Sean Moran

Collections Manager, Paleontology and Geology
sean.moran@naturalsciences.org

11 West Jones Street, Raleigh, NC 27601
919-707-9939

Education

MS in Geological Sciences, University of Florida, 2014
BS in Geology, College of William and Mary, 2011

Research Interests

Sean is broadly interested in the evolutionary response of fossil vertebrates to climatic drivers. Actively, he is using GIS modeling, stable isotope geochemistry, and morphometrics to better understand changes in North American mammals during a major climate transition 34 million years ago at the Eocene-Oligocene boundary. During this period, Earth transitioned from an ice-less "greenhouse" planet to a cooler one with permanent, polar ice in the Southern Hemisphere. This event resulted in a major reorganization of the global biosphere, including, to varying degrees, mammals. Sean has performed fieldwork from the Cambrian to the Holocene across the United States, including in Nebraska, Montana, Wyoming, New Mexico, Florida, North Carolina, and New Jersey, as well as internationally in Panama and the Bahamas. In addition, Sean is passionate about involving the public in paleontology and understanding how those interactions impact all involved. Sean's primary goals for the Museum focus on building and improving the paleontology and geology collections while increasing accessibility to researchers and the public.

Peer-Reviewed Publications

Ziegler, Michael J., Perez, Victor J., Pirlo, J., Narducci, R.E., Moran, S.M., Selba, M.C., Hastings, A.K., Vargas-Vergara, C., Antonenko, P.D., and MacFadden, B.J. 2020. Applications of 3D paleontological data at the Florida Museum of Natural History. Frontiers in Earth Sciences: 570. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feart.2020.600696/full
Perez, V.J., Moran, S.M., and Grant, C. 2020. A novel evaluation tool for characterizing audiences in informal education settings. Journal of Museum Education 45(3): 314-326. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10598650.2020.1774270
MacFadden, B.J., Jones, D.S., Jud, N.A., Moreno-Bernal, J.W., Morgan, G.S., Portell, R.W., Perez, V.J., Moran, S.M., and Wood, A.R. 2017. Integrated chronology, flora and faunas, and paleoecology of the Alajuela Formation, Late Miocene of Panama." PLoS ONE 12(1): e0170300. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0170300
McLaughlin, C.A., Broo, J., MacFadden, B.J., and Moran, S.M. 2016. Not looking a gift horse in the mouth: exploring the merits of a student–teacher–scientist partnership. Journal of Biological Education 50(2): 174-184. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00219266.2015.1028571
Moran, S.M., McLaughlin, C.A., MacFadden, B.J., Jacobbe, E., and Poole, M. 2015. Fossil explorers: Third grade students examine ancient organisms in modern times. Science and Children 53(4): 3-8. https://www.myfossil.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/2015-Moran-Science-Children.pdf