Mhairi Reid

I completed my BSc in Geology, Oceanography and Climatology at the University of Cape Town (UCT) in 2013, where I went on to do a BSc Honours in Geology. During this time, I developed a keen interest in sedimentology and palaeontology, leading to my MSc research in taphonomy – the study of how organisms decay and become fossilised. In my research I utilised micro-CT scanning to digitally "stitch" together an excavated fossil bed from the Devonian Bokkeveld Group of South Africa in order to acquire quantifiable taphonomic data on this echinoderm-rich obrution deposit. The scans revealed an assemblage of thousands of ophiuroids (brittle stars) that had been smothered during a high-energy storm event.

I have done extensive fieldwork throughout my years at UCT, not only for my own MSc but also participating in many field-based studies across South Africa on rocks from Neoproterozic to Mesozoic in age. Before joining Oxford, I worked on various projects such as dinosaur footprints from Lesotho.