Dr. Jim I. Mead (Ph.D.) earned a BA in Anthropology, MS in Geosciences, and a Ph.D. in Geosciences and Paleontology from the University of Arizona (Tucson) in 1983. His 33 years of academic work include being chair and developer of the Department of Geosciences at East Tennessee State University (2008-2016) and 25 years at Northern Arizona University, where he served as chair of Geology and Director of the Quaternary Sciences Program. In May 2016, Jim became Director of Research at The Mammoth Site (Black Hills, South Dakota), 61 mammoths in sinkhole, where he on day-one helped establish the locality in 1974. Since 1974, Jim has been working on Ice Age (Pleistocene) biotic community reconstructions in the Grand Canyon based mainly on cave excavations. With over 160 peer reviewed articles and book chapters, including 4 books, Mead has focused on Ice Age mammal, reptile, and amphibian fossils from the USA, northern Mexico, Western Australia, China, Vanuatu, and The Bahamas. His current research endeavors include investigating Ice Age faunas and environments from Black Hills region, dry caves of the Southwest, Grand Canyon, Sonora (Mexico), Abaco (Bahamas), and caves in Guangxi (southern China).

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Talk title: Fossil History and Morphology of Heloderma and other Venom-producers in Anguimorpha