Robert Spicer

I am Emeritus Professor of Earth Sciences at The Open University, UK, having previously been at London University and Oxford. At The Open University my roles included being Head of Earth Sciences and founding Director of the Centre for Earth Planetary, Space and Astronomical Research. I have held visiting positions at the University of Vienna and the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, India. In 2007 I was awarded the Palaeobotanical Society of India International Medal. In respect of China I have had senior appointments at Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing and the State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resources, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou. These appointments reflect a long standing collaborative relationship with Chinese researchers beginning in 1988 and including four field seasons in Tibet. Recently I was appointed Senior Visiting Scholar at Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Yunnan, China.

My current research is focussed on developing leaf architecture as a palaeoclimate and palaeoaltimetric proxy, particularly in relation to monsoon evolution. Current interests include (but are not limited to):

  • The evolution of high latitude vegetation and climate – this is primarily directed at times of extreme global warmth in the Mesozoic as well as study biotic and climatic change across the Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary.
  • Developing new approaches to plant palaeoecology using plant taphonomy and extracting climate signals from the architecture of plant fossils using advanced multivariate statistics.
  • Applying such techniques to determine rates of orographic uplift, provide constraining data for mathematical models of the behaviour of the Earth’s crust and explore relationships between orography, Asian monsoons systems and the evolution of vegetation across southern Asia.

In 2003 I was the lead author on the first paper to use leaf form to argue against the recent (8-10 Ma) uplift of Tibet, and more recently have used leaf form to document the uplift history of the Himalaya and ‘fingerprint’ Asian monsoons in the Eocene. On the climate modelling side I was co-PI on a large distributed computing project (climateprediction.net) funded by the Natural Environment Research Council, the Department of Trade and Industry and several commercial partners. The project conducted large-scale ensemble forecasting of future climate change using the Hadley Centre model configured to run on desktop PCs.

Contact details: r.a.spicer@open.ac.uk

Website:

University of Bristol staff page

Publications:

Publications record:

In Review

  •  Linnemann, U., Su, T., Kunzmann, L., Spicer, R.A., Ding, W.-N., Spicer, T.E.V., Zieger, J., Hofmann, M/, Moraweck, K., Gärtner, A., Gerdes, A., Marko, L., Zhang, S.Y., Tang, H., Huang, J., Mulch, A., Mosbrugger, V., Zhou, Z.–Z. New U/Pb dates show a Paleogene Origin for the Modern SE Asia Biodiversity ‘Hotspot’.
  • Xu, Q., Ding, L., Spicer, R.A., Cai, F., Liu, X., Li, S., Wang, H. The Himalaya Orogen from Sea to Sky: Southward growth of the Himalaya-Tibetan Plateau.
  • Maslova, N.P., Karasev, E.V., Kodrul, T.M., Spicer, R.A., Volkova, L.D., Spicer, T.E.V., Jin, J.-H., Liu, X.-Y. Sun and shade leaf variability in Liquidambar chinensis Champion and Liquidambar formosana Hanse (Altingiaceae): implications for paleobotany

In Press

Spicer, R.A. Phytopalaeoaltimetry: using plant fossils to measure past land surface elevation. In: Mountains Climate and Biodiversity, Editors Hoorn, C., Perrigo, A.L. and Antonelli, A.. John Wiley and Sons. ISBN: 978-1-119-15987-2.

Published

  1. Kahn, M.A., Bera, M., Spicer, R.A., Spicer, T.E.V., Bera, S., 2017. First occurrence of mastixioid (Cornaceae) fossil in India and its biogeographic implications. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology. Available Online https://doi.org/10.1016/j.revpalbo.2017.08.006
  2. Spicer, R.A., Yang, J., Herman, A., Kodrul, T., Aleksandrova, G., Maslova, N., Spicer, T. E. V., Ding. L., Xu, Q., Shukla, A., Srivastava, G., Mehrotra, R.C., Jin, J.-H., 2017. Paleogene Monsoons across India and South China: Drivers of Biotic Change. Gondwana Research 49: 350–363.
  3. Herman, A., Spicer, R.A., Aleksandrova, G.N., Yang, J., Kodrul, T., Maslova, N.P., Spicer, T.E.V., Chen, G., Jin J.-H., 2017. Eocene – Early Oligocene climate and vegetation change in southern China: evidence from the Maoming Basin. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 479: 126–137.
  4. Khan, M.A., Spicer, R.A., Spicer, T.E.V., Bera, S., 2017. Evidence for diversification of Calophyllum L. (Calophyllaceae) in the Neogene Siwalik forests of eastern Himalaya. Plant Systematics and Evolution DOI 10.1007/s00606-016-1376-5.
  5. Ding, L., Spicer, R.A., Yang, J., Xu, Q., Cai, F., Li, S., Lai, Q., Wang, H., Spicer, T.E.V., Yue, Y., Shukla, A., Srivastava, G., Khan, M.A., Bera, S., Mehrotra, R.C., 2017. Quantifying the rise of the Himalaya orogen and implications for the South Asian monsoon. Geology 45: 215–218.
  6. Spicer, R.A., Yang, J., Herman, A.B., Kodrul, T., Maslova, N., Spicer, T.E.V., Aleksandrova, Jin, J., 2016. Asian Eocene Monsoons as revealed by leaf architectural signatures. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 449: 61-68.
  7. Li, S.–F., Jacques, F.M.B., Spicer, R.A., Su, T., Spicer, T.E.V., Yang, J., Zhou, Z. 2016. Artificial neural networks reveal a high-resolution climatic signal in leaf physiognomy. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 442: 1-11.
  8. Herman, A.B., *Spicer, R.A., Spicer, T.E.V., 2016. Environmental constraints on terrestrial vertebrate behaviour and reproduction in the high Arctic of the Late Cretaceous.  Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 441: 317–338.
  9. Kumar, M., Spicer, R.A., Spicer, T.E.V., Shukla, A., Mehrotra, R.C., Monga, P., 2016. Palynostratigraphy and palynofacies of the early Eocene Gurha lignite mine, Rajasthan, India. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 461: 98–108.
  10. Khan, M.A., Spicer, R.A., Spicer, T.E.V., Bera, S. 2016. Occurrence of Shorea Roxburgh ex C. F. Gaertner (Dipterocarpaceae) in the Neogene Siwalik forests of eastern Himalaya and its biogeography during the Cenozoic of Southeast Asia. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 233: 236–254.
  11. Shukla, A., Mehrotra, R.C., Spicer, R.A., Spicer, T.E.V., 2016. Aporosa Blume from the paleoequatorial rainforest of Bikaner, India: Its evolution and diversification in deep time. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 232: 14–21.
  12. Spicer, R.A., Herman, A.B., Amoit, R., Spicer, T.E.V., 2016. Environmental Adapatations and Constraints on Latest Cretaceous Arctic Dinosaurs. Global Geology 19: 241­245.
  13. Lebreton-Anberrée, J., Li, S., Li, S.-F., Spicer, R.A., Zhang, S.-T., Su, T., Deng, C., Zhou, Z.-Z., 2016. Lake geochemistry reveals marked environmental change
in Southwest China during the Mid Miocene Climatic Optimum. Science Bulletin 61:  897–910.
  14. Sun, B., Wang, Y.-F.,Li, C.S., Yang, J.,Li, J-F., Li, Y.-L., Deng, T., Wang, S.-Q., Zhao, M., Spicer, R.A., Ferguson, D.K., Mehrotra, R.C. 2015. Early Miocene elevation in northern Tibet estimated by palaeobotanical evidence. Nature Scientific Reports 5: 10379 DOI: 10. 1038/srep10379.
  15. Li, S.–Y., Mao, L.–M., Spicer, R.A., Lebreton-Anberré, J., Su, T., Sun, M., Zhou, Z.–K. 2015. Late Miocene vegetation dynamics under monsoonal climate in southwestern China. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 425: 14-40.
  16. Yang J., Spicer R.A., Spicer T.E.V., Arens N.C., Jacques F.M.B., Su T., Kennedy E.M., Herman A.B., Steart D.C., Srivastava G., Mehrotra R.C., Valdes P.J., Mehrotra N.C., Zhou Z.K., Lai J.S., 2015. Leaf Form-Climate Relationships on the Global Stage: An Ensemble of Characters. Global Ecology and Biogeography 10: 1113–1125.
  17. Khan, M.A., Spicer, T.E.V., Spicer, R.A., Bera, S. 2014. Occurrence of Gynocardia odorata Robert Brown (Achariaceae, formerly Flacourtiaceae) from the Plio-Pleistocene sediments of Arunachal Pradesh, northeast India and its palaeoclimatic and phytogeographic significance. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 211: 1–9.
  18. Spicer, R.A., Herman, A.b., Liao, W., Spicer, T.E.V., Kodrul, T.M., Yang, J., Jin, J. 2014. Cool tropics in the Middle Eocene: Evidence from the Changchang Flora, Hainan Island, China. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 412: 1–16.
  19. Shukla, A., Mehrotra, R.C., Spicer, R.A., Spicer, T.E.V., Kumar, M. 2014. Cool equatorial terrestrial temperatures and the South Asian monsoon in the Early Eocene: Evidence from the Gurha Mine, Rajasthan, India. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 412: 187–198.
  20. Utescher, T., Bruch, A.A., Erdei, B., François, L., Ivanov, D., Jacques, F.M.B., Kern, A.K., Liu, Y.-S.(C.), Mosbrugger, V., Spicer, R.A. 2014. The Coexistence Approach—Theoretical background and practical considerations of using plant fossils for climate quantification.  Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 410: 58–73
  21. Spicer, R.A., Herman, A.B., Yang, J., Spicer, T.E.V. 2014. Why future climate change is likely to be underestimated: evidence from palaeobotany. J. Bot. Soc. Bengal 67: 75–88.
  22. Khan, M., Spicer, R.A., Bera, S., Ghosh, R., Yang, J., Spicer, T.E.V., Guo, S., Su, T., Jacques, F., Grote, P.J., 2014. Miocene to Pleistocene floras and climate of the Eastern Himalayan Siwaliks, and New Palaeoelevation estimates for the Namling-Oiyug Basin, Tibet. Global and Planetary Change 113: 1–10.
  23. Khan, M.A., Spicer, R.A., Spicer, T.E.V., Bera, S. 2014. Fossil evidence of insect folivory in the eastern Himalayan Neogene Siwalik forests. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 410: 264–277.
  24. Spicer, R.A., Collinson, M.E., 2014. Plants and floral change at the K–Pg boundary: three decades on. Geol. Soc. Am. Spec. Pap. 505: 117–132.
  25. Jacques, F.M.B., Su, T., Spicer, R.A., Xing, Y.-W., Huang, Y.-J., Zhou, Z. 2014. Late Miocene southwestern Chinese floristic diversity shaped by the southeastern uplift of the Tibetan Plateau. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 411: 208–215.
  26. Kennedy, E.M., Arens, N.C., Reichgelt, T., Spicer, R.A., Spicer, T.E.V., Stranks, L., Yang, J. 2014. Deriving temperature estimates from Southern Hemisphere leaves. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 412: 80–90.
  27. Srivastava, G., Spicer, R.A., Spicer, T.E.V., Yang, J., Kumar, M., Mehrotra, R.C., Mehrotra, N.C., 2012. Megaflora and palaeoclimate of a Late Oligocene tropical delta, Makum Coal field, Assam: evidence for the early development of the South Asia Monsoon. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 343: 130–142.
  28. Khan, M., Ghosh, R., Bera, S., Spicer, R.A., Spicer, T.E.V., 2011. Floral diversity during Plio-Pleistocene Siwalik sedimentation (Kimin Formation) in Arunachal Pradesh, India, and its palaeoclimatic significance. Palaeobiodiversity and Palaeoenvironments 91: 237–255.
  29. Yang, J., Spicer, R.A., Spicer, T.E.V., Li, C.-S., 2011. ‘CLAMP Online’: a new web-based palaeoclimate tool and its application to the terrestrial Paleogene and Neogene of North America. Palaeobiodiversity and Palaeoenvironments 91: 163–183.
  30. Teodoridis, V., Mazouch, P., Spicer, R.A., Uhl, D. 2011. Refining CLAMP – investigations towards improving the climate leaf analysis multivariate program. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 299: 39–48.
  31. Spicer, R.A., Bera, S., De Bera, S., Spicer, T.E.V., Srivastava, G., Mehrotra, R.C., Mehrotra, N.C., Yang, J., 2011. Why do foliar physiognomic climate estimates sometimes differ from those observed? Insights from taphonomic information loss and a CLAMP case study from the Ganges Delta. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 299: 39–48.
  32. Jacques, F.M.B., Su, T., Spicer, R.A., Xing, Y., Huang, Y., Wang, W., Zhou, Z. 2011. Leaf physiognomy and climate: Are monsoon systems different? Global and Planetary Change 76: 56–62.
  33. Song, X-Y., Spicer, R.A., Yang, J., Yao, Y-F., Li, C-S., 2010. Pollen evidence for an Eocene to Miocene elevation of central southern Tibet predating the rise of the High Himalaya. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatolgy, Palaeoecology. 297: 159–168.
  34. Spicer, R.A., Yang, J., 2010. Quantification of Uncertainties in Fossil Leaf Paleoaltimetry – Does Leaf Size Matter? Tectonics. TC6001.
  35. Steart, D.C., Spicer, R.A., Bamford, M.K., 2010. Is Southern Africa different? An investigation of the relationship between leaf physiognomy and climate in southern African mesic vegetation. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 162: 607–620.
  36. Spicer, R.A. and Herman, A.B. 2010. The Late Cretaceous Environment of the Arctic: A quantitative reassessment using plant fossils. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatolgy, Palaeoecology. 295: 423–442.
  37. Velasco -de Leon, M.P., Spicer, R.A., and Steart, D.C., 2010. Climatic reconstruction of two Pliocene floras from Mexico. Palaeobiodiversity and Palaeoenvionments 90: 99–110.
  38. Herman, A.B., and Spicer, R.A., 2010. Mid-Cretaceous floras and climate of the Russian high Arctic (Novosibirsk Islands, Northern Yakutia). Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatolgy, Palaeoecology 295: 409–422.
  39. Moiseeva, M.G., Herman, A.B., and Spicer, R.A., 2009. Late Paleocene Flora of the Northern Alaska peninsula: The Role of Transberingian Plant Migrations and Climate Change. Palaeontological Journal 43: 1298-1308.
  40. Spicer, R.A., Valdes, P.J., Spicer, T.E.V., Craggs, H.J., Srivastava, G., Mehrotra, R.C., Yang, J., 2009. New development is CLAMP: calibration using global gridded meteorological data. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatolgy, Palaeoecology, 283: 91–98.
  41. Spicer, R.A., Daly, R.J., Jolley, D.W., Herman, A,.B., Ahlberg, A., Moiseeva, N., 2009. Climate and Vegetation of the Selandian-Thanetian Paleocene Sagwon Section, Northern Alaska (Palaeolatitude 85°N). In Crouch, E.M., Strong, C.P., Hollis, C.J., (editors) 2009. Climatic and Biotic Events of the Paleogene (CBEP 2009), extended abstracts from an international conference in Wellington, New Zealand, 12-15 January 2009. GNS Science Miscellaneous Series 18: 131–134.
  42. Spicer, R.A., Ahlberg, A., Herman, A.B., Hofmann, C-C., Raikevich, M., Valdes, P.J., and Markwick, P.J., 2008. The Late Cretaceous continental interior of Siberia: A challenge for climate models. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 267: 228–235.
  43. Upchurch, G.R., Spicer, R.A., and Leopold, E.B., 2007. The Life and Career of Jack A Wolfe (July 10 1936 – August 12 2005). Courier Forschungsinstitut Senckenberg 258: 11–19.
  44. Spicer, R.A., 2007. Recent and Future Developments of CLAMP: Building on the Legacy of Jack A. Wolfe. Courier Forschungsinstitut Senckenberg 258: 109–118.
  45. Yang, J., Wang, Y.F., Spicer, R.A., Mosbrugger, V., Li, C.S., and Sun, Q.G., 2007, Climatic Reconstruction of Miocene Shanwang Basin, China, by using Leaf Margin Analysis, CLAMP, Co- existence Approach and Overlapping Distribution Analysis. American Journal of Botany 94: 599–608
  46. Spicer, R.A. and Leopold, L. 2006, Memorial to Jack Albert Wolfe (1936–2005) Geological Society of America Memorials 35: 59–61.
  47. Spicer, R.A., Herman, A.B., Kennedy, E.M., 2005, The Sensitivity of CLAMP to Taphonomic loss of Foliar Physiognomic Characters. Palaios 20: 429-438.
  48. Cripps, J.A., Widdowson, M., Spicer, R.A., Jolley, D.W., 2005. Coastal Ecosystem responses to late stage Deccan Trap Volcanism: the post K-T boundary (Danian) palynofacies of Mumbai (Bombay), west India. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 216: 303–332.
  49. Stainforth, D.A., Aina, T., Christensen, C., Collins, M., Faull, N., Frame, D.J., Kettleborough, J.A., Knight, S., Murphy, J.M., Piani, C., Sexton, D., Smith, L.A., Spicer, R.A., Thorpe, A.J., Allen, M.R., 2005. Uncertainty in predictions of the climate response to rising levels of greenhouse gases, Nature 433: 403–406.
  50. Spicer, R.A., Herman, A.B., Kennedy, E.M., 2005. The Sensitivity of CLAMP to Taphonomic loss of Foliar Physiognomic Characters. Palaios 20: 429–438.
  51. Cripps, J.A., Widdowson, M., Spicer, R.A., Jolley, D.W., 2005. Coastal Ecosystem responses to late stage Deccan Trap Volcanism: the post K-T boundary (Danian) palynofacies of Mumbai (Bombay), west India. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 216: 303–332.
  52. Spicer, R.A., Herman, A.B., and Kennedy, E.M., 2004. The Foliar Physiognomic Record of Climatic Conditions During Dormancy: CLAMP and the Cold Month Mean Temperature. Journal of Geology 112: 685–702.
  53. Spicer, R.A., Harris, N.B.W., Widdowson, M., Herman, A.B., Guo, S., Valdes, P.J., Wolfe, J.A., and Kelley, S.P., 2003. Constant elevation of Southern Tibet over the past 15 million years. Nature 412: 622–624.
  54. Herman, A.B., and Spicer, R.A., 2002, Cretaceous Flora from the Kukpowruk River, Northwestern Alaska. Paleontological Journal 36: 307–321 (English) translated from Paleontologicheskii Zhournal 2002, No. 3: 81–95 (In Russian).
  55. Kennedy, E.M., Spicer, R.A., and Rees, P.M., 2002. Quantitative palaeoclimate estimates from Late Cretaceous and Paleocene leaf floras in the northwest of the South Island, New Zealand. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 184: 321–345.
  56. Spicer, R.A., Herman, A.B., Ahlberg, A.T., Raikevich, M.I., Rees, P.M.A., 2002. Mid-Cretaceous Grebenka flora of North-eastern Russia: stratigraphy, palaeobotany, taphonomy and palaeoenvironment. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 184: 65–105.
  57. Ahlberg, A., Herman, A.B., Raikevich, M.I., Rees, P.M., and Spicer, R.A., 2002. Enigmatic Late Cretaceous high palaeo-latitude lonestones in Chukotka, northernmost Asia. GFF 124: 197–199.
  58. Spicer, R.A., Herman, A.B., 2001. The Albian-Cenomanian flora of the Kukpowruk River, western North Slope, Alaska: stratigraphy, palaeofloristics, and plant communities, Cretaceous Research 22: 1–40.
  59. Herman, A. B., and Spicer, R.A., 1999. Mid Cretaceous Grebenka Flora of the North-Eastern Russia: Two Strategies of Overwintering. Acta Palaeobotanica Suppl. 2: 107–110.
  60. Morgans, H.S., Hesselbo, S.P. and Spicer, R.A., 1999. The Seasonal Climate of the Early-Middle Jurassic, Cleveland Basin, England. Palaios, 14: 261– 272.
  61. Kelley, S., Spicer, R.A., Herman, A.B., 1999. New 40Ar/39Ar dates for Cretaceous Chauna Group tephra, North-Eastern Russia, and their implications for the geologic history and floral evolution of the North Pacific region. Cretaceous Research 20: 97–106.
  62. Spicer, R.A., Herman, A.B., 1998. Mid- and Late Cretaceous climate of Asia and Alaska: a comparison of palaeobotanical evidence and a computer model. Paleontologicheskii Journal (Moscow), No 2 [in Russian and in English].
  63. Parrish, J.T., Daniel, I.L., Kennedy, E.M., and Spicer, R.A., 1998. Paleoclimatic Significance of Mid-Cretaceous Floras from the Middle Clarence Valley, New Zealand. Palaios 13: 146–156.
  64. Herman, A.B., Spicer, R.A., 1997. Continental Cretaceous of Northeastern Russia and Alaska: a comparison of floras and palaeoclimate. Stratigraphy and Geological Correlation 5: 60–66. [in Russian and in English].
  65. Herman, A. B., and Spicer, R.A., 1997. Palaeocontinental Reconstructions of North Eastern Russia and Alaska: stratigraphy, floras and palaeoclimates. (In Russian). Geological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences Report. 13pp.
  66. Herman, A.B., Spicer, R.A., 1997. New quantitative palaeoclimate data for the Late Cretaceous Arctic: evidence for a warm polar ocean. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 128: 227–251.
  67. Herman, A.B., Spicer, R.A., 1997. The Koryak flora: Did the Early Tertiary deciduous flora begin in the Late Maastrichtian of northeastern Russia? Proceedings 4th European Palaeobot. and Palynol. Conf. (Heerlen, September 1994), 87–92.
  68. Herman, A.B. and Spicer, R.A., 1996. Nilssoniocladus in the Cretaceous Arctic: new species and biological insights. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology. 92: 229–243.
  69. Spicer, R.A., Rees, P.M., and Herman, A.B., 1996. The Cretaceous Vegetation and Climate of Asia: some insights. Memoir Geological Society of India 37: 405–433.
  70. Herman A.B., and Spicer, R.A., 1996. Palaeobotanical evidence for a warm Cretaceous Arctic Ocean, Monthly Nature Vol. 4, No. 3 (39): 106–109.
  71. Herman A.B., and Spicer, R.A., 1996. Palaeobotanical evidence for a warm Cretaceous Arctic Ocean. Nature 380: 330–333.
  72. Herman, A.B., and Spicer, R.A. 1995. Latest Cretaceous flora of Northeastern Russia and the “terminal Cretaceous event”. Paleontological Journal 29: 22–35.
  73. Kovach, W.L., and Spicer, R.A., 1995. Canonical Correspondence Analysis of Leaf Physiognomy: a Contribution to the Development of a New Palaeoclimatological Tool. Palaeoclimates 1: 125–138.
  74. Povey, D.A.R., Spicer, R.A., England, P.C., 1994. Palaeobotanical Investigation of early Tertiary Palaeoelevations in northeastern Nevada: Initial Results. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 81: 1–10.
  75. Harger, J.R.E., Malling, S.T., Sorensen, W., Spicer, R.A., Wasser, H.J., 1994. Forests and Carbon Sequestering through Time: Lessons for the Present and Future. In Carbon Balance of World’s Forested Ecosystems: Towards a Global Assessment. Publications of the Academy of Finland. 3/93: 176–200.
  76. Spicer, R.A., Rees, P. McA, Chapman, J. L., 1993. Cretaceous phytogeography and climate signals. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, Biol Sci 341, N 1297: 277–286.
  77. Spicer, R.A., 1992. Frontiers in Palaeobotany, in Palaeobiology: Preparing for the Twenty-First Century, Instituto Juan March de Estudios e Investigaciones, pp.101–130.
  78. Spicer, R.A., and Corfield, R. 1992. A Review of Terrestrial and Marine Climates in the Cretaceous and Implications for Modelling the Greenhouse Earth. Geological Magazine 129: 168–180.
  79. Spicer, R.A., Parrish, J.T., and Grant, P.R., 1992. Evolution of Vegetation and Coal Forming Environments in the Late Cretaceous of the north Slope of Alaska: A Model for Polar Coal Deposition at Times of Global Warmth. In McCabe, P.J., and Parrish, J.T. (Eds.) Controls on the Deposition of Cretaceous Coal, Geol. Soc. Amer. Spec. Pub. 267: 1 77–192.
  80. Harger, J.R.E., Sorensen, W., Spicer, R.A., Wasser, H.J., Malling, S.T., Kartawinata, k., Sastrapradja, D., Hadley, M., Sastrapradja, S., and Soeriaatmadja, R.E., 1992. Contending with Global Change: Study No. 5, Human action to control global climate through designed ecosystems. UNESCO/ROSTSEA, Indonesia, 22pp.
  81. Spicer, R.A., 1991. Palaeoecology, Past Climate Systems, and C3/C4 Photosynthesis, In Proceedings of the UNESCO/UNEP/DOE Regional Workshop on the Carbon Cycle, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. (No page numbers in volume)
  82. Spicer, R.A., 1991. Contributor to Opportunities and Priorities in Arctic Geoscience, National Research Council, National Academy Press, Washington DC., 67p.
  83. Spicer, R.A. and Chapman, J.E., 1990. The evolution of high latitude floras, Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 5: 279–284.
  84. Spicer, R.A., 1990. Feuding over the nearest living relatives, Journal of Biogeography 17: 335–336.
  85. Spicer, R.A. and Parrish., J.T., 1990. Late Cretaceous – Early Tertiary Palaeoclimates of Northern High Latitudes: A Quantitative View. Journal of the Geological Society, London 147:  329–341.
  86. Spicer R.A. and Parrish, J.T., 1990. Latest Cretaceous Woods of the Central North Slope Alaska, Palaeontology, 33: 225–242.
  87. Spicer, R.A., 1989. The formation and interpretation of plant fossil assemblages. Advances in Botanical Research 16: 95–191.
  88. Spicer, R.A., 1989. Plants at the Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society London, B 325, 291–305.
  89. Parrish, J.T., Parrish, J.M., Hutchison, J.H., and Spicer, R.A., 1989. Late Cretaceous Vertebrate Fossils from the North Slope of Alaska and Implications for Dinosaur Ecology : Comment and Reply, Palaios 4: 299–230.
  90. Spicer, R.A., 1989. Physiological Characteristics of Land Plants in Relation to Environment through time. Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh: Earth Sciences 80: 321–329.
  91. Boulter, M. C., Spicer, R.A., and Thomas, B.A., 1988. Patterns of plant extinction from some palaeobotanical evidence, In Larwood, G., (ed), Extinction and Survival in the Fossil Record, Systematics Association Special Volume No. 34, Oxford University Press, p. 1–36.
  92. Parrish, J.T., and Spicer, R.A., 1988. Middle Cretaceous Wood from the Nanushuk Group, Central North Slope, Alaska. Palaeontology 31: 19–34.
  93. Parrish, J.T., and Spicer, R.A., 1988. North Polar Late Cretaceous temperature curve: evidence from plant fossils. Geology 16: 22–25.
  94. Spicer, R.A., 1988. Quantitative sampling of plant megafossil assemblages. In Methods and Applications of Plant Paleoecology, Paleontological Society Special Publication No. 3, 29–51.
  95. Brouwers, E.M., Spicer, R.A., and Clemens, W.A., 1988. Arctic Dinosaurs and Terminal Cretaceous Extinctions, Science 239, p.11.
  96. Spicer, R.A., Wolfe, J.A., and Nichols, D., 1987. Alaskan Cretaceous- Tertiary Floras and Arctic Origins. Paleobiology 13: 73– 83.
  97. Spicer, R.A., and Wolfe, J.A., 1987. Taphonomy of Holocene deposits in Trinity (Clair Engle) Lake, Northern California. Paleobiology 13: 227–245.
  98. Spicer, R.A., and Parrish, J.T., 1987. Plant megafossils, vertebrate remains, and paleoclimate of the Kogosukruk Tongue (Late Cretaceous), North Slope, Alaska. In Hamilton, T. D., and Galloway, J.P., Geologic Studies in Alaska by the United States Geological Survey during 1986, U.S. Geological Survey Circular 993: 47–48.
  99. Parrish, J.T., Parrish, J.M., Hutchison, J.H., and Spicer, R.A., 1987. Late Cretaceous Vertebrate Fossils from the North Slope of Alaska and Implications for Dinosaur Ecology, Palaios 2: 377–389.
  100. Brouwers, E.M., Clemens, W.A., Spicer, R.A., Ager, T., Carter, D.L., and Sliter, W.V., 1987. Dinosaurs on the North Slope, Alaska: Reconstructions of high latitude, latest Cretaceous environments. Science 237: 1608–1610.
  101. Burnham, R.J., and Spicer, R.A., 1986. Forest litter preserved by volcanic activity at El Chichón, Mexico: a potentially accurate record of the pre-eruption vegetation. Palaios 1: 158-–161.
  102. Spicer, R.A., and Parrish, J.T., 1986. Paleobotanical evidence for cool North Polar climates in the mid-Cretaceous (Albian- Cenomanian), Geology 14: 703–706.
  103. Thomas, B.A., and Spicer, R.A., 1986. Meyenodendron borealis: a new lepidodendrid of Angaran affinity from Northern Alaska. Bull. Brit. Mus. Nat. Hist (Geol.) 40: 293–297.
  104. Spicer, R.A., 1986. Pectinal veins: a new concept in terminology for the description of dicotyledonous leaf venation patterns, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society 93: 379–388.
  105. Spicer, R.A., Burnham, R.J., Grant, P.R., and Glicken, H., 1985. Pityrogramma calomelanos, the primary, post eruption colonizer of Volcán Chichonal, Chiapas, Mexico. American Fern Journal 53: 1–5.
  106. Alvin, K.L., Fraser, C.J., and Spicer, R.A., 1981. Anatomy and palaeoecology of Pseudofrenelopsis and associated conifers in the English Wealden. Palaeontology 24: 759–778.
  107. Detterman, R.L., and Spicer, R.A., 1981. New stratigraphic assignment for rocks along Igilatvik (Sabbath) Creek, William O. Douglas Arctic Wildlife Range, Alaska. U.S.Geological Survey in Alaska, Accomplishments During 1979, U.S. Geological Survey Circular 823-B: 11–12.
  108. Spicer, R.A., 1981. The sorting and deposition of allochthonous plant material in a modern environment at Silwood Lake, Silwood Park, Berkshire, England. U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1143, 77p.
  109. Spicer, R.A., and Hill, C.R., 1979. Principal components and Correspondence Analyses of quantitative data from a Jurassic plant bed. Review of Paleobotany and Palynology 28: 273–299.
  110. McC. Newberry, D., and Spicer, R.A., 1979 The terrestrial vegetation of an Indian Ocean coral island: Wilingili, Addu Atoll, Maldive Islands: II A limited quantitative analysis of the vegetation distribution. Atoll Research Bulletin, No. 231, Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C., p.15–25.
  111. Spicer R.A., and McC. Newberry, D., 1979 The terrestrial vegetation of an Indian Ocean coral island: Willingili, Addu Atoll, Maldive Islands: I Transect analysis of the vegetation. Atoll Research Bulletin No. 231, Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C., p.1–14.
  112. Alvin, K.L., Spicer, R.A., and Watson, J., 1978. A Classopollis– containing male cone associated with Pseudofrenelopsis. Palaeontology, 21: 847–856.
  113. Spicer, R.A., 1977. The pre-depositional formation of some leaf impressions. Palaeontology 20: 907–912.
  114. Spicer, R.A., Sengupta, S., and Phillips, L., 1976. Low temperature preparation of pteridophyte spores and sporangia for SEM. Journal of Microscopy, 106: 351–354.
  115. Spicer, R.A., Grant, P.R., and Muir, M.D., 1974. An inexpensive portable freeze-drying unit for SEM specimen preparation. Scanning Electron Microscopy/1974 (part 1). Proceedings of the Seventh Annual Scanning Electron Microscope Symposium IIT Research Institute, Chicago, Illinois, 229–304.
  116. Muir, M.D., Spicer, R.A., Grant, P.R., and Giddens, R., 1974. X-ray microanalysis in the SEM for the determination of elements in modern and fossil microorganisms. Eighth International Congress on Electron Microscopy, Canberra. Vol. II: 104–105.

Reviews & Book Chapters, and Other Publications

  1. Spicer, R.A., 2010. Recording Palaeontological Information. Chapter 5 in Geological Field Techniques. Coe, A. (Ed.), Wiley Blackwell. ISBN 978-1-4443-3061-8 (hardback)
ISBN 978-1-4443-3062-5 (paperback) pp. 79–101.
  2. Spicer, R.A., 2008. CLAMP. In: Gornitz V (ed) Encyclopedia of paleoclimatology and ancient environments. Springer, Dordrecht, pp. 156–158.
  3. Spicer, R.A., 2003. The Changing Climate and Biota. In The Cretaceous World. (Ed. Skelton P.W.) Cambridge University Press. pp. 86–162. ISBN 0-521-831121-1.
  4. Spicer, R.A., 2000. Leaf Physiognomy and Climate Change, In Biotic Response to Global change: the Last 145 Million Years, Culver, S.J.,and Rawson, P., (eds.) pp. 244–264. Cambridge University Press. ISBN0-521-66304-0.
  5. Wolfe, J.A., and Spicer, R.A., 1999. Fossil Leaf Character States: Multivariate Analysis. In Jones, T.P., and Rowe, N.P. (eds.) Fossil Plants and Spores: Modern Techniques. Geological Society, London, pp. 233–239. ISBN 1-86239-035-5.
  6. Raven, J.A., and Spicer, R.A., 1996. The Evolution of Crassulacean Acid Metabolism. In Crassulacean Acid Metabolism. Ecological Studies Vol. 114. Springer-Verlag, Berlin, Heidelberg, pp. 360–385.
  7. Askin. R.A. and Spicer, R.A., 1995. The Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic History of Vegetation and Climate at Northern and Southern High Latitudes: A Comparison. In Effects of Past Global Change on Life, Studies in Geophysics, National Research Council, National Academy Press, Washington, pp. 156–173.
  8. Spicer, R.A., Davies, K.S., Herman, A.B., 1994. Circum-Arctic plant fossils and the Cretaceous-Tertiary transition. Cenozoic Plants and Climates of the Arctic. Ed. by M.C.Boulter and H.C.Fisher. NATO ASI Ser., Ser. I: Global environmental change, Vol. 27. Springer-Verlag, Berlin, Heidelberg, pp. 161–174.
  9. Spicer, R.A., Rees, P.M., and Chapman, J.L., 1994. Cretaceous Phytogeography and Climate Signals. Palaeoclimates and Their Modelling, Allen, J.R.L., Hoskins, B.J., Sellwood, B.W., Spicer, R.A., and Valdes, P.J., (Eds.) Chapman and Hall, pp. 69–78.
  10. Spicer, R.A., 1993. Land Plants, in The Encyclopaedic Dictionary of the Solid Earth Sciences, Blackwell Scientific Publications Ltd.
  11. Spicer, R.A., 1992. Contributor to Paleoenvironmental Contexts and Taphonomic modes in Terrestrial Ecosystems ThroughTime, Behrensmeyer, A.K., Damuth, J.D., DiMichele, W.A., Potts, R., Sues, H. and Wing, S.L. (eds.), University of Chicago Press. pp. 15– 136.
  12. Spicer, R.A., 1992. Contributor to Mesozoic and Early Cenozoic Ecosystems Chapter in Terrestrial Ecosystems Through Time, Behrensmeyer, A.K., Damuth, J.D., DiMichele, W.A., Potts, R., Sues, H. and Wing, S.L. (eds.), University of Chicago Press. pp. 327–416.
  13. Spicer, R.A., 1991. Plant Taphonomic Processes, In Taphonomy: Releasing the data locked in the fossil record, D.E. G. Briggs and P. Allison (Eds.) Plenum Press, pp. 71–113.
  14. Spicer, R.A., 1990. Fossils as Environmental Indicators – Climate from Plants, in Palaeobiology A Synthesis, D.E.G. Briggs and P.R. Crowther (Eds.), Blackwell Scientific Publications Ltd., pp. 401–403.
  15. Spicer, R.A., 1990. Reconstructing High Latitude Cretaceous Vegetation and Climate: Arctic and Antarctic Compared, In (Taylor, T.N. & Taylor, E. L., eds.) Antarctic Paleobiology and its Role in the Reconstruction of Gondwana , Springer-Verlag, New York. 27-36. ISBN 0-387-97006-1.
  16. Spicer, R.A., 1990.Transport/hydrodynamics of plant material, in Palaeobiology A Synthesis, D.E.G. Briggs and P.R. Crowther (Eds.), Blackwell Scientific Publications Ltd., pp. 230-232.
  17. Spicer, R.A., 1987. The significance of the Cretaceous flora of Northern Alaska for the reconstruction of the Cretaceous Climate. In Kemper, E., (ed.) Das Klima der Kreide-Zeit. Geologisches Jahrbuch, series A. 96: 265–291.
  18. Spicer, R.A., 1987. Late Cretaceous floras and terrestrial environment of northern Alaska, In Weimer, P., and Tailleur, I.L., (eds.), Alaskan North Slope Geology, Society of Economic Paleontologists and Mineralogists, Pacific Section, Bakersfield, California pp. 497–512.
  19. Spicer, R.A., and Thomas, B.A., 1987. A Mississippian Alaska-Siberian connection: evidence from plant megafossils. In Weimer, P., and Tailleur, I.L., (eds.), Alaskan North Slope Geology Alaskan North Slope Geology, Society of Economic Paleontologists and Mineralogists, Pacific Section, Bakersfield, California, pp. 355–358.
  20. Spicer, R.A., and Greer, A.G., 1986. Plant taphonomy in fluvial and lacustrine systems, In Broadhead, T., (ed.) Land Plants, University of Tennessee Department of Geological Sciences Studies in Geology 15: 10–26.
  21. Spicer, R.A., 1986. Comparative leaf architectural analysis of Cretaceous radiating angiosperms. In Spicer, R.A., and Thomas, B.A.,(eds.) Systematic and Taxonomic Approaches to Palaeobotany, Systematics Association Special Volume No. 31, pp. 223–233.
  22. Spicer, R.A., 1986. Computerized palaeobotanical data bases: the way forward? In Spicer, R.A., and Thomas, B.A., (eds.) Systematic and Taxonomic Approaches in Palaeobotany, Systematics Association Special Volume No. 31, pp. 285–297.
  23. Spicer, R.A., 1980. The importance of depositional sorting to the biostratigraphy of fossil plants. In Dilcher, D.L., and Taylor, T.N., (eds), Biostratigraphy of Fossil Plants, Dowden, Hutchinson and Ross Inc., Stroudsburg, Pa., p.171–183.
  24. Muir, M.D., Hamilton, L.H., Grant, P.R., and Spicer, R.A., 1974. A comparative study of modern and fossil microbes, using X-ray microanalysis and cathodoluminescence. In Hall, T., Echlin, P., and Kaufmann, R. (eds.), Microprobe Analysis as Applied to Cells and Tissues, Academic Press, London and New York.

Edited Books

  1. Allen, J.R.L., Hoskins, B.J., Sellwood, B.W., Spicer, R.A., and Valdes, P.J., (Eds.) 1994. Palaeoclimates and Their Modelling. Chapman and Hall (for the Royal Society), 140pp.
  2. Spicer, R.A., and Thomas, B.A., 1986, (eds.) Systematic and Taxonomic Approaches in Palaeobotany, Systematics Association Special Volume No. 31, Oxford University Press, 321p.

Authored Books

  1. Thomas, B.A., and Spicer, R.A., 1987, The Evolution and Palaeobiology of Land Plants, Croom Helm, 309p.
  2. Spicer, R.A., 1981, Plant Megafossils from the Middle Cretaceous Yukon-Koyukuk Province West Central Alaska, USGS Contract Report 14-08-0001-19175, p.187 +55 Plates.