| Title |
Absolute measures of the completeness of the fossil record
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
Nature, April 1999
|
| DOI | 10.1038/18872 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Mike Foote, J. John Sepkoski |
| Abstract |
Measuring the completeness of the fossil record is essential to understanding evolution over long timescales, particularly when comparing evolutionary patterns among biological groups with different preservational properties. Completeness measures have been presented for various groups based on gaps in the stratigraphic ranges of fossil taxa and on hypothetical lineages implied by estimated evolutionary trees. Here we present and compare quantitative, widely applicable absolute measures of completeness at two taxonomic levels for a broader sample of higher taxa of marine animals than has previously been available. We provide an estimate of the probability of genus preservation per stratigraphic interval, and determine the proportion of living families with some fossil record. The two completeness measures use very different data and calculations. The probability of genus preservation depends almost entirely on the Palaeozoic and Mesozoic records, whereas the proportion of living families with a fossil record is influenced largely by Cenozoic data. These measurements are nonetheless highly correlated, with outliers quite explicable, and we find that completeness is rather high for many animal groups. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 3 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Comoros | 1 | 33% |
| Lithuania | 1 | 33% |
| Unknown | 1 | 33% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Members of the public | 2 | 67% |
| Scientists | 1 | 33% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 227 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 13 | 6% |
| Argentina | 7 | 3% |
| United Kingdom | 4 | 2% |
| Germany | 3 | 1% |
| Brazil | 2 | <1% |
| Chile | 2 | <1% |
| Israel | 1 | <1% |
| Australia | 1 | <1% |
| Canada | 1 | <1% |
| Other | 2 | <1% |
| Unknown | 191 | 84% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Researcher | 60 | 26% |
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 49 | 22% |
| Student > Bachelor | 22 | 10% |
| Professor | 18 | 8% |
| Student > Doctoral Student | 14 | 6% |
| Other | 47 | 21% |
| Unknown | 17 | 7% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Earth and Planetary Sciences | 91 | 40% |
| Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 84 | 37% |
| Environmental Science | 14 | 6% |
| Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 4 | 2% |
| Arts and Humanities | 2 | <1% |
| Other | 10 | 4% |
| Unknown | 22 | 10% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 31. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 22 April 2024.
All research outputs
#1,296,446
of 25,758,695 outputs
Outputs from Nature
#36,011
of 98,678 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#569
of 37,305 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Nature
#22
of 263 outputs
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