Federal Grant Award Summary

The National Science Foundation's Division of Earth Sciences awarded $142,190.00 to Trustees of Tufts College under the Geosciences program (CFDA 47.050) effective May 1, 2026, with completion targeted for April 30, 2029. This collaborative research project will produce a comprehensive database of marine animal body size measurements spanning 575 million years of Earth's history, combined with statistical analyses examining how new marine animal taxa originate in response to environmental changes. The primary deliverables include: (1) an expanded, standardized open-access database of fossil body size measurements incorporating previously unpublished Ediacaran data; (2) empirical findings quantifying origination selectivity patterns across taxonomic groups and geologic time periods under varying environmental conditions; and (3) statistical models assessing correlations between body size trends and marine environmental proxies such as anoxia and temperature fluctuations.

The project addresses a critical research gap by focusing on how new marine biodiversity originates—rather than how it disappears—and will generate predictive tools for forecasting how contemporary environmental shifts may affect future species emergence and ecosystem resilience. As a basic research initiative within the Geosciences program's Earth sciences focus, the work will advance fundamental understanding of integrated Earth system processes while supporting scientific workforce development and producing peer-reviewed research findings and open-access datasets for the broader scientific community. The research directly informs national interests in food security, coastal economies, and biodiversity conservation.