FalkinghamCV

Prof. Peter L. Falkingham

Professor in Palaeobiology

“Reconstructing ancient life through digital innovation and computational paleobiology”

Contact Information

Liverpool John Moores University
School of Biological and Environmental Sciences
Liverpool, United Kingdom

Phone: +44 (0)151 231 2140
Email: p.l.falkingham@ljmu.ac.uk
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1856-8377
Website: https://peterfalkingham.com

Qualifications

Year	Degree	Institution	Subject
2010	PhD	University of Manchester	Computer simulation of dinosaur tracks
2004	MSc	University of Bristol	Computer Science: Analysis and Simulation of Bird Flight
2003	BSc (Joint Hons.)	University of Bristol	Biology and Geology

Professional Appointments

Current Position

2023 – Present | Professor in Palaeobiology
Liverpool John Moores University

Career Progression

2020 – 2023 Reader in Vertebrate Biology Liverpool John Moores University
2015 – 2020 Lecturer/Senior Lecturer in Vertebrate Biology Liverpool John Moores University
2012 – 2015 Marie Curie Research Fellow Royal Veterinary College & Brown University
2010 – 2012 Post-doctoral Researcher University of Manchester
2005 Curatorial Assistant Yorkshire Museum

Awarded Grants

Major Research Funding (Total: >£3.2M)

2023-2028 | UKRI Frontier Research Guarantee (from ERC Consolidator Grant)
Principal Investigator | Award Value: £2,153,960
“Mud to muscles: Dinosaur-bird locomotor evolution from fossil footprints”

2022 | Partnership for Advanced Computing in Europe (PRACE)
Principal Investigator | Computing Resource: 15,000,000 Core hours (~£200,000 resource in kind)
“Simulating footprint formation, from Humans to Dinosaurs”

2020 | PRACE Supercomputer Preparatory Grant
Principal Investigator | Computing Resource: ~£28,000 supercomputer time (PA5092)
“Simulating hominid footprint formation”

2018-2022 | National Science Foundation (NSF)
Co-Principal Investigator | Award Value: $340,052
“X-rays, animation, and human locomotion”
Co-PIs: K. Hatala (Chatham University), S. Gatesy (Brown University) | BCS1825403

2018-2021 | Leverhulme Trust
Co-Investigator | Award Value: £249,045
“Bones in motion: A new integrated experimental-computational approach to understanding the evolution of human locomotion”
PI: K.T. Bates (University of Liverpool) | RPG-2017-296

2015-2018 | National Science Foundation (NSF)
Co-Principal Investigator | Award Value: $284,118
“Footprint formation and interpreting fossil dinosaur tracks”
Co-PI: S.M. Gatesy (Brown University) | EAR1452119

2015-2016 | NERC
Co-Investigator | Award Value: £100,000
“Integrated software solution for the 3-dimensional capture and analysis of footwear evidence”
PI: M. Bennett (Bournemouth University)

2015-2017 | EPSRC/NERC ARCHER Leadership Call
Principal Investigator | Computing Resource: 100,000kAU (£63,000) | LEAD17-n07
“Extrapolating ground reaction force from fossil dinosaur footprints”

2014-2015 | XSEDE Supercomputing Resource (NSF)
Principal Investigator | Computing Resource: 474,755 CPU hours | TG-EAR140012
“Using computer simulation to study dinosaur biomechanics from fossil footprints”

2013-2014 | XSEDE Start-up Grant (NSF)
Principal Investigator | Computing Resource: 200,000 CPU hours | TG-EAR130043
“Simulating bird and dinosaur footprints”

2012-2013 | HECTOR Pump Priming (BBSRC/NERC)
Principal Investigator | Computing Resource: 300,000 CPU hours | Q261856
“Understanding limb motion in birds and dinosaurs traversing deep substrates”

2012-2015 | Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship
Principal Investigator | Award Value: €239,221 | 274509
“Reconstructing dinosaur/bird locomotor evolution: 3-D track simulation and X-ray validation”

2006-2010 | NERC Studentship
Awardee | Award Value: Stipend+fees | NERC/S/A/2006/14033
“Computer simulation of dinosaur tracks”

Publications

Google Scholar Profile

80+ peer-reviewed publications

Key publications marked with ⭐

2026

Lowes, R.J., Jannel, A., Griffin, B.W., Prescott, T.L. and Falkingham, P.L., 2026. Digital range of motion analysis is sensitive to subjective steps in joint model construction. Journal of anatomy.
Prescott, T.L., Griffin, B.W., Jannel, A. and Falkingham, P.L., 2026. Micro-CT Scanning Tracks: A Means for Non-Destructively Exploring Volumetric Track Formation. Fossil Studies, 4(2), p.14.
Griffin, B.W., Prescott, T.L., Jannel A., and Falkingham, P.L. 2026. Penetrative track morphology and sediment parameters: subsurface layers are robust to changes in substrate properties. Journal of the Royal Society Interface 23, 20250796.
Falkingham, P.L. and Gatesy, S.M. 2026. Formation, preservation, and interpretation of dinosaur tracks. Palaeontology, 69(1), e70040.
Lallensack, J.N., Pérez-Lorente, F., Amzil, M., Oukassou, M., Meyer, C., Saber, H., Klein, H., Charriére, A., Zafaty, O., and Falkingham, P.L. 2026. The abundance and diversity of penetrative tracks: a critical re-evaluation of theropod ichnotaxa. Historical Biology, 1–19.

2025

Prescott, T.L., Griffin, B.W., Demuth, O.E., Gatesy, S.M., Lallensack, J.N. and Falkingham, P.L., 2025. Speed from fossil trackways: calculations not validated by extant birds on compliant substrates. Biology Letters, 21(6), p.20250191.
Liang, Q., Falkingham, P.L., and Xing, L., 2025, Virtual skeleton and body mass for revealing the life strategies of Sinosaurus: Historical Biology, v. 37, p. 1729–1743.
Smyth, R.S.H., Breithaupt, B.H., Butler, R.J., Falkingham, P.L., and Unwin, D.M. (2025). Identifying pterosaur trackmakers provides critical insights into mid-Mesozoic ground invasion. Current Biology, S0960982225004464.
Lallensack, J.N., Leonardi, G., and Falkingham, P.L. (2025). Glossary of fossil tetrapod tracks. Palaeontologia Electronica, 28.1.a8.⭐
Jones, M., Lallensack, J.N., Jarman, I., Falkingham, P.L., and Siekmann, I. (2025). Classification of dinosaur footprints using machine learning. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, e2493157.
Falkingham, P.L. and Lallensack, J.N. (2025). Quirks of track preservation and formation are more likely than pre-avian flight and ultrafast dinosaurs. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 122, e2500877122.
Falkingham, P.L. (2025). Reconstructing dinosaur locomotion. Biology Letters, 21(1), 20240441.⭐
Kaczmarek, E.B., Li, E.Y., Capano, J.G., Falkingham, P.L., Gatesy, S.M., Brainerd, E.L. and Camp, A.L. (2025). Precision and accuracy of the dynamic endocast method for measuring volume changes in XROMM studies. Journal of Experimental Biology, jeb-249420.

2024

Hatala, K.G.; Roach, N.T.; Behrensmeyer, A.K.; Falkingham, P.L.; Gatesy, S.M.; Williams-Hatala, E.M.; Feibel, C.S.; Dalacha, I.; Kirinya, M.; Linga, E.; Loki, R.; Alkoro, A.; Longaye; Longaye, M.; Lonyericho, E.; Loyapan, I.; Nakudo, N.; Nyete, C.; Leakey, L.N. Footprint Evidence for Locomotor Diversity and Shared Habitats among Early Pleistocene Hominins. Science 2024, 386 (6725), 1004–1010.⭐
Smyth, R.S., Breithaupt, B.H., Butler, R.J., Falkingham, P.L. and Unwin, D.M. (2024). Hand and foot morphology maps invasion of terrestrial environments by pterosaurs in the mid-Mesozoic. Current Biology, 34(21), 4894-4907.
Grant, B.F., Charles, J.P., D’Août, K., Falkingham, P.L., Bates, K.T. (2024). Human walking biomechanics on sand substrates of varying foot sinking depth. Journal of Experimental Biology, jeb.246787.
Ahuir-Torres, J.I., Burgess, A., Sharp, M.C., Öpöz, T.T., Malkeson, S.P., Falkingham, P.L., Darlington, R.I. and Tammas-Williams, S. (2024). A Study of the Corrosion Resistance of 316L Stainless Steel Manufactured by Powder Bed Laser Additive Manufacturing. Applied Sciences, 14(17), 7471.
Liang, Q., Xing, L., Falkingham, P.L., Du, C., Wen, K., and Lin, J., 2024, Forearm range of motion in Allosaurus fragilis (Dinosauria: Theropoda): Historical Biology v. 37, p. 2119–2130.
Hatala, K.G., Gatesy, S.M., Manafzadeh, A.R., Lusardi, E.M. and Falkingham, P.L. (2024). A volumetric method for measuring the longitudinal arch of human tracks and feet. American Journal of Biological Anthropology.

2023

Oussou, A., Falkingham, P.L., Butler, R.J., Boumir, K., Ouarhache, D., Ech-Charay, K., Charrière, A. and Maidment, S.C. (2023). New Middle to? Late Jurassic dinosaur tracksites in the Central High Atlas Mountains, Morocco. Royal Society Open Science, 10(9), 231091.
Vincelette, A.R., Renders, E., Scott, K.M., Falkingham, P.L. and Janis, C.M. (2023). Hipparion tracks and horses’ toes: the evolution of the equid single hoof. Royal Society Open Science, 10(6), 230358.
Hatala, K.G., Gatesy, S.M. and Falkingham, P.L. (2023). Arched footprints preserve the motions of fossil hominin feet. Nature Ecology & Evolution, 7(1), 32-41. ⭐
Flannery-Sutherland, J.T., Kogan, I., Trubin, Y.S., Falkingham, P.L., Winkler, A., De Sousa, D.D., Krylov, K.D., Pokhaznikova, A.A., Derbisheva, M., Kapitany, T. and Dudashvili, A. (2023). Dinosaur trackways from the Upper Cretaceous Nichkesai Formation near Mayluu Suu City, Southern Tien Shan Mountains, north-western Kyrgyzstan. Royal Society Open Science, 10(5), 230311.

2022

Lallensack, J.N., Romilio, A. and Falkingham, P.L. (2022). A machine learning approach for the discrimination of theropod and ornithischian dinosaur tracks. Journal of the Royal Society Interface, 19(196), 20220588.
Grant, B., Charles, J., Geraghty, B., Gardiner, J., D’Aout, K., Falkingham, P.L. and Bates, K. (2022). Why does the metabolic cost of walking increase on compliant substrates? Journal of the Royal Society Interface.
Lallensack, J.N., Owais, A., Falkingham, P.L., Breithaupt, B.H. and Sander, P.M. (2022). How to verify fossil tracks: the first record of dinosaurs from Palestine. Historical Biology, 1-11.
Turner, M.L., Falkingham, P.L. and Gatesy, S.M. (2022). What is Stance Phase on Deformable Substrates? Integrative and Comparative Biology.
Lallensack, J.N. and Falkingham, P.L. (2022). A new method to calculate limb phase from trackways reveals gaits of sauropod dinosaurs. Current Biology, 32(7), 1635-1640. ⭐
Falkingham, P.L., Maidment, S.C., Lallensack, J.N., Martin, J.E., Suan, G., Cherns, L., Howells, C. and Barrett, P.M. (2022). Late Triassic dinosaur tracks from Penarth, south Wales. Geological Magazine, 159(6), 821-832.
Lallensack, J.N., Farlow, J.O. and Falkingham, P.L. (2022). A new solution to an old riddle: elongate dinosaur tracks explained as deep penetration of the foot, not plantigrade locomotion. Palaeontology, 65(1), e12584.

2021

Cieri, R.L., Turner, M.L., Carney, R.M., Falkingham, P.L., Kirk, A.M., Wang, T., Jensen, B., Novotny, J., Tveite, J., Gatesy, S.M. and Laidlaw, D.H. (2021). Virtual and augmented reality: New tools for visualizing, analyzing, and communicating complex morphology. Journal of Morphology, 282(12), 1785-1800.
Peri, E., Falkingham, P.L., Collareta, A., and Giovanni, B. (2021). Biting in the Miocene seas: estimation of the bite force of the macroraptorial sperm whale Zygophyseter varolai using finite element analysis. Historical Biology.
Hatala K.G., Gatesy S.M. and Falkingham, P.L. (2021). Integration of biplanar X-ray, three-dimensional animation and particle simulation reveals details of human ‘track ontogeny.’ Interface Focus, 11(5), 202000075.⭐
Mármol-Guijarro, A., Nudds, R., Folkow, L., Sellers, W., Falkingham, P.L., and Codd, J. (2021). The Influence of snow properties on speed and gait choice in the Svalbard rock ptarmigan (Lagopus muta hyperborea). Integrative Organismal Biology, 3(1), obab021.
Farlow, J.O., Falkingham, P.L., and Therrien, F. (2021). Pedal Proportions of Small and Large Hadrosaurs and Other Potentially Bipedal Ornithischian Dinosaurs. Cretaceous Research, 127, 104945.
Marek, R.D., Falkingham, P.L., Benson, R.B.J., Gardiner, J.D., Maddox, T.W., and Bates, K.T. (2021). Evolutionary versatility of the avian neck. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 288, 202003150.
Tanaka, I., Markó, A., Hyodo, M., Strickson, C.E., and Falkingham, P.L. (2021). A re-analysis of Chibanian Pleistocene tracks from Vértesszőlős, Hungary, employing photogrammetry and 3D analysis. Annales Societatis Geologorum Poloniae, 91.
Falkingham, P.L. and Rae, R. (2021). 3D morphology of nematode encapsulation in snail shells, revealed by micro-CT imaging. Scientific Reports, 11(1), 2523.

2020

Falkingham, P.L., Turner, M.L., and Gatesy, S.M. (2020). Constructing and testing hypotheses of dinosaur foot motions from fossil tracks, using digitization and simulation. Palaeontology, 63(6), 865-880. ⭐
Falkingham, P.L. and Gatesy, S.M. (2020). Discussion: Defining the morphological quality of fossil footprints. Problems and principles of preservation in tetrapod ichnology with examples from the Palaeozoic to the present by Lorenzo Marchetti et al. Earth-Science Reviews, 103320.
Gatesy, S.M., Falkingham, P.L. (2020). Hitchcock’s Leptodactyli, penetrative tracks, and dinosaur footprint diversity. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 40(3), e1781142.⭐
Larkin, N.R., Duffin, C.J., Dey, S., Stukins, S., Falkingham, P.L. (2020). The first tetrapod track recorded from the Rhaetian in the British Isles. Proceedings of the Geologists’ Association, 131(6), 722-729.
Turner, M.L., and Falkingham, P.L., Gatesy, S.M. (2020). It’s in the loop: shared sub-surface foot kinematics in birds and other dinosaurs shed light on a new dimension of fossil track diversity. Biology Letters, 16(7).
Otero, A., Moreno, A.P., and Falkingham, P.L., Cassini, G., Ruella, A., Militello, M., Toledo, N. (2020). Three-dimensional image surface acquisition in vertebrate paleontology: A review of principal techniques. Publicación Electrónica de la Asociación Paleontológica Argentina, 20, 1–14.
Strickson, E.C., Hutchinson, J.R., Wilkinson, D.M., and Falkingham, P.L. (2020). Can skeletal surface area predict in vivo foot surface area? Journal of Anatomy.
Farlow, J.O., Bakker, R.T., Datillo, B. Everett Deschner, C, E., Falkingham, P.L., Harter, C., Solis, R., Temple, D., and Ward, W. (2020). Thunder lizard handstands: Manus-only sauropod trackways from the Glen Rose Formation (Lower Cretaceous, Kendall County, Texas). Ichnos, 1-33.

2019

Troelsen, P.V., Wilkinson, D.M., Seddighi, M., Allanson, D.R. and Falkingham, P.L. (2019). Functional morphology and hydrodynamics of plesiosaur necks: Does size matter? Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, e1594850.
Crandell, K.E., Howe, R.O., and Falkingham, P.L. (2019). Repeated evolution of drag reduction at the air–water interface in diving kingfishers. Journal of the Royal Society: Interface, 16, 20190125.
Novotny, J., Tveite, J., Turner, M.L., Gatesy, S., Drury, F., Falkingham, P.L. and Laidlaw, D.H. (2019). Developing Virtual Reality Visualizations for Unsteady Flow Analysis of Dinosaur Track Formation using Scientific Sketching. IEEE transactions on visualization and computer graphics, 25(5), 2145-2154.

2018

Bates, K.T. and Falkingham, P.L. (2018). The importance of muscle architecture in biomechanical reconstructions of extinct animals: a case study using Tyrannosaurus rex. Journal of Anatomy, 233, 625-635.
Falkingham, P.L., K.T. Bates, M. Avanzini, M. Bennett, E.M. Bordy, B.H. Breithaupt, D. Castanera, P. Citton, I. Díaz-Martínez, J.O. Farlow, A.R. Fiorillo, S.M. Gatesy, P. Getty, K.G. Hatala, J.J. Hornung, J.A. Hyatt, H. Klein, J.N. Lallensack, A.J. Martin, D. Marty, N.A. Matthews, C.A. Meyer, J. Milàn, N.J. Minter, N.L. Razzolini, A. Romilio, S.W. Salisbury, L. Sciscio, I. Tanaka, A.L.A. Wiseman, L.D. Xing and M. Belvedere (2018). A standard protocol for documenting modern and fossil ichnological data. Palaeontology, 61, 469-480. ⭐
Farlow, J.O., Robinson, N.J., Kumagai, C.J., Paladino, F.V., Falkingham, P.L., Elsey, E.M. and Martin, A.J. (2018). Trackways of the American Crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) in Northwestern Costa Rica: Implications for Crocodylian Ichnology. Ichnos, 25(1), 30-65.

2017

Gatesy, S.M., and Falkingham, P.L. (2017). Neither bones nor feet: track morphological variation and “preservation quality”. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, e1314298.
Lomax, D., Falkingham, P.L., Schwigert, G., and Jiménez, A.P. (2017). An 8.5 m long ammonite drag mark from the Upper Jurassic Solnhofen Lithographic Limestone, Germany. PLOS one, 12(5), e0175426.
Davies, T.G., Rahman, I.A. … Falkingham, P.L. … Rayfield, E.J., and Donoghue, P.C.J. (2017). Open data and digital morphology. Royal Society Proceedings B, 284(1852), 20170194.

2016

Xing, L., Lockley, M.G., Klein, H., Falkingham, P.L., et al. (2016). First early Jurassic small ornithischian tracks from Yunnan Province, Southwestern China. PALAIOS, 31(11), 516-524.
Falkingham, P.L. and Horner, A. (2016). Making footprints without limbs: Trackways produced by lungfish during terrestrial locomotion. Nature Scientific Reports, 6, 33734. ⭐
Klein, H., Wizevich, M.C., Thüring, B., Marty, D., Thüring, S., Falkingham, P.L., and Meyer, C.A. (2016). Triassic chirotheriid footprints from the Swiss Alps - ichnotaxonomy and depositional environment (Cantons Wallis & Glarus). Swiss Journal of Palaeontology, 135(2), 295-314.
Bates, K.T., Mannion, P.D., Falkingham, P.L., Brusatte, S.L., et al. (2016). Temporal and phylogenetic evolution of the sauropod dinosaur body plan. Royal Society Open Science, 3(150636), 17.
Xing, L. Daqing, L., Falkingham, P.L., Lockley, M.G., et al. (2016). Digit-only sauropod pes trackways from China – evidence of swimming or a preservational phenomenon? Nature Scientific Reports, 6, 21138.
Basu, C., Falkingham, P.L., and Hutchinson, J.R. (2016). The extinct, giant giraffid Sivatherium giganteum: skeletal reconstruction and body mass estimation. Royal Society: Biology Letters, 12(1).

2015

Rahman, I., Zamora, S., Falkingham, P.L., and Phillips, J.C. (2015). Cambrian cinctan echinoderms shed light on feeding in the ancestral deuterostome. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 282, 20151964.
Bates, K.T., Falkingham, P.L., Macaulay, S., Brassey, C.A., and Maidment, S.C. (2015). Downsizing a giant: Re-evaluating Dreadnoughtus body mass. Royal Society: Biology Letters, 11, 20150215.

2014

Falkingham, P.L. and Gatesy, S.M. (2014). The birth of a dinosaur footprint: sub-surface 3-D motion reconstruction and discrete element simulation reveal ‘track ontogeny’. PNAS, 111(51), 18279-18284. ⭐
Falkingham, P.L., Hage, J., and Bäker, M. (2014). Mitigating the goldilocks effect: the effects of different substrate models on track formation potential. Royal Society: Open Science, 1(3), 140225.
Bennett, M.R., Morse S.A. and Falkingham, P.L. (2014). Tracks made by swimming Hippopotami: an example from Koobi Fora (Turkana Basin, Kenya). Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 409, 9-23.
Falkingham, P.L., Bates K.T., and Farlow J.O. (2014). Historical Photogrammetry: Bird’s Paluxy River Dinosaur Chase Sequence Digitally Reconstructed as It Was prior to Excavation 70 Years Ago. PLoS ONE, 9, e93247.
Falkingham, P.L. (2014). Interpreting ecology and behaviour from the vertebrate fossil track record. Journal of Zoology, 222-228.
Razzolini N.L., Vila B, Castanera D, Falkingham, P.L., Barco J.L., et al. (2014). Intra-Trackway Morphological Variations Due to Substrate Consistency: The El Frontal Dinosaur Tracksite (Lower Cretaceous, Spain). PLoS ONE, 9, e93708.
Maidment, S.R.C., Bates, K.T, Falkingham, P.L., van Buren, C., Arbour, V., and Barrett, P.M. (2014). Locomotion in Ornithischian Dinosaurs: An Assessment Using Three-Dimensional Computational Modelling. Biological Reviews, 89(3), 588-617.

2013

Falkingham, P.L. (2013). Low cost 3D scanning using off-the-shelf video gaming peripherals. Journal of Paleontological Techniques, 11, 1-9.
Bates, K.T., Savage, R., Pataky, T.C., Morse, S.A., Webster, E., and Falkingham, P.L., et al. (2013). Does footprint depth correlate with foot motion and pressure? Journal of the Royal Society Interface, 10(83), 20130009.
Bennett, M.R., Morse, S.A., Falkingham, P.L., Bates, K.T., and Crompton, R.H. (2013). Preserving the impossible: conservation of soft-sediment hominin footprint sites and strategies for three-dimensional digital data capture. PLoS ONE, 8, e60755.
White, M.A., Falkingham, P.L., Cook, A.G., Hocknull, S.A., and Elliot, D.A. (2013). Morphological comparisons of metacarpal I for Australovenator wintonensis and Rapator ornitholestoides and implications for their relationship. Alcheringa, 37(4), 435-441.
Castanera D, Vila B, Razzolini N.L., Falkingham P.L., Canudo J.I., et al. (2013). Manus Track Preservation Bias as a Key Factor for Assessing Trackmaker Identity and Quadrupedalism in Basal Ornithopods. PLoS ONE, 8, e54177.

2012

Falkingham P.L., Bates K.T., Mannion P.D. (2012). Temporal and palaeoenvironmental distribution of manus- and pes-dominated sauropod trackways. Journal of the Geological Society, 169, 365-370.
Farlow J.O., O’Brien M., Kuban G.J., Dattilo B.F., Bates K.T., Falkingham, P.L. et al. (2012). Dinosaur Tracksites of the Paluxy River Valley (Glen Rose Formation, Lower Cretaceous), Dinosaur Valley State Park, Somervell County, Texas. Proceedings of the V International Symposium about Dinosaur Palaeontology and their Environment, 41-69.
Sellers W.I., Hepworth-Bell J., Falkingham P.L., Bates K.T., Brassey C.A., et al. (2012). Minimum convex hull mass estimations of complete mounted skeletons. Royal Society: Biology Letters, 8(5), 842-845.
Bates K.T., and Falkingham P.L. (2012). Estimating maximum bite performance in Tyrannosaurus rex using multi-body dynamics. Royal Society: Biology Letters, 8(4), 660-664.
Falkingham, P.L. (2012). Acquisition of high resolution 3D models using free, open source, photogrammetry. Palaeontologia Electronica, 15, 1T:15p.⭐
Bates, K.T., Benson, R.B.J., and Falkingham, P.L. (2012). The evolution of body size, stance and gait in the Allosauroidea (Dinosauria: Theropoda). Palaeobiology, 38, 486-507.

2011

Falkingham, P.L., Bates, K.T., Margetts, L., and Manning, P.L. (2011). The Goldilocks effect: Preservational bias in dinosaur track assemblages. Journal of the Royal Society: Interface, 8, 1142-1154. ⭐
Falkingham, P.L., Bates, K.T., Margetts, L., and Manning, P.L. (2011). Simulating sauropod manus only trackway formation using finite element analysis. Royal Society: Biology Letters, 7(1), 142-145.

2010

Falkingham, P.L., Agenbroad, L.D., Thompson, K., and Manning, P.L. (2010). Bird Tracks at the Hot Springs Mammoth Site, South Dakota, USA. Ichnos, 17(1), 34-39.
Falkingham, P.L., Margetts, L., and Manning, P.L. (2010). Fossil vertebrate tracks as paleopenetrometers: Confounding effects of foot morphology. Palaios, 25(5-6), 356-360.
Bates, K.T., Falkingham, P.L., Rarity, F., Hodgetts, D., Purslow, A., and Manning, P.L. (2010). Application of high-resolution laser scanning and photogrammetric techniques to data acquisition, analysis and interpretation in palaeontology. International Archives of Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, XXXVIII, 68-73.
Falkingham, P.L., Milàn, J., and Manning, P.L. (2010). A crocodylian trace from the Lance Formation (Upper Cretaceous) of Wyoming. New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science Bulletin, 51, 171-174.

2009

Bates, K.T., Falkingham, P.L., Breithaupt, B.H., Hodgetts, D., Sellers, W.I., and Manning, P.L. (2009). How Big was ‘Big Al’? Quantifying the effect of soft tissue and osteological unknowns on mass predictions for Allosaurus (Dinosauria: Theropoda). Palaeontologia Electronica, 12(3), 14A: 33p.
Bates, K.T., Falkingham, P.L., Hodgetts, D., Farlow, J.O., Breithaupt, B.H., O’Brien, M. et al. (2009). Digital imaging and public engagement in palaeontology. Geology Today, 25(4), 134-139.
Falkingham, P.L., Margetts, L., Smith, I., and Manning, P.L. (2009). Reinterpretation of palmate and semi-palmate (webbed) fossil tracks; insights from finite element modelling. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 271(1-2), 69-76.
Manning, P.L., Margetts, L., Johnson, M.R., Withers, P.J., Sellers, W.I., Falkingham, P.L. et al. (2009). Biomechanics of dromaeosaurid dinosaur claws: application of X-ray microtomography, nanoindentation, and finite element analysis. The Anatomical Record, 292(9), 1397-1405.

2008

Manning, P.L., Ott, C., and Falkingham, P.L. (2008). A Probable Tyrannosaurid Track from the Hell Creek Formation (Upper Cretaceous), Montana, United States. Palaios, 23(9-10), 645-647.

Book Chapters

Falkingham, P.L. (2016). Applying objective methods to subjective track outlines. In Dinosaur Tracks: the next steps, Indiana University Press, Bloomington IL, 72-80.
Milan, J., and Falkingham, P.L. (2016). Experimental and Comparative Ichnology. In Dinosaur Tracks: the next steps, Indiana University Press, Bloomington IL, 14-27.
Falkingham, P.L., Marty, D., and Richter, A. (2016). Introduction. In Dinosaur Tracks: the next steps, Indiana University Press, Bloomington IL, 3-11.
Marty, D., Richter, A, and Falkingham, P.L. (2016). A glossary of ichnological terms. In Dinosaur Tracks: the next steps, Indiana University Press, Bloomington IL, 399-400.
Manning, P.L. and Falkingham, P.L. (2012). Science Communication with Dinosaurs. In Handbook of Research on Computational Science and Engineering: Theory and Practice (2 vol). J. Leng and W. Sharrock. Hershey, IGI Global: 587-611.

Edited Books

Falkingham, P.L., Marty, D., and Richter, A. (2016). Dinosaur Tracks, The Next Steps. Indiana University Press, Bloomington IL.

Conference Presentations

Complete List
Keynote/Plenary presentations marked with ★
Invited/Symposium presentations marked with ☆

2026

Farlow, J.O., Dattilo, B.F., Lin, D., Fredrick, G., Mann, E., Whitcraft, J., Falkingham, P.L., Hyatt, J.A., Jacene, J., Martin, A.J., and O’Brien, M. Dinosaurs vs. Crustaceans: Preservation of Fossil Footprints from Joanna’s Tracksite (Lower Cretaceous Glen Rose Formation, Texas). Indiana Acadamy of Science Annual Meeting, Indiana, USA.

2025

Burgess, A.J., Malkeson, S.P., Sharp, M.C., Darlington, R.I., Falkingham, P.L., and Tammas-Williams, S. Computational Modelling of powder bed deposition in metal additive manufacturing. International Conference of Engineering Technologies, Knya, Turkey.
Griffin, B., Prescott, N.L., Jannel, A., and Falkingham, P.L. Curved tracks from straight toes: kinematics distorting morphology in tridactyl penetrative tracks. Palaeontological Association Annual Meeting, Southampton, UK.
Beard, T.M., Butler, R.J., Edgar, K.M., Meade, L.E., Nicholls, E.L., Murdock, D., and Falkingham, P.L. The global context of a new theropod trackway from Dewars Farm, Oxfordshire. Palaeontological Association Annual Meeting, Southampton, UK.
Edgar, K., Butler, R., Nicholls, E., Murdock, D., Meade, L., Falkingham, P.L., Lallensack, J., Beard, T.M. Thirty years of discovery at the UK’s largest dinosaur track site: Ardley and Dewar’s Farm Quarries in north Oxfordshire. Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, Birmingham, UK.
Prescott, N.L., Griffin, B., and Falkingham, P.L. Footprints beneath the surface: visualising foot-substrate interactions using μCT. Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, Birmingham, UK.
Griffin, B., Prescott, N.L., and Falkingham, P.L. Track Robusticity: subsurface layers consistently capture motion irrespective of substrate properties. Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, Birmingham, UK.
Falkingham, P.L. Reconstructing locomotion from a dinosaur trackway. Morph Up North, Manchester, UK.
Griffin, B., and Falkingham, P.L. Modelling dinosaur motion from fossilized footprints using Prospero. Prospero @5 symposium, Liverpool, UK.
★ Falkingham, P.L. Dinosaur tracks and Locomotion. Keynote, 10th Symposium about Dinosaurs Palaeontology and their Environment, Salas de los Infantes, Spain.
Griffin, B., Prescott, N.L., Falkingham, P.L. Track Morphology and sediment parameters: Motion recovered from subsurface layers are robust to changes in substrate properties. Society of Experimental Biology, Antwerp, Belgium.
Prescott, N.L., Griffin, B., Falkingham, P.L. Visualizing foot-substrate interactions beneath the sediment surface using μCT scanning. Society of Experimental Biology, Antwerp, Belgium.

2024

★ Falkingham, P.L. Track Morphology as a window on extinct life. Young Researcher Morphology Meeting, Darmstadt, Germany. **
★ Falkingham, P.L. What we can learn about dinosaurs from their tracks. 200 Years of Dinosaurs Conference, London, UK. **
Demuth, O., Griffin, B., Prescott, N.L., Falkingham, P.L. Theoretical framework for the simulation of sub-surface locomotion. Society of Experimental Biology, Prague, Czech Republic.
Prescott, N.L., Demuth, O., Gatesy, S., Griffin, B., McNamara-Catalano, I., and Falkingham, P.L. Dinosaur speeds from fossil trackways: testing accuracy against extant birds. Society of Experimental Biology, Prague, Czech Republic.

2023

Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. Straight toes and curvy footprints: how track morphology can deform during formation to distort foot anatomy. Virtual Palaeontology Congress (online).

2022

Fraschini, C.A.A.L., Gatesy, S.M., and Falkingham, P.L. How digit divarication angle changes at touchdown and midstance as guineafowl traverse solid and deformable substrates. Society of Experimental Biology, Montpellier, France.
Hatala, K., Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. Arched footprints reveal bipedal kinematics, not arched foot anatomy, of fossil hominins. American Association of Physical Anthropologists.
Falkingham, P.L., Turner, M. and Gatesy, S.M. Walking, Swimming, and everything in between: Guineafowl limb kinematics on firm, soft, and semi-liquid substrates. Society of Experimental Biology, Phoenix, AZ, USA. *

2021

Jackson, N.C., Wakley, D., and Falkingham, P.L. 3D marker tracking with GoPros and XMALab: A low-cost 3D tracking set-up. Society of Experimental Biology. Online.
Hatala, K.G., Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. A new ontogenetic framework for analyzing fossil hominin tracks. American Association of Physical Anthropologists. Online.

2020

Hatala, K.G. Falkingham, P.L., K., Megherhi, S. Perry, D., Cheleden, S., Novotny, J., Laidlaw, D.H. and Gatesy, S.M. Merging biplanar X-ray, 3-D animation, particle simulation, and virtual reality to understand 3-D foot dynamics on deformable substrates. American Association of Physical Anthropologists, Los Angeles, USA.
Grant, B., Charles, J., Falkingham, P.L., D’Aout, K. and Bates, K. Can we reconstruct limb motion from fossil footprints? The Palaeontological Association Annual Meeting, Oxford, UK.

2019

☆ Falkingham, P.L. and Gatesy, S.M. Virtual footprints: simulation and digitization elucidate deep track formation. Palaeontological Annual Meeting, Valencia, Spain. *
Gatesy, S.M., Turner, M.L., and Falkingham, P.L. CT imaging of dinosaur footprints: hidden topography and the origin of penetrative track diversity. SVP, Brisbane, Australia.
Strickson, E.C., Wilkinson, D.M., Hutchinson, J.R., and Falkingham, P.L. Why did some quadrupedal dinosaurs have small front feet? SVP, Brisbane, Australia.
★ Falkingham, P.L. and Gatesy, S.M. Track formation mechanisms elucidated by computer simulation and bi-planar X-ray. International Conference on Continental Ichnology, Halle, Germany. **
☆ Falkingham, P.L. Bi-planar X-ray imaging and HPC simulation of dinosaur footprint formation. IBFEM-i4, Swansea, UK. *
Falkingham, P.L., Turner, M.L, and Gatesy, S.M. Generating and testing hypothesis of dinosaur foot motions using 3d-digitized tracks and large-scale granular simulations. ICVM, Prague, Czech Republic.
Marek, R.D., Falkingham, P.L. and Bates, K.T. The Surrogate Arm: Assessing factors influencing vertebral morphology in the avian cervical Spine. ICVM, Prague, Czech Republic.
Strickson, E.C., Wilkinson, D.M., Hutchinson, J.R., and Falkingham, P.L. No small feet: Investigating mass distribution and heteropody in the past and present. ICVM, Prague, Czech Republic.
Crandell, K.E., Howe, R.O., and Falkingham, P.L. Repeated evolution of drag reduction at the air-water interface in diving kingfishers. ICVM, Prague, Czech Republic.
Turner, M.L. Novotny, J., Falkingham, P.L., Laidlaw, D.H., and Gatesy, S.M. Where does footprint morphology come from? Developing virtual reality visualizations for exploring dinosaur track formation. ICVM, Prague, Czech Republic.
Glasgow, S., Troelsen, P., Falkingham, P.L., and Marek, R.D., Stretching Evolution: Regionalisation and Neck Elongation in Plesiosaurs. SICB, Tampa, FL, USA.
Crandell, K.E., Howe, R.O., Cannon, C., and Falkingham, P.L. A comparative analysis of the hydrodynamics of beak shape kingfishers. SICB, Tampa, FL, USA.

2018

Novotny, J. Tveite, J., Turner, M.L., Gatesy, S.M., Drury, F., Falkingham, P.L., and Laidlaw, D.H. Developing Virtual Reality Visualizations of Dinosaur Track Creation with scientific Sketching. IEEE VIS 2018, Berlin, Germany.
Turner, M.L. Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. Where does footprint morphology come from? Integrating 3D methods for exploring dinosaur track formation. SVP, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA.
Marek, R., Bates, K.T., and Falkingham, P.L. An everyday tool: how the avian neck has adapted to (almost) every situation. SVPCA, Manchester, UK
Troelsen, P. and Falkingham, P.L. Functional morphology and hydrodynamics of plesiosaur necks: Does size matter? SVPCA, Manchester, UK
Strickson, E.C., and Falkingham, P.L. The implications of underfoot pressures and mass distribution for extreme heteropody. SEB, Florence, Italy.
Marek, R. Bates, K.T and Falkingham, P.L. The surrogate arm: Analysing the role of regionalisation in the variation of the avian neck. SEB, Florence, Italy.
Gatesy, S.M., Turner, M.L., and Falkingham, P.L. CT Imaging of Dinosaur Footprints: Hidden Topography and the Origin of Track Diversity. SICB, San Francisco, CA, USA.
Turner, M.L., Falkingham, P.L. and Gatesy, S.M. Avian Subsurface Foot Kinematics on Deformable Substrates. SICB, San Francisco, CA, USA.

2017

Falkingham, P.L. Finch, L., Marek, R., and Troelsen, P. Reconstructing moving morphology using RaspberryPi (PiROMM): Range of motion in ostrich cervical vertebrae at progressive stages of dissection. SEB, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Troelsen, P.V., and Falkingham, P.L. Range of motion and hydrodynamic implications of the long-neck in plesiosaurs. SVPCA, Birmingham, UK
Bates, K.T. and Falkingham, P.L. Philosophical perspectives on biomechanical reconstructions of extinct animals: A case study using Tyrannosaurus rex. SVPCA, Birmingham, UK
Marek, R.D., Falkingham, P.L. and Bates, K.T. Grabbing evolution by the throat: Functional regionalization of the avian cervical column. SVPCA, Birmingham, UK
Tanaka, I., Markó, A., Bradák, B., Hyodo, M., Strickson, E.C., and Falkingham, P.L. A re-analysis of ~350 Ka Hominin-like footprints from Vértesszolos, Hungary, Employing photogrammetry and 3D analysis. SVP, Calgary, Canada.
Marek, R.D., Bates, K.T. and Falkingham, P.L. Regionalization of the avian cervical column: A link between morphology and ecology. SVP, Calgary, Canada.
Strickson, E.C., Hutchinson, J.R., and Falkingham, P.L. Can foot surface area in vivo predict skeletal surface area? Progressive Palaeontology, Leicester, UK.
Troelsen, P.V., Wilkinson, D.M., Meloro, C. and Falkingham, P.L. Bending properties of an idealised plesiosaur body using computational fluid dynamics. 8th International Meeting on the Secondary Adaptation of Tetrapods to Life in Water, Berlin, Germany.

2016

Troelsen, P.V., Wilkinson, D.M., Meloro, C. and Falkingham, P.L. Investigating the hydrodynamic implications of the long neck in Plesiosauroidea (Reptilia, Sauropterygia) using computational fluid dynamics. SVPCA, Liverpool.
Gatesy, S.M., and Falkingham, P.L. Footprints are neither bones nor feet: problems with track “preservation” and the mold-based paradigm. SVP, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.
Turner, M., Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. The morphology of motion: sub-surface foot trajectories and fossil tracks. SVP, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.
Carrasco, D., Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. Foot morphology or exit feature: A CT perspective on Hitchcock’s Dinosaur Tracks. SVP, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.
Gatesy, S.M. and Falkingham, P.L. One foot, many footprints: the origin of track morphological diversity. International Conference on Vertebrate Morphology (ICVM), Florida, USA.
Turner, M., Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. The morphology of motion: sub-surface foot trajectories and fossil tracks. International Conference on Vertebrate Morphology (ICVM), Florida, USA.
☆ Falkingham, P.L. and Gatesy, S.M. Experimental solutions to deep time problems in palaeontology. European Geosciences Union General Assembly, Vienna, Austria. *
☆ Falkingham, P.L. and Gatesy, S.M. Using LIGGGHTS to investigate dinosaur footprint formation. CF-DEM 1st User meeting, Linz, Austria *

2015

Falkingham, P.L. Difficulties in estimating mass from fossil footprints. Symposium on Vertebrate Palaeontology and Comparative Anatomy, Southampton.
Basu, C., Falkingham, P.L. and Hutchinson, J.R. Estimating body mass of the extinct giraffid Sivatherium giganteum, using a skeletal reconstruction and the minimum convex hull method. Symposium on Vertebrate Palaeontology and Comparative Anatomy, Southampton.
Bates, K.T. …et al… and Falkingham, P.L. Temporal and phylogenetic evolution of the sauropod dinosaur body plan. Symposium on Vertebrate Palaeontology and Comparative Anatomy, Southampton.
Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. The birth of a Dinosaur Track: sub-surface 3-D motion reconstruction and discrete element simulation reveal footprint ‘ontogeny.’ Society of Integrative and Comparative Biology.

2014

Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. The birth of a Dinosaur Track: sub-surface 3-D motion reconstruction and discrete element simulation reveal footprint ‘ontogeny.’ SVPCA, Southampton.
Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. The birth of a Dinosaur Track: sub-surface 3-D motion reconstruction and discrete element simulation reveal footprint ‘ontogeny.’ Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, Berlin, Germany.
Carney, R., Molnar, J., Updike, E., Brown, W., Jackson, J., Shawkey, M., Lindgren, J., Sjövall, P., Falkingham, P.L., Gauthier, J. Archaeopteryx in 4D. Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, Berlin, Germany.
Razzolini, N., Vila, B., Falkingham, P.L., Galobart, A. Substrate properties and foot anatomy: two of the variables controlling dinosaur track morphology. Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, Berlin, Germany.
Bäker, M., Hage, J., Falkingham, P.L., Complex substrates reduce the specificity of the goldilocks effect in track formation. Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, Berlin, Germany.
Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. Using Avian subsurface 3D foot motion to simulate fossil track diversity. Society of Integrative and Comparative Biology, Austin, TX, USA.
Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. The birth of a Dinosaur track: footprint ‘ontogeny’. Society for Experimental Biology, Valencia, Spain.

2013

Farlow, J. Falkingham, P.L., and Bates, K. A photogrammetric recreation of Roland T. Bird’s Paluxy River theropod-sauropod “chase sequence” tracksite quarry (Glen Rose Formation, Lower Cretaceous, dinosaur valley state park, Somervell County, Texas). Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, Los Angeles, USA
Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. Using Avian subsurface 3D foot motion to simulate fossil track diversity. Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, Los Angeles, USA
Horner and Falkingham, P.L. Making footprints without limbs: similarities between traces left by lungfish terrestrial locomotion and primitive tetrapod trackways. Society of Vertebrate Paleontology Los Angeles, USA
Hocknull, S. Falkingham, P.L. Lawrence, R., Newman, N., Kenedy D., Mitchell, I. and Cook, A. Behind the Iron Curtain: A new assessment of the ichnofossil record from the Cretaceous Winton Formation of central Queensland, Australia. Adelaide, Australia
Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. Subsurface foot and sediment motions visualised as guineafowl traverse soft substrate: XROMM and Simulation. Division of Vertebrate Morphology Meeting, New Haven, USA.
Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. Using Avian subsurface 3D foot motion to simulate fossil track diversity. International Congress of Vertebrate Morphology. Barcelona, Spain.

2012

Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. Reconstructing limb kinematics of small bipedal dinosaurs traversing semi-fluid substrates. Raleigh, NC, USA.
Falkingham, P.L., Recent and future advances in free and low cost digitization. Digital Fossil, Berlin, Germany. *
Razzolini, N., Vila, B., Barco, J., Galobart, A., Falkingham, P.L., Castanera, D., Canudo, J., Manning, P.L. First approach to the El Frontal tracksite (Berriasian, Soria, Spain): Perspectives on morphological variability in theropod tracks. European Association of Vertebrate Palaeontology. Teruel, Spain.
Rahman, I. and Falkingham, P.L., Computational fluid dynamics: a powerful tool for elucidating function in fossil taxa. Geological Society of America, Charlotte, NC, USA.
Falkingham, P.L., and Gatesy, S.M. Using penetrative tracks to reconstruct dinosaur limb kinematics. Palaeontological Association, Dublin, Ireland.
Bäker, M., Hage, J., Falkingham, P.L., Mit ABAQUS auf den Spuren der Dinosaurier. SIMULIA annual meeting, Germany.

2011

Falkingham, P.L. Applying objective methods to subjective track outlines. Dinosaur Track Symposium, Obernkirchen, Germany.
Falkingham, P.L. Applying objective methods to subjective track outlines. Palaeontological Association annual meeting, Plymouth, UK.
Falkingham, P.L., Bates, K. and Mannion, P. Evolutionary Trends in the sauropod body plan expressed in fossil tracks and trackways. Society of Vertebrate Paleontology. Las Vegas, NV, USA.

2008

Falkingham, P.L., Margetts, L. and Manning, P. Novel techniques using finite element analysis to aid interpretation of dinosaur tracks. Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, Cleveland, OH, USA.
Falkingham, P.L., Manning, P., and Margetts, L. Using computer simulation to explain variation in fossil vertebrate tracks. Palaeontological Association Annual Meeting, Glasgow, UK.
Falkingham, P.L. Appearances can be deceiving: effects of soil mechanics and biomechanics on vertebrate track morphology – implications for interpretation. Progressive Palaeontology, Manchester, UK.

2007

Falkingham, P.L., Manning, P., and Margetts, L. Finite element analysis of dinosaur tracks. Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, Austin, TX, USA.

Popular Science Publications

Falkingham, P.L. (2012). Fossil Focus: Vertebrate Tracks and trackways. Palaeontology[Online], 2(1), 1-6.
Falkingham, P.L. (2010). Virtual Palaeontology. Rockwatch Magazine, issue 53.
Falkingham, P.L. (2009). Walking with Dinosaurs. NERC Planet Earth Magazine, Spring 2009, 12-13.
Bates, K.T., Falkingham, P.L., Farlow, J.O., Briethaupt, B.H., O’Brien, M., Matthews, N., Hodgetts, D., Sellers, W.I., and Manning, P.L. (2009). Digital Imaging and Public Engagement in Palaeontology. Geology Today, 25, 95-100.

Software

Github: https://github.com/pfalkingham
Blender addons: https://extensions.blender.org/author/3247/
Budka, M. Bakirov, R., Deng, S., Falkingham, P.L., Reynolds, S.C., Bennett, M.R. (2016). DigTrace [Computer Software]. Bournemouth University. Version 1.0.

Service to Profession

Editorial Roles

Scientific Editor — Journal of Palaeontological Techniques
Commissioning Editor — Palaeontology[Online]
Academic Editor — PLOS Computational Biology

Peer Review

NERC Peer Review College Member (2026 – present)
Peer Reviewer — Over 30 journals, including Proceedings of the Royal Society B, Biology Letters, Interface, Scientific Reports, PLoS One, Nature, Current Biology, and others

Conference Organization

Host & Organizer — Symposium for Vertebrate Palaeontology and Comparative Anatomy (SVPCA) 2016
Host & Organizer — Symposium of Palaeontological Preparation and Conservation (SPPC) 2016

Teaching Experience

Recognized Fellow of the Higher Education Academy

Current Teaching Responsibilities

Liverpool John Moores University

Lecturer — Vertebrate Biology; Animal Diversity and Evolution; Functional Morphology; Animals in Motion
Module Leader — Animal Diversity and Evolution; Animals in Motion

Fieldwork Teaching

UK Locations — Peak District, Lake District
International Locations — Tenerife, Spain, Portugal, Utah (USA)

Undergraduate & Masters Supervision

Supervisor of undergraduate and taught masters research projects covering: finite element analysis of tendons, bird locomotion, foot functional morphology, Sea Lion biomechanics, and related topics.

PhD/MPhil Supervision

2025 – present [Director of studies, PhD] Rebecca Lowes, Liverpool John Moores. Thesis title: The evolution of the avian foot.
2025 – present [Co-supervisor, PhD] Emily Aitkin, University of Liverpool. Thesis title: Tetrapod Neck Evolution: How Salamanders Use the Spine During Feeding.
2021 – 2025 [Co-supervisor, PhD] Rab Smyth, Leicester University. Thesis title: ‘Pteraichnites’ and their implications for pterosaur terrestrial palaeoecology and evolution.
2021 – 2024 [Director of studies, PhD] Andrew Burgess, Liverpool John Moores. Thesis title: Computational and physical modelling of the physics of powder flow during additive manufacturing.
2019 – 2023 [Director of Studies, MPhil] Nathan Jackson, Liverpool John Moores. Thesis title: PIROMM: An inexpensive motion capture system using raspberry Pi.
2018 – 2023 [Co-supervisor, PhD] Barbara Grant, University of Liverpool. Thesis title: Evolution of human locomotion on compliant substrates.
2016 – 2019 [Director of Studies, PhD] Cat Strickson, Liverpool John Moores. Thesis title: Underfoot pressures and mass distribution: The implications for locomotion in extinct animals displaying extreme heteropody.
2016 – 2019 [Director of Studies, PhD] Pernille Troelsen, Liverpool John Moores. Thesis title: Hydrodynamic implications of plesiosaur necks.
2015-2019 [Co-supervisor, PhD] Ryan Marek, University of Liverpool. Thesis title: The Evolution of Feeding Ecology in Birds.
2016-2017 [Co-Supervisor, MPhil] Jordan Peters, Royal Veterinary College. Thesis title: Reconstruction of Paraceratherium.

Postdoctoral Researchers & Research Staff

2024 - present - Dr Andreas Jannel, Postdoctoral Researcher (Funded via Mud to Muscles UKRI grant)
2023 – present — Tash Prescott, Research Assistant (Funded via Mud to Muscles UKRI grant)
2023 – present — Dr Ben Griffin, Postdoctoral Researcher (Funded via Mud to Muscles UKRI grant)
2023 – 2024 — Dr Oliver Demuth, Postdoctoral Researcher (Funded via Mud to Muscles UKRI grant)
2020 – 2023 — Dr Jens Lallensack, Postdoctoral Researcher (Funded by German Research Foundation, DFG)
2016 – 2018 — Dr Ikuko Tanaka, Postdoctoral Researcher (Funded by Japanese Post-doctoral Fellowship)

Teaching Recognition

2022 — Teaching and Learning Excellence Award, Digital Education (£1,000 prize)
2021 — Commendation for Excellence in Digital Teaching
2017 — Shortlisted for Amazing Personal Tutor Award, Amazing Academic Supervisor Award, and Amazing Teacher Award

Professional Memberships

Society for Experimental Biology
Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology
Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
Palaeontological Association
The Ichnological Association
The Palaeontographical Society

Invitations, Awards, Honours, and Other Responsibilities

2024 — Invited participant in AI x Safety panels and discussions, The Royal Society (Report)
2014 — Best Talk Award, Society of Experimental Biology Annual Meeting

Invited Seminar Speaker

2025 — Imperial College London, Bioengineering Department Seminar Series (29 October 2025)
Previous Institutions — Bangor University; Imperial College London; Plymouth University; University of Bristol; Portsmouth University; University of Liverpool; Allen Society (York); Manchester Museum; Manchester Geological Association; Society for Manchester’s Environmental and Geology Students

Media Coverage & Outreach

Documentary & Television Consultancy

2023 – 2025 — Consultant for Netflix documentary The Dinosaurs (release March 6th 2026)
2023 — Consultant for Mission Jurassic (BBC)
2020 – 2022 — Consultant for Netflix documentary Life on Our Planet View on Netflix
2017 — Consultant for BBC documentary The Real T. rex BBC Programme Page
2012 — Scientific consultant for the Palaeontology A16 project, Switzerland (highway construction through dinosaur tracksites)
2010 — Consultant for BBC/National Geographic documentary Dino Stampede BBC and Smithsonian Channel

Media Appearances

2025 — Presented/Interviewed on BBC Breakfast, BBC Radio (Scotland, 5, and local stations), New Zealand TV, and RTL (Holland) regarding dinosaur track discoveries in Oxfordshire. Also featured on Have I Got News For You (BBC).
2023 — Featured in Dinosaurs – with Stephen Fry (Channel 5)
2022 — Featured on Quirks and Quarks radio show (CBC, Canada)
2021 — Featured in World of Wonder – The Natural History Museum (Channel 5)
2019 — Featured in Audible documentary A Grown-up Guide to Dinosaurs
2011 — Featured in BBC documentary Dino Stampede

The Conversation Articles Total readership: 74,000+

“Footprint fossils suggest lizards have been running on two feet for 110m years” Link
“‘Walking’ fish help scientists to understand how we left the ocean” Link
“We discovered how the largest dinosaurs walked – and it was more like hippos than elephants” Link

Digital Presence

Personal Website: peterfalkingham.com — 100,000+ views per year

Research Expertise

Core Research Areas

Computational Paleobiology — Digital reconstruction of extinct animal locomotion
Ichnology — Fossil footprint formation and interpretation
Biomechanics — Vertebrate locomotion across evolutionary timescales
3D Visualization — Advanced imaging and simulation techniques
Machine Learning — AI applications in paleontological research

Technical Skills

Computational Methods — Discrete Element Modeling, Finite Element Analysis, Fluid Dynamics
3D Technologies — Photogrammetry, CT imaging, XROMM
Programming — Scientific computing and simulation software
Supercomputing — Large-scale parallel processing applications

Collaborative Networks

EXN: European XROMM Network
XROMM USERS GROUP

Research Impact

Key Achievements

Pioneered computational approaches to understanding fossil footprint formation
Developed novel methods for reconstructing ancient animal locomotion
Advanced understanding of dinosaur-bird evolutionary relationships
Established international standards for ichnological data documentation
Innovated 3D visualization techniques for paleobiological research

Last updated: February 2026