RASP

RASP reconstructs ancestral geographic distributions on phylogenetic trees to infer historical biogeography using methods including Statistical Dispersal-Vicariance Analysis (S-DIVA), the Dispersal–Extinction–Cladogenesis (DEC) model via Lagrange, S-DEC, and BayArea.

Key Features:

• Ancestral range inference: Infers ancestral geographic ranges on phylogenetic trees to address historical biogeographic questions.
• Multiple reconstruction algorithms: Implements Statistical Dispersal‑Vicariance Analysis (S-DIVA), the DEC model via Lagrange, Statistical DEC (S-DEC), and BayArea.
• Phylogenetic input handling: Accepts single phylogenetic trees or sets of trees together with geographic distribution constraints.
• Uncertainty visualization: Visualizes ancestral-state uncertainty as pie charts on tree nodes.
• Graphical outputs: Produces graphical representations of ancestral reconstructions for interpretation of biogeographical patterns.

Scientific Applications:

• Historical biogeography: Reconstructs historical species distributions to explore dispersal and vicariance patterns.
• Evolutionary biology: Supports studies of lineage biogeographic history and the geographic context of diversification.
• Conservation science: Reveals historical range dynamics relevant to conservation-oriented analyses.
• Uncertainty assessment: Aids interpretation of uncertainty in ancestral-range reconstructions through node-based visualizations.

Methodology:

Accepts phylogenetic trees or sets of trees with geographic distribution constraints and applies S-DIVA, DEC (via Lagrange), S-DEC, and BayArea to reconstruct ancestral ranges and visualize results as pie charts on nodes.