Sección especial

Systematics and paleobiology of fossil Crustacea

Preface

Sistemática y paleobiología de crustáceos fósiles

Prefacio

In recent years, the number of conributions and specialists on fossil Crustacea has grown around the world. In 2000, the First Workshop on Mesozoic and Tertiary Decapod Crustaceans was held in Italy, with the participation of many specialists, mainly from Europe. In 2003, the Second Symposium on Mesozoic and Cenozoic Decapod Crustaceans was held in The Netherlands, also with the participation of numerous paleocarcinologists from around the world. In that meeting, an open invitation was offered to submit contributions on fossil crustaceans to the Revista Mexicana de Ciencias Geológicas.

This special section on the systematics and paleobiology of fossil Crustacea is the result of that invitation. The section consists of eight contributions of authors from five countries in America, Europe and Asia, dealing with several aspects of paleocarcinology that include the description of new localities, new taxa, systematic reviews and paleocologic interpretations.

We hope that the publication of this section will encourage specialists to continue the study of the unknown paleontológica! aspects of a relatively well known actual group, the Crustacea.

Guest co–editor

Francisco J. Vega
Instituto de Geología, UNAM