RESEARCH
I am primarily interested in investigating the origin of major vertebrate clades and filling in gaps in the evolutionary tree. Currently, my projects revolve around the origin of the dinosaurs, and investigating their early radiation through the lens of a small, obscure group of close relatives, the silesaurids.
PUBLICATIONS
Tolchard, F. B., Perkins, B. W., and Nesbitt, S. J. (2025). Silesaurid (Archosauria: Dinosauriformes) remains from the base of the Dockum Group (Late Triassic: Otischalkian) of Texas provide new insights to the North American record of dinosauriforms. The Anatomical Record (early online publication): 1-21. https://doi.org/10.1002/ar.25677
CURRENT PROJECTS
Describing the braincase of a silesaurid. What can this braincase tell us about the neuroanatomy of early dinosauriforms? What characteristics might it preserve that distinguish the dinosaurs?
Describing a new taxon of silesaurid. What anatomical details will this new species have that help us better delineate the dinosaurs from their closest relatives? How can this species inform our understanding of the growth and variability of the earliest dinosaurs? What will its presence reveal about the local Triassic ecosystems?
Investigating individual and ontogenetic variation in silesaurids. Were the silesaurids as highly variable as their dinosaurian relatives? Was a high range of individual variation unique to dinosaurs or simply inherited from their archosaur ancestors?
Conducting a phylogenetic analysis of the early dinosauriforms. Where will the silesaurids fall out in the dinosauriform family tree? How do the major branches of Dinosauria relate to each other? How does a high range of anatomical variation impact a tree? What does this tell us about convergence in early evolutionary radiations?
PRESENTATIONS
Perkins, B. W., and Reizner, J. A. (2023). The metabolic rate of Einiosaurus procurvicornis determined with phylogenetic eigenvector maps. Society of Vertebrate Paleontology 2023 Program Guide, p. 344
![Silesauridae TMM 31100 series femora comparison [v1].jpg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/165b02_1edef0b572d749f58aafa28a3e8a3a8a~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_502,h_502,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/Silesauridae%20TMM%2031100%20series%20femora%20comparison%20%5Bv1%5D.jpg)