Beris Cox

Beris Cox
Born	2 August 1948
Died	19 February 2023 (aged 74)
Alma mater	Swansea University University of London
Scientific career
Fields	Geology, stratigraphy, palæontology
Institutions	British Geological Survey (BGS)

Beris Mary Cox (2 August 1948–19 February 2023) was a British biostratigrapher and palaeontologist.[1] She specialised in Jurassic era macrofaunas, biozonation, ammonites and chronostratigraphy.

Biography

Cox was born in London, England.

She studied geology at Swansea University, and later completed her PhD at the University of London, graduating in 1981.[2] She researched Callovian perisphinctid ammonites for her thesis.[3]

Some of her most notable scholarly papers introduced the concept of bed recognition and regional correlation in Jurassic mudstones by combining palaeontological, lithological, and sedimentological approaches.[2] She contributed to over 70 publications during her career, including Unlocking the Stratigraphical Record: Advances in Modern Stratigraphy.[4]

In 1969, Cox became the first female palaeontologist employed by the Institute of Geological Sciences (IGS), later known as the British Geological Survey (BGS).[5] She was a member of the Geological Society of London and was elected as vice-president in 2008, holding the post until 2015.[6] She was also a member of the East Midlands Geological Society, the Geological Curators Group, and the Geological Society’s History of Geology Group (HOGG).[2]

Cox also became editor of Monographs of the Paleontographical Society (2008 to 2018).[2]

She died in 2023.[2]

References

1. Directory of Paleontologists of the World. International Paleontological Association. 1989. p. 53. ISBN 978-0-9622577-0-4.
2. Thomas, Joanna (2023). "Beris Mary Cox (1948 – 2023)". The Geological Society of London. Retrieved 30 January 2025.
3. Cox, B. M. (31 December 1986). "English Callovian (Middle Jurassic) Perisphinctid Ammonites". Monographs of the Palaeontographical Society. 140 (575): 1–59. doi:10.1080/25761900.2022.12131759. ISSN 0269-3445.
4. Doyle, Peter; Bennett, Matthew R. (6 March 1998). Unlocking the Stratigraphical Record: Advances in Modern Stratigraphy. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-0-471-97463-5.
5. Rod Bowie, Records Centre Manager, National Geological Records Centre, British Geological Survey, Keyworth (January 1995). "Freedom and Equality-Women in Geology." Geological Society, London, Special Publications. 97 (1). British Geological Survey, Natural Environment Research Council: 117–125. doi:10.1144/GSL.SP.1995.097.01.15. S2CID 129574405.
6. Burek, C. V.; Higgs, B. M. (18 March 2021). Celebrating 100 Years of Female Fellowship of the Geological Society: Discovering Forgotten Histories. Geological Society of London. p. 111. ISBN 978-1-78620-496-7.