为了减少绘制化石延限图的误差和工作量,设计了StratDraw1.0,自动对化石延限资料进行汇总,并借助于专业矢量绘图软件CorelDraw,自动生成初始延限图。在此基础上,可利用CorelDraw做各种编辑和修饰,获得可直接出版的化石延限图。该软件也可根据用户的选择对化石种级、属级或更高分类单元的地质延限进行自动绘制,借助于这一功能,用户可以直观地进行生物宏演化方面的数据统计。
StratDraw 1.0, a new drawing program for palaeontological and stratigraphical research, can compile automatically fossil ranges from one section into a primary rangechart which can be further edited in CorelDraw, a professional painting software. By further using CorelDraw, users can add useful information such as chronostratigraphic framework and rock column, format lines and characters, or print out the final rangechart for publication. StratDraw is capable of compiling range data of species, genera or higher taxa from palaeontological database into rangechart according to user's choice. The rangechart can be directly used for macroevolutionary statistics, such as calculation of total diversity, rates of origination and extinction, etc.