Our Meetings

Guests are always welcome to the meetings if you would like see what we're all about. Meetings start at 7:00 pm and usually take place the first Saturday of the month, unless there is a holiday, then it's on the second Saturday of the month. Located at the USF Behavioral Science Room #103.

After the speaker finishes we have a short break. Then we draw for door prizes and some raffle items as well. We finish with any final announcements.

Upcoming Meetings and Guest Speakers (2023-2024 season):
NOTE: All meetings are the first Saturday of the month at 7:00 pm unless otherwise clearly noted.

Sept. 9 - Luis Torres, Jr., University of Florida
Saber Toothed Cats, Assassins of the Ice Age

Luis Torres is a born and raised South Florida native, who grew up to have a strong appreciation for the natural world, for both the present and the past. It was in this natural world that he discovered some chalky, fossilized remains of marine invertebrates from a past age. This discovery led him to pursue his curiosity and develop a love for all things paleontology, invertebrate or otherwise. Luis first attended Florida Atlantic University (FAU), where he obtained a bachelor’s degree in biology. This was followed by working as a docent at the Palm Beach Museum of Natural History and as a FAU Lab Technician for a few years while he worked toward a master’s degree in geological sciences which he finished in the Summer of 2022. Luis is currently working on earning a PhD in geological sciences at the University of Florida. His studies of invertebrate paleontology alongside the Florida Museum of Natural History are further developing his skills as both a scientist and science communicator.

Saber Toothed Cats, Assassins of the Ice Age - Among the most recognizable and renowned predators of the post-dinosaur era, saber-toothed cats are known not only for their long, dagger-like canine teeth, but for their brutal and unique hunting style that allowed them to dispatch large prey with an efficiency not seen in other felines. In Luis’ presentation we will talk about the many different species of saber-toothed cats, where they evolved, how they lived, and why we believe that their long, knife-like canines that allowed them to dominate for millions of years, may have led to their eventual downfall in the face of a rapidly changing world. Don’t miss TBFC’s season opener!

Oct. 7 - Steven R. Manchester, Curator of Paleobotany, Florida Museum of Natural History
"Why not Walnuts (& their relatives over the past 50 million years)"

“Why not Walnuts?”, asks Dr. Steven Manchester. Dr. Steven will be revisiting the topic of his PhD dissertation on the fossil history of the walnut family from 40+ years ago. Many new fossils have been found since then and there are lots of new ways of gleaning information from them including by micro-CT scanning.

Dr, Steven’s discussion will address aspects of the history of the changing distribution patterns of walnuts, hickory nuts, and their close relatives over the past 50 million years or so. So, let’s go nuts, don’t miss the October meeting!

Nov. 4 - Annual Auction

Dec. 9 - Dr. Sarah Sheffield & Students, USF Geosciences
"Paleo Tech Talks"

Many of you already know about Tech Talks. If you don’t, they’re very popular technical talks covering a wide range of technical concepts and ideas. For TBFC, our December meeting will feature Paleo Tech Talks. Short presentations and Q&A sessions on different topics.

Ohav Harris: Echinoderm diversity through the Paleozoic Era.
Elizabeth Altier: Estimating the effect of latitude on echinoderm body plans.
Haley Vantoorenburg, Taylor Rand, Karla Rodriguez, Ohav Harris, and Elizabeth Altier: USF Geology and Paleontology Collections: fossil preservation and museum organization.

Jan. 6 - TBD

Feb. 3 - TBD

Mar. 2 - TBD

Apr. 6 - TBD

May 4 - TBD

June 1 - End of Season Dinner, check the May 2024 issue of the Chronicles (TBFC Newsletter) for details.

View Our Past Virtual and In-Person Meetings

COVID-19 had forced us to adapt!
Since in-person meetings were not possible during that time, the club hosted Virtual Live Meetings on our YouTube channel.
Since COVID, we've tried to record in-person meetings and upload them to the site too. Unfortunately not all meetings are able to be recorded but please check the channel for any new content.

Subscribe to the channel to get notifications when we go live or a new video is uploaded!

All our club live streamed or recorded meetings will be saved and can be re-watched anytime! Not all meetings can be recorded for various reasons.
You can view past virtual or recorded meetings in the playlist below: