Why understanding the pioneering and continuing contributions ofBIOCLIMto species distribution modelling is important

Abstract

AbstractModern species distribution modelling (SDM) began in 1984 with the launch of theBIOCLIMprogram in Australia. With more than 900 papers mentioning ‘species distribution model’ published around the world to date,SDMis one of the most active areas of global ecology. Three books published in 2009, 2011 and 2017 have reviewedSDM, and the closely related areas of ecological niche modelling and habitat suitability modelling. All three books provide excellent introductions to these topics, but give very little information on the role thatBIOCLIMplayed in laying the foundation for these research areas. Understanding the history ofBIOCLIMis vital because it was the first package to implement the basicSDMprocess in an easy‐to‐use integrated system. It provided what are still the most commonly used set of 19 bioclimatic variables and contributed to the development of the interpolation routines used to prepare the most commonly used source of bioclimatic data (WorldClim). EarlyBIOCLIMstudies investigated important issues such as ecological niche, invasion risk, conservation planning and impacts of climate change. Although all three books acknowledge that theBIOCLIMpackage was important in earlySDMresearch, they all deal with the pioneering work very briefly and omit important details which are described here. Virtually all currentSDMstudies owe something to the pioneeringBIOCLIMwork, but this is rarely acknowledged.