Successive approximations of diversity curves: Ten more years in the library

Research Article| November 01, 2000 Successive approximations of diversity curves: Ten more years in the library John Alroy John Alroy 1National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis, 735 State Street, Santa Barbara, California 93101, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information John Alroy 1National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis, 735 State Street, Santa Barbara, California 93101, USA Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 13 Mar 2000 Revision Received: 18 Aug 2000 Accepted: 25 Aug 2000 First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 Geological Society of America Geology (2000) 28 (11): 1023–1026. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(2000)28<1023:SAODCT>2.0.CO;2 Article history Received: 13 Mar 2000 Revision Received: 18 Aug 2000 Accepted: 25 Aug 2000 First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation John Alroy; Successive approximations of diversity curves: Ten more years in the library. Geology 2000;; 28 (11): 1023–1026. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(2000)28<1023:SAODCT>2.0.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Traditional paleontological diversity curves are based on tallies of all taxa appearing in formally defined time units. These tallies are thought to be robust to further data collection. Thus, they supposedly do not reflect nuisance factors like variable time unit lengths and sampling intensity biases. A comparison of a decade-old North American Cenozoic mammal diversity curve and a newer database shows major differences. At least three major factors differentiate the two: use of shorter, fixed-length time intervals; restriction of counts to taxa that cross boundaries between intervals; and correction for variation in sampling intensity. The difference between genus- and species-level data also was examined, but appears to be minor by comparison. Because at best only one pattern can be close to the true historical trajectory, the analyses suggest that the new data and protocols together have yielded a curve that is converging on an accurate signal. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.