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Daphne LeeBSc PhD(Otago)

Paleobotany,  Paleontology and Paleoecology

Google Scholar: Daphne E. Lee
Email daphne.lee@otago.ac.nz
Tel +64 3 479 7525

Office – Geology 1S11

Research interests

  • Cenozoic paleobotany and paleoclimate
  • Cenozoic invertebrate paleontology
  • Brachiopoda
  • Cenozoic stratigraphy

Foulden Maar

A paleontological site of international significance, Foulden Maar in Otago, New Zealand is home to an amazing record of life on Earth.

Formed by a volcanic eruption 23 million years ago, the maar's undisturbed sedimentary layers are the resting places for countless rare, well-preserved fossils. The site is unsurpassed in the southern hemisphere as a scientific record of changing life and ecosystems at the beginning of the Miocene. Although excavations have been limited to an area the size of a tennis court, Daphne and colleagues have discovered hundreds of undescribed species. The sediments are rich in fossil flowers, fruits, seeds, pollen, and bark from plants, as well as fungi, fish, insects and spiders.

For further information see the publications listed below and the book: Fossil Treasures of Foulden Maar.

Publications

Gottfried, M. D., Fordyce, R. E., Robinson, J. H., & Lee, D. E. (2026). A new tarpon-like fish (Elopomorpha, Megalopidae) with exceptional preservation and unusual features from the Paleogene of Pitt Island, Chatham Islands, New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Geology & Geophysics, 69(1), e70022. doi: 10.1002/jgo2.70022 Journal - Research Article

Thomas, D. B., Robinson, J. H., & Lee, D. E. (2025). Fossil treasures of the Geology Museum. Dunedin, New Zealand: University of Otago. doi: 10.11157/uo062025 Authored Book - Research

Manconi, R., Cubeddu, T., Lee, D., Pronzato, R., & Kaulfuss, U. (2025). Latest Oligocene–earliest Miocene Australasian freshwater sponges (Demospongiae: Spongillida) from a maar paleolake in southern New Zealand. Journal of Paleontology. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1017/jpa.2025.10128 Journal - Research Article

Reichgelt, T., Jackson, J. A., Conran, J. G., West, C. K., Kennedy, E. M., & Lee, D. E. (2025). Humid mesothermal climate and open forest at the early Miocene Landslip Hill deposit (Gore Lignite Measures), southern Zealandia. Earth History & Biodiversity, 4, 100027. doi: 10.1016/j.hisbio.2025.100027 Journal - Research Article

Baranov, V. O., Hammel, J. U., Lee, D. E., Schmidt, A. R., & Kaulfuss, U. (2025). Extending the fossil record of late Oligocene non-biting midges (Chironomidae, Diptera) of New Zealand. PeerJ, 13, e18893. doi: 10.7717/peerj.18893 Journal - Research Article

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