SVP has about 2,300 members internationally and holds annual scientific conferences in North America and elsewhere. It is organized for educational and scientific purposes with a mission to "advance the science of vertebrate paleontology and to serve the common interests and facilitate the cooperation of all persons concerned with the history, evolution, comparative anatomy, and taxonomy of vertebrate animals, as well as field occurrence, collection, and study of fossil vertebrates and the stratigraphy of the beds in which they are found." SVP is also concerned with the conservation and preservation of fossil sites. SVP publications include the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, the SVP Memoir Series, the News Bulletin, theBibliography of Fossil Vertebrates and most recently Palaeontologia Electronica.
History
SVP was founded as an independent society in 1940 by a group of scientists who had formed the 'section of vertebrate paleontology' in the Paleontological Society six years earlier. Among the founding members were George Gaylord Simpson, who was nine years later also a founding member of the Society for the Study of Evolution, and Alfred Sherwood Romer. SVP's members wanted to maintain a strong focus on evolution and zoology at a time when the Paleontological Society was becoming increasingly biostratigraphic and industry focused. SVP's first president was Al Romer, and its current president is P. David Polly. In the last ten years, four out of six of SVP's presidents have been women as are the current president and president-elect.
Public policies
SVP considers that "vertebrate Fossils are significant nonrenewable paleontological resources that are afforded protection by federal, state and local environmental laws and guidelines", and that scientifically important fossils, especially those found on public land, should be held in the public trust, preferably in a museum or research institution, where they can benefit the scientific community as a whole. The Paleontological Resources Preservation Act. S. 546 and H. R. 2416 were introduced in the US Congress with the support of SVP. SVP has also been involved in legal action to protect the original boundaries of Grand Staircase-Escalante and Bears Ears national monuments, both of which were established to provide protection for paleontological resources. The ethics by-law of SVP states "The barter, sale, or purchase of scientifically significant vertebrate fossils is not condoned, unless it brings them into or keeps them within a public trust." Because of this, SVP has advocated that scientifically important fossils, such as the theropod skeleton auctioned in Paris in 2018, be placed in public trust repositories like those at major museums and universities. The position of the SVP is that "The fossil record of vertebrates unequivocally supports the hypothesis that vertebrates have evolved through time" and that evolution is "the central organizing principle of biology, understood as descent with modification" and is important to geology as well. The Society believes only scientifically supported evolutionary theory should be taught in school and that creationism and intelligent design have no place in the scientific curriculum. To this end, SVP has set up programs to train educators in teaching evolution.
The SVP Memoir Series publishes monographic papers that are longer than JVP articles.
The News Bulletin has been published for SVP since its founding. The News Bulletin contains minutes of annual business meetings, news from members around the world, address changes, new members, job advertisements, and obituaries.
The Bibliography of Fossil Vertebrates is an index for publications on all subjects related to vertebrate paleontology.
Palaeontologia Electronica is the world's first electronic journal of paleontology and is sponsored in part by SVP.
Awards and prizes
The SVP issues the following awards, grants and prizes:
