Stemming from a passion for science and art (MS in Zoology, University of Arizona; PhD in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University), Thomas Wiewandt has forged a career in educational media production and owns Wild Horizons Publishing. He lives in Tucson, home of the world's largest Gem, Mineral, and Fossil Showcase. For 34 years, Tom has been photographing many of the finest fossils found in remote corners of the globe, the foundation for this book. His four films for National Geographic and the BBC earned him an Emmy Nomination in cinematography, four Cine Golden Eagles, and a Gold Apple Award; and his award-winning, independently produced film Desert Dreams: Celebrating Five Seasons in the Sonoran Desert has been aired on national Public Television as a pledge drive program (2015-2020). Tom is a member of the Author's Guild, the American Society of Media Photographers, the Independent Book Publishers Association, and the Species Survival Commission of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.

Mark Norell is Chairman, Division of Paleontology, American Museum of Natural History.