date：2021-07-17 07:51:23
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Dean R. Lomax
- ISBN：0231197284
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Summary
Fossils allow us to picture the forms of life that inhabited the earth eons ago。 But we long to know more: how did these animals actually behave？ We are fascinated by the daily lives of our fellow creatures--how they reproduce and raise their young， how they hunt their prey or elude their predators， and more。 What would it be like to see prehistoric animals as they lived and breathed？
From dinosaurs fighting to their deaths to elephant-sized burrowing ground sloths， this book takes readers on a global journey deep into the earth's past。 Locked in Time showcases fifty of the most astonishing fossils ever found， brought together in five fascinating chapters that offer an unprecedented glimpse at the real-life behaviors of prehistoric animals。 Dean R。 Lomax examines the extraordinary direct evidence of fossils captured in the midst of everyday action， such as dinosaurs sitting on their eggs like birds， Jurassic flies preserved while mating， a T。 rex infected by parasites。 Each fossil， he reveals， tells a unique story about prehistoric life。 Many recall behaviors typical of animals familiar to us today， evoking the chain of evolution that links all living things to their distant ancestors。 Locked in Time allows us to see that fossils are not just inanimate objects: they can record the life stories of creatures as fully alive as any today。 Striking and scientifically rigorous illustrations by renowned paleoartist Bob Nicholls bring these breathtaking moments to life。
From dinosaurs fighting to their deaths to elephant-sized burrowing ground sloths， this book takes readers on a global journey deep into the earth's past。 Locked in Time showcases fifty of the most astonishing fossils ever found， brought together in five fascinating chapters that offer an unprecedented glimpse at the real-life behaviors of prehistoric animals。 Dean R。 Lomax examines the extraordinary direct evidence of fossils captured in the midst of everyday action， such as dinosaurs sitting on their eggs like birds， Jurassic flies preserved while mating， a T。 rex infected by parasites。 Each fossil， he reveals， tells a unique story about prehistoric life。 Many recall behaviors typical of animals familiar to us today， evoking the chain of evolution that links all living things to their distant ancestors。 Locked in Time allows us to see that fossils are not just inanimate objects: they can record the life stories of creatures as fully alive as any today。 Striking and scientifically rigorous illustrations by renowned paleoartist Bob Nicholls bring these breathtaking moments to life。
Reviews
Ola G
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10/10 starsMy full review can be found on my blog。This time， I have something different for you: a journey through millions of years， full of wonderful， saddening， and/or quite creepy discoveries， and ranging from nearly the beginnings of fossil records to the time of the Ice Age。 While probably most of us were at some point in our lives fascinated with dinosaurs， ammonites， mammoths and smilodons， not many chose this childhood fascination as their adult passion。 Dean R。 Lomax did， and both this 10/10 starsMy full review can be found on my blog。This time， I have something different for you: a journey through millions of years， full of wonderful， saddening， and/or quite creepy discoveries， and ranging from nearly the beginnings of fossil records to the time of the Ice Age。 While probably most of us were at some point in our lives fascinated with dinosaurs， ammonites， mammoths and smilodons， not many chose this childhood fascination as their adult passion。 Dean R。 Lomax did， and both this fascination， and this passion， are clearly noticeable in his book， which is as entertaining as it is informative。 [。。。]To be honest， I didn’t expect to be so beguiled by this book。 I was first drawn to it because it promised illustrations of prehistoric animals in unusual situations （and yes， there’s even one memorable illustration of a pooping member of the extinct Borophaginae family， the bone-crushing dogs from North America， and another of a peeing diplodocus – and as a side note， I didn’t know ostriches pee！）; I never expected it would rekindle my own fascination with paleontology and fossils。 The illustrations by Robert Nicholls are great; they serve as companions to the cases described in the text， and make the accompanying photographs of fossils more evocative and more comprehensible， turning a jumble of bones into a poignant scene from the past。 There’s an abundance of both the impeccable， large illustrations （sometimes spanning two pages） and the photographs， and I only regret that I didn’t have the physical book in my hands and had to resort to looking at the pictures on my phone。But the illustrations are the companion piece; the text is what matters， and this text is both very approachable and easily understandable – clearly directed at the general audience – while remaining scientific。 Moreover， it succeeds in imparting highly erudite， often unfamiliar knowledge on laypersons such as me。 Lomax is an easy narrator， deftly weaving personal reminiscence and passion among the paleontological facts。 It also helps that the facts he chooses are quite astonishing – varying from relatable to unusual or outright unique， from funny to disgusting， from those reminiscent of old tragedies to those showcasing moments of happy tenderness between animals extinct for millions of years。 Of course， with fossils there’s always a lot of room for conjectures and honest mistakes; our beliefs color the facts， especially when the facts are scarce。 However， Lomax rarely strays from the path of confirmed， broadly accepted knowledge （at least among paleontologists; I bet many of these little snippets would be new to you！）， and Locked in Time remains a scientific book at its heart – while being highly entertaining at the same time。 We learn about dinosaur babysitters; fateful fights between a pteranodon and a predatory fish; mammals hunting dinosaurs; dinosaurs with cancer; enormous snakes feasting on tiny sauropod hatchlings; resting and sleeping theropods; evidence of ancient social behavior forever encased in stone; giant burrowing sloths bigger than elephants; even some hair-rising parasites （such as aptly named Xenomorphia resurrecta， a parasitic wasp， whose larvae developed inside fly pupae， eating them alive） and insect farts immortalized in amber。 Yes， there is a lot of information about bodily functions of various creatures in this book， clearly certain fascinations stay with some people longer than with others。 But， to be fair， you’re bound to get bonus points if you ever use that knowledge in conversations with kids （any kids， really， don’t have to be yours）！ My my， my repertoire of awkward starts to social conversations just got so much bigger！ 😀I had a blast with this book。 It’s a wonderful reminder for those who like me had been bitten by the fossil/dinosaur bug in their childhood， but it’s also a great starting point for those who feel that paleontology might be interesting and yet are afraid of the dry scientific language of most adult paleobiology books。 Also， if you’re tempted to read more， Locked in Time offers a nice bibliography at the end。And a last quote， one that very aptly summarizes both the age of life on Earth and our own place within it: “Before dinosaurs even appeared， trilobites were fossils under their feet。” （p。 110）I have received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 My thanks。 。。。more
Kendra
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What a fun and fascinating book。 Short reads about a wide variety of prehistoric related finds。 Love the images， really wish they could have been in color。 The information was concise， but engaging， and I thoroughly enjoyed it。
Elliott
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This was an unexpected （but delightful） find from my favourite used bookstore-similar I suppose to some of the finds described within…It’s a curious sort of disorder that books I hate I can describe exactly why and how I hate them。 Books I love on the other hand I find it harder to describe。 This book similarly defies apt description。 It’s wonderfully written by Dean Lomax， and lovingly illustrated with both Bob Nicholls’ excellent reconstructions as well as actual photographs of the fossils bei This was an unexpected （but delightful） find from my favourite used bookstore-similar I suppose to some of the finds described within…It’s a curious sort of disorder that books I hate I can describe exactly why and how I hate them。 Books I love on the other hand I find it harder to describe。 This book similarly defies apt description。 It’s wonderfully written by Dean Lomax， and lovingly illustrated with both Bob Nicholls’ excellent reconstructions as well as actual photographs of the fossils being described。 Many of the fossils depicted in here were enough to make me gasp。 The detail！ Preserved！ Millions of years！ Each of the finds depicted are so improbable in their survival that I feel so fortunate being simply here to see them。 。。。more
Faye Rackham
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I am an incredibly reluctant and slow reader but finished this book in one weekend which is a personal accomplishment as I always rely on audio books。 I absolutely loved it， it was so informative and very well written。 I really liked all the scientific terms as well as explanations and it goes without saying the illustrations were fantastic and really helps the reader to picture the scenario whilst bringing the fossils to life。 The short stories of each fossil were well explained and， for me， ma I am an incredibly reluctant and slow reader but finished this book in one weekend which is a personal accomplishment as I always rely on audio books。 I absolutely loved it， it was so informative and very well written。 I really liked all the scientific terms as well as explanations and it goes without saying the illustrations were fantastic and really helps the reader to picture the scenario whilst bringing the fossils to life。 The short stories of each fossil were well explained and， for me， made it so much easier to read and keep my focus - in fact I couldn’t put it down （I know that’s cliche but it’s true）。 This book had me lost in a prehistoric world and I didn’t want it to end。 。。。more
Jason Wild
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What a brilliant idea for a book。 I have been intrigued by dinosaurs ever since watching Jurassic Park and had always wondered how scientists work out how these prehistoric animals behave; surely nothing more than speculation？ Wrong！ This book has opened my eyes to an interesting world of paleontology that I never thought was possible。 The book tells the stories of 50 extraordinary fossils， each with evidence of behavior， such as fighting dinosaurs to mating insects。 What I particularly liked ab What a brilliant idea for a book。 I have been intrigued by dinosaurs ever since watching Jurassic Park and had always wondered how scientists work out how these prehistoric animals behave; surely nothing more than speculation？ Wrong！ This book has opened my eyes to an interesting world of paleontology that I never thought was possible。 The book tells the stories of 50 extraordinary fossils， each with evidence of behavior， such as fighting dinosaurs to mating insects。 What I particularly liked about Lomax's approach， is that he tells each story based on the fossil， which is then supported by interpretations of behaviors found in living animals， and then photos of the fossils with a gorgeous artistic reconstruction。 From one dinosaur enthusiast to another， I would highly recommend this book。 。。。more
The Inquisitive Biologist
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Make space on your palaeontology shelf！ Locked in Time is a highly original book that looks at fossil evidence for animal behaviour。 See my full review at https://inquisitivebiologist。com/2021。。。 Make space on your palaeontology shelf！ Locked in Time is a highly original book that looks at fossil evidence for animal behaviour。 See my full review at https://inquisitivebiologist。com/2021。。。 。。。more
Ki。Williams
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Locked In Time gives you an astonishing， unique look into prehistoric life。 This is a delightful collection exploring ancient births， courtships， migrations， battles， injuries， strange interactions and deaths。 Lomax explains multiple interpretations of the fossils and draws parallels with living animals - allowing you to understand the behaviours caught in the fossils， and to appreciate how rare and special they truly are。 The writing is conversational， funny and engaging。 I chuckled and gasped Locked In Time gives you an astonishing， unique look into prehistoric life。 This is a delightful collection exploring ancient births， courtships， migrations， battles， injuries， strange interactions and deaths。 Lomax explains multiple interpretations of the fossils and draws parallels with living animals - allowing you to understand the behaviours caught in the fossils， and to appreciate how rare and special they truly are。 The writing is conversational， funny and engaging。 I chuckled and gasped （and even blushed！） all the way through， and Nicholls' dynamic illustrations just capture your imagination。 I couldn't wait for each new story to unfold！ Some of these fossils are so bizarre， I know I'll be thinking about them for a long time。There is so much detailed research included， but it feels both effortless and exciting to read。 An amazing wealth of knowledge is revealed with flair， humour and joy。 A wonderful book， and an instant favourite。 You'll never see fossils the same way again！ 。。。more
Leelan
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So many books on dinosaurs and prehistory can be put into two distant and distinct categories， either a cute kid's book with little science or respect for the reader， or a book as dry as dust that is simply an exercise for the author to show off how much he knows about every feature to be found in and around a fossil skull。 Lomax drives this book right up the middle。 It is fun and informative。 And there are fantastic illustrations by Bob Nicholls that complement the text in each chapter。 I don't So many books on dinosaurs and prehistory can be put into two distant and distinct categories， either a cute kid's book with little science or respect for the reader， or a book as dry as dust that is simply an exercise for the author to show off how much he knows about every feature to be found in and around a fossil skull。 Lomax drives this book right up the middle。 It is fun and informative。 And there are fantastic illustrations by Bob Nicholls that complement the text in each chapter。 I don't know about you， but I am tired of dinosaurs as movie monsters like we see in Jurassic World。 I want to see these creatures as living breathing animals。 Not bloodthirsty B-movie cutouts。 Lomax breathes life into these old bones。 And you will not believe the last two chapters！ Fossil farts and dino pee？！ I read both chapters to my wife on our commute home and she enjoyed them as much as I did。 If Dr Dean Lomax will keep writing books like this， he can just sign me up for the next one。 Interesting information， new ideas and humor --- what else could we ask for？ 。。。more
Em Meurer
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Locked in Time: Animal Behavior Unearthed in 50 Extraordinary Fossilsby Dean R Lomax， Illustrated by Bob Nicholls⚡️ I was provided an e-ARC by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review （Out now！！）🌟: 5 / 5 📚: Locked in Time is 50 vignettes of prehistoric life， captured in rare fossil finds， that bring these extinct animals to life。💭: Let me start by saying this: this book will make you feel things about extinct animals that are normally reserved for your own pets。 The 50 vignet Locked in Time: Animal Behavior Unearthed in 50 Extraordinary Fossilsby Dean R Lomax， Illustrated by Bob Nicholls⚡️ I was provided an e-ARC by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review （Out now！！）🌟: 5 / 5 📚: Locked in Time is 50 vignettes of prehistoric life， captured in rare fossil finds， that bring these extinct animals to life。💭: Let me start by saying this: this book will make you feel things about extinct animals that are normally reserved for your own pets。 The 50 vignettes are not only incredible case studies， but they’re written about in a way that I’ve never seen done before— Lomax and Nicholls truly bring all of these animals to life by combining the hard fossil facts with present day animal analogs。Every story is a little gem in itself， it gives you exactly what you need to know， with no room for the confusion or boredom that easily happens in an over-complicated non-fiction read。 This book made me care deeply for a pregnant plesiosaur， ancient turtles caught Doing The Deed， dinosaur babysitters， and so much more。 It is truly magical how a bunch of bones stuck in rocks came to life in these pages。It’s amazing to have a book that can so easily reignite the wonder of dinosaurs and prehistoric life in a sea of nonfiction that makes it seem less fascinating and （at one time） alive than it is。 Locked in Time genuinely filled me with so much joy and wonder about not just past animal life， but present-day animal life。 。。。more
Annie
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Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader。 Locked in Time is an engaging layman accessible monograph on function and the behavior of prehistoric animals based on the fossil records written by Dr。 Dean R。 Lomax。 Released 18th May 2021 by Columbia University Press， it's 296 pages and is available in hardcover and ebook formats。 This is a really beautifully illustrated and fascinating look at prehistoric animals' behaviors and lives from information gleaned from the fossil records they left b Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader。 Locked in Time is an engaging layman accessible monograph on function and the behavior of prehistoric animals based on the fossil records written by Dr。 Dean R。 Lomax。 Released 18th May 2021 by Columbia University Press， it's 296 pages and is available in hardcover and ebook formats。 This is a really beautifully illustrated and fascinating look at prehistoric animals' behaviors and lives from information gleaned from the fossil records they left behind。 The book is layman accessible， and I found it a fascinating read。 The chapter bibliographies are well annotated and make for fascinating further reading， but it doesn't get bogged down in overly academic language。 This is popular science writing - not a textbook。The photographs of fossils throughout are fascinating especially with the expert interpretation and extra notes from the author。 The thing that elevated the whole book for me were the beautifully and realistically rendered illustrations。This would make a superlative selection for library acquisition or for fans of science writing， especially those interested in paleontology。 Five stars。Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes。 。。。more
Antonia
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This is my favorite time travel book。 Really。 Dr。 Dean Lomax brings prehistoric animals to life by exploring their death as it is captured in the fossil record。 The book is written in a way that made me feel like I was hearing a friend talk about these animals。 It is conversational and funny， making fossilized animals interesting and approachable。 Also， the illustrations are incredible。 From the death march of a horseshoe crab to fossil farts and dinosaur pee， to hell pigs and ground sloths and This is my favorite time travel book。 Really。 Dr。 Dean Lomax brings prehistoric animals to life by exploring their death as it is captured in the fossil record。 The book is written in a way that made me feel like I was hearing a friend talk about these animals。 It is conversational and funny， making fossilized animals interesting and approachable。 Also， the illustrations are incredible。 From the death march of a horseshoe crab to fossil farts and dinosaur pee， to hell pigs and ground sloths and everything in between， this book has a little something for everyone。 Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy。 ARC provided by Netgalley but I will definitely be purchasing this book。 。。。more
Steve
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I loved this book。 Dean Lomax writes with a conversational tone， with the occasional clever side comment。 The writing just carried me along and the book was difficult to put down。 Since the book is made up of short articles on various fossils， I fell into the trap of “I’ll just read one more”。 It was never just one more。 Also making the book great were the photographs of the fossil finds。 But making this book outstanding were the amazing illustrations by Bob Nicholls。 This is a book well worth r I loved this book。 Dean Lomax writes with a conversational tone， with the occasional clever side comment。 The writing just carried me along and the book was difficult to put down。 Since the book is made up of short articles on various fossils， I fell into the trap of “I’ll just read one more”。 It was never just one more。 Also making the book great were the photographs of the fossil finds。 But making this book outstanding were the amazing illustrations by Bob Nicholls。 This is a book well worth reading and is an example of fabulous science writing and art。 Thank you to Netgalley and Columbia University Press for the advance reader copy。 。。。more
Andrea Wenger
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This book is an entertaining read for anyone who's interested in fossils， evolution， or prehistoric life。 It shows what fossils can tell us about the timeline for when different adaptations first appeared。 The fossils are brought to life in dozens of illustrations。 The book is visually beautiful and easy to read in spite of the technical subject matter。 It's interesting to see how some fossils were originally misinterpreted。 For instance， when tiny ichthyosaurs were found inside the bellies of a This book is an entertaining read for anyone who's interested in fossils， evolution， or prehistoric life。 It shows what fossils can tell us about the timeline for when different adaptations first appeared。 The fossils are brought to life in dozens of illustrations。 The book is visually beautiful and easy to read in spite of the technical subject matter。 It's interesting to see how some fossils were originally misinterpreted。 For instance， when tiny ichthyosaurs were found inside the bellies of adults， it was first thought that ichthyosaurs were cannibalistic。 Later research determined that the fossils were pregnant females， indicating that the species gave birth to live young。 I always enjoy seeing how new generations of scientists bring innovative perspectives to old data。Thanks， NetGalley， for the ARC I received。 This is my honest and voluntary review。 。。。more
Ula Tardigrade
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Did you know that the biggest burrows ever were built by the extinct giant sloths？ Or that some dinosaurs were engaged in a sort of mating dance？ And that there are fossils of butterflies， molting arachnids and even creatures during sex？ These are only some of the fascinating facts from “Locked in Time”， but there is so much more than that in this great book。 It isn’t a random collection of dinosaur trivia， but a very well written story， a real page-turner， with interesting insights about evolut Did you know that the biggest burrows ever were built by the extinct giant sloths？ Or that some dinosaurs were engaged in a sort of mating dance？ And that there are fossils of butterflies， molting arachnids and even creatures during sex？ These are only some of the fascinating facts from “Locked in Time”， but there is so much more than that in this great book。 It isn’t a random collection of dinosaur trivia， but a very well written story， a real page-turner， with interesting insights about evolution， biology and geology。I’ve read this paleontology book immediately after Written in Bone: Hidden Stories in What We Leave Behind by Sue Black， about forensic anthropology， and it is funny how similar these two stories are （apparently， there is even such discipline as paleopathology）。 Both professions not only deal with bones but also use them and various traces as clues to reconstruct the behavior and fates of their subjects， often with astonishing results。Highly recommended for fans of such books as Your Inner Fish: A Journey Into the 3。5-Billion-Year History of the Human Body or The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World。Thanks to the publisher， Columbia University Press， and NetGalley for the advance copy of this book。 。。。more
Elisa
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A fascinating look into daily life in a lost world。 Dinosaurs are legendary creatures， but we know little about them。 Lomax， a Paleontologist， changes that， explaining how he thinks they lived。 Not only their legendary battles but also their mating rituals， childbearing， eating habits and even their waste disposal。 What we can learn about prehistoric creatures （there are also mammals， fish and even insects） necessarily requires speculation， but Lomax builds scientific theories based on the last A fascinating look into daily life in a lost world。 Dinosaurs are legendary creatures， but we know little about them。 Lomax， a Paleontologist， changes that， explaining how he thinks they lived。 Not only their legendary battles but also their mating rituals， childbearing， eating habits and even their waste disposal。 What we can learn about prehistoric creatures （there are also mammals， fish and even insects） necessarily requires speculation， but Lomax builds scientific theories based on the last traces of these animals: fossils。 From fights， to pregnant females， remains of smaller animals in the alimentary tract of larger creatures， to farts preserved by amber， the author gives readers an encompassing insight into the early life of our planet。 The comparisons he draws with animals alive today， make for interesting reading。 And the illustrations by Bob Nicholls make everything easier to grasp。 In a world full of books about dinosaurs， this one is truly original and very interesting。 I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased。 Thank you， NetGalley/Columbia University Press！ 。。。more
Angela McCollister
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