Ryosuke Motani

Ryosuke Motani is a Professor and Vice Chair for Undergraduate Programs in the Department of Geology at the University of California, Davis. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Toronto (1997) and specializes in vertebrate paleobiology and evolutionary biology, focusing on functional morphology and its implications for ecology and evolution. His research emphasizes Mesozoic marine reptiles, particularly ichthyosaurs, exploring topics like body shape evolution, locomotion mechanics, and ecological adaptations.

Education: Ph.D., University of Toronto, Canada (1997).

Research Interests: Geobiology, Paleobiology, and the integration of physics-based functional morphology with evolutionary processes. Key projects include studying the evolution of thunniform swimming in ichthyosaurs, the biotic recovery post-end-Permian extinction, and the ecological roles of Mesozoic marine reptiles.

Major Awards: Young Scientists' Prize (2007, Japan), Gakujutsu Prize (2005, Palaeontological Society of Japan), NSF CAREER Grant (2003).

Lab Activities: Mentors students in diverse projects, including vision evolution in archosaurs, swimming mechanics of Cretaceous birds, and finite element analysis of fossil deformation. Notable students include Neil Kelley, Lars Schmitz, and Ji-Yeon Shin.

Labs/Teams: Leads the UC Davis Geobiology and Paleobiology research group, collaborating on projects like the Chaohu and Xingyi Fauna studies, and maintains active fieldwork in China's Triassic marine deposits.