56 Phylogenetic and Computational Approaches in Paleobiology and Paleoecology, Part II

This session highlights recent advances integrating phylogenetics, modeling, and computational methods with fossil data to address evolutionary and ecological questions through deep time. Topics include macroevolutionary trends, diversification dynamics, trait evolution, macroecology, and paleobiogeography.

Sunday, 19 October 2025
1:30 PM - 5:30 PM
HBGCC, 304B

Participants

• Chair Mark Nikolic
• Chair Katherine Jordan-Burmeister

Presentations

• 1:45 PM
  The Proterozoic Biosphere through Time and Space
  Sanaa Mughal, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB and Corentin Jouault, University of Oxford, Oxford and Alison Cribb, University of Southampton, Southampton, Hampshire and Richard Stockey, University of Southampton, Southampton and Erin Saupe, University of Oxford, Oxford and Ross Anderson, University of Oxford, Oxford and Kurt Konhauser, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB
  413221 (Technical Sessions)
• 2:00 PM
  3-D Morphology Of Fossil Phytoliths Shows That The Earliest Grasslands Of North America And Western Eurasia Were Dominated By Cold-Season Grasses
  Caroline Stromberg, University of Washington, Seattle, WA and Timothy Gallaher, Bishop Museum, Honolulu, HI and Rosalie Hermans, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels and William Brightly, University of Sheffield, Sheffield and Callie Zender, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
  414793 (Technical Sessions)
• 2:15 PM
  Deep learning approaches to the phylogenetic placement and classification of fossil grass silica short cell phytoliths
  Benjamin Lloyd, University of Washington, Seattle, WA and Marc-Élie Adaïmé, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC and Surangi Punyasena, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL and Timothy Gallaher, Bishop Museum, Honolulu, HI and Rosalie Hermans, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels and Shu Kong, University of Macau, Macau and Caroline Strömberg, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
  414902 (Technical Sessions)
• 2:30 PM
  paleopal: a highly interactive Shiny app for building reproducible data science workflows in paleontology
  William Gearty, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY
  412652 (Technical Sessions)
• 3:00 PM
  Measuring and Modeling Ecological Rates with Neutral Theory
  James Saulsbury, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS and Scott Wing, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC and Gene Hunt, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC
  413070 (Technical Sessions)
• 3:15 PM
  Multivariate Analysis of Cordaitales Xylem Anatomy Reveals Challenges in Distinguishing Extinct Taxa from Modern Conifers
  Anne Raymond, Department of Geology and Geophysics, College of Arts and Sciences, College Station, TX and Katherine Bober, Department of Geology and Geophysics, College of Arts and Sciences, College Station, TX
  411951 (Technical Sessions)
• 3:45 PM
  Unraveling the Evolutionary Origin and Macroevolutionary Dynamics of Crown Group Crinoidea (Echinodermata) Using Fossils, Genes, and Phylogenies
  David Wright, Sam Noble Museum & University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK
  412459 (Technical Sessions)
• 4:00 PM
  On the Origin of Flexibilia: Modeling the Rise and Ecomorphological Radiation of a Major Crinoid Clade in a Bayesian Phylogenetic Framework
  Kiera Crowley, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK and David Wright, Sam Noble Museum & University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK
  412275 (Technical Sessions)