Collaborative Research: Mass Extinction Ecological Response and Recovery in the Cretaceous/Paleogene Gulf Coastal Plain

今天的海洋动物将如何应对当前和未来的环境变化，这在很大程度上是未知的。这项研究使用6600万年前一次大灭绝事件的地质记录作为自然实验室，以了解快速环境变化中的栖息地丧失和物种生存。系统收集的古环境和化石数据是身临其境的在线虚拟现场体验的基础，让学生参与到地球科学研究的现场收集和实验室处理方法中。与下一代科学标准相一致的在线经验和教案通过著名的在线门户网站广泛提供，并向墨西哥湾沿岸各州的教师传播。地球历史上极端、快速的环境变化时期对于预测当前和未来应对气候变化的生存能力具有参考价值。这些事件也提供了检验关于宏观进化模式和过程的假设的机会。该项目包括汇编美国墨西哥湾沿岸平原白垩纪末期(~66 Ma)大灭绝的物种产状和古环境。研究的主题包括：(1)现有适宜生境和生境连续性对灭绝潜力的影响；(2)极端环境变化对物种内生态位稳定性格局的影响，以及支系内的系统发育生态位保护；(3)极端环境变化对个体大小和生理灵活性的宏观生态变化的影响。这项研究支持三名女性早期职业经理人，并对五所机构的研究生和本科生(其中两所机构服务于非传统、少数族裔占多数的学生群体)进行实地、实验室和分析地球科学方面的培训。两个高中水平课程计划的虚拟实地体验将强调假设检验和灭绝事件的重要性。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

It is largely unknown how marine animals today will respond to current and future environmental change. This research is using the geologic record of a mass extinction event 66 million years ago as a natural laboratory to understand habitat loss and species survival during rapid environmental changes. The systematically collected paleo-environment and fossil data are the foundation of immersive, online 'Virtual Field Experiences' that engage students with the field collection and lab processing methods of Earth Sciences research. Online experiences and lesson plans aligned with Next Generation Science Standards are broadly available through well-known online portals and disseminated to teachers in the Gulf Coast states.Periods of extreme, rapid environmental change in Earth history are informative for predicting current and future survivorship in response to changing climate. These events also provide the opportunity to test hypotheses on macroevolutionary pattern and process. This project involves compiling species occurrences and paleoenvironments across the end-Cretaceous mass extinction (~66 Ma) in the U.S. Gulf Coastal Plain. Topics of investigation include (1) the impact of available suitable habitat and habitat continuity on extinction potential; (2) the impact of extreme environmental change on patterns of niche stability within species, and phylogenetic niche conservation within clades; and (3) the influence of extreme environmental change on macroecological shifts in body size and physiological flexibility. This research supports three female early-career PIs, and graduate and undergraduate students at five institutions (two of which serve non-traditional, minority-majority student populations) are trained in field, laboratory, and analytical Earth Science. Two Virtual Field Experiences with high school-level lesson plans will emphasize hypothesis testing and the significance of extinction events.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.