LOST

Fossil data provide information on the species that inhabited our planet in the past, how they were and where they lived. Paleontologists have used these fossil record to gain understanding of macroevolutionary patterns and processes across time, and they developed a number of methods to overcome the lack of complete time-series of fossil data. However, these methods do not consider space and the uneven spatial sampling of past biodiversity across the continents. Geographic patterns of paleobiodiversity are just starting to be explored. The recent availability of large databases on biodiversity and simulations on climate change across deep time, allow us to start testing current macroecological rules. Though, before doing this, we need to address a key challenge: quantifying how much fossil biases might be masking real past biodiversity patterns. This project aims to address this problem.

LOST is a theoretical project, involving researchers from Spain, Italy, UK, Ireland and Austria, using a multidisciplinary and collaborative approach to run all the simulations and analysis needed for our comprehensive workflow.