Digitization PEN: Adding unique molluscan live-dead data from the Paleontological Research Institution to the Eastern Seaboard TCN

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

The Paleontological Research Institution (PRI) will join the Eastern Seaboard Thematic Collection Network (ESB TCN) as a Partner to an Existing Network (PEN). The PRI’s collection houses hundreds of bulk samples of mollusks from the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts of the United States that are highly relevant to the TCN’s goal of linking reliable live-dead trait data to molluscan specimen records. Adding the live-dead status of the mollusks collected greatly facilitates research regarding faunal changes over time and how they correlate with certain environmentally significant events. This project will increase the accessibility and discoverability of these collections, which can be used to assess the status and trends of estuarine resources along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts of the United States, particularly oyster reefs. The live-dead samples to be digitized for this project will help: 1) define baselines for estuarine habitats that are often overlooked, and under increasing stress from climate change, invasive species, pollution, overfishing, and habitat destruction, 2) detect recent natural and anthropogenic environmental changes, 3) develop a narrative of the historical range of variability, 4) set realistic targets for restoration, and 5) recognize ecological legacies that can be explained only by events or conditions that are not present in the ecosystem today. These data will help guide management, planning, and restoration efforts for these vulnerable habitats. The outreach activities for the project will create awareness of the value of museum collections in solving environmental change problems.The project will digitize ~158,500 specimens – where the live-dead status of specimens is already known – with enhanced data (e.g., georeferences, updated taxonomy, specimen-level trait data) and mobilize them via online data aggregators, such as iDigBio.org. The primary benefits of these activities to the ESB TCN include: 1) increasing the amount of reliable live-dead collected trait data available, 2) increasing the representation of early life stages of mollusk species, particularly for economically and ecologically important oysters, 3) increasing the representation of estuarine molluscan taxa, and 4) helping to fill a geographic gap in the ESB TCN dataset. Imaging of 27 ESB type specimens will also support the ESB TCN’s goal of linking verified specimen records to photographs of type specimens, helping to increase public access to reliable species information. Beyond the scientific value of the live-dead data that the PRI will contribute to the ESB TCN, this project will build on the PRI’s strong history in developing open access, online introductory-level textbook materials about paleontology and the fossil record. Specific outreach activities include: 1) developing a new page about the importance of live-dead molluscan studies to the existing Digital Encyclopedia of Ancient Life (DEAL) chapter on conservation paleobiology and 2) creating a short (3-5 minute) video with closed captioning about the importance of live-dead molluscan studies as a conservation tool that will be shared on PRI’s YouTube channel and embedded in the DEAL page itself.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.