Connectivity of proetid trilobites among geographic regions across the Late Devonian and Carboniferous

The Carboniferous world was a time of transition in terms of climate, geography, and its characteristic faunas. A holdover from the Devonian, proetid trilobites, were the final representatives of the Class Trilobita, and maintained diversity throughout the remainder of the Paleozoic. The biogeographic patterns of these trilobites in the Late Paleozoic have been studied to a certain degree, but not in totality. This study uses a network analysis and corresponding metrics to assess the connectivity of regions proetids were found beginning in the Famennian until the end of the Carboniferous Period. Two time bins, the latter part of the Tournaisian and the Serpukhovian, display networks that unique in comparison to the other time bins. The mid-to-late Tournaisian shows a network with strong connections and therefore more open dispersal pathways, while the Serpukhovian shows three distinct regional clusters. The closing of the Rheic Ocean most likely reduced connectivity from the Serpukhovian-on, and strong connectivity between regions never fully returned.