A gentle giant: Thomas Jefferson’s ground sloth

A gentle giant: Thomas Jefferson’s ground sloth Professor Loren E. Babcock and Dr H. Gregory McDonald discuss the historical significance of palaeontology, focusing on key figures’ contributions to the field and their studies of the ground sloth, Megalonyx. Palaeontology occupies a rather unique place in the public imagination – usually the word conjures up visions of large, scary, extinct monsters. This makes for good entertainment, but the reality is much more nuanced and both technically and historically fascinating. The roots of palaeontology’s common perception were established in the late 1700s, soon after major political and social upheaval in France and North America. Study of ancient life forms shifted from mere cataloguing, similar to today’s biodiversity inventories, to a scientific endeavour with overtones of social messaging paralleling contemporary thinking and events. More than two centuries later, we continue to witness changing perceptions of ancient life paralleling aspects of our social environment and our understanding of long-term climatic and environmental changes.