The spatial distribution of individuals within ecological assemblages and their associated traits and behaviors are key determinants of ecosystem structure and function. Consequently, determining the spatial distribution of species, and how distributions influence patterns of species richness across ecosystems today and in the past, helps us understand what factors act as fundamental controls on biodiversity. Here, we explore how ecological niche modeling has contributed to understanding the spatiotemporal distribution of past biodiversity and past ecological and evolutionary processes. We first perform a semiquantitative literature review to capture studies that applied ecological niche models (ENMs) to the past, identifying 668 studies. We coded each study according to focal taxonomic group, whether and how the study used fossil evidence, whether it relied on evidence or methods in addition to ENMs, spatial scale of the study, and temporal intervals included in the ENMs. We used trends in publication patterns across categories to anchor discussion of recent technical advances in niche modeling, focusing on paleobiogeographic ENM applications. We then explored contributions of ENMs to paleobiogeography, with a particular focus on examining patterns and associated drivers of range dynamics; phylogeography and within-lineage dynamics; macroevolutionary patterns and processes, including niche change, speciation, and extinction; drivers of community assembly; and conservation paleobiogeography. Overall, ENMs are powerful tools for elucidating paleobiogeographic patterns. ENMs are most commonly used to understand Quaternary dynamics, but an increasing number of studies use ENMs to gain important insight into both ecological and evolutionary processes in pre-Quaternary times. Deeper integration with traits and phylogenies may further extend those insights.

The spatial distribution of species across the landscape and their associated traits and behaviors play a pivotal role in determining ecosystem structure and function and contribute to our understanding of the processes that shape biodiversity. Ecological niche models (ENMs) are tools that can be used to estimate the ecological niche of a species based on its known occurrences. In this review, we explore the ways that ENMs have been used to study the evolution and ecology of past biodiversity. While ENMs are commonly used to understand the dynamics of species and assemblages during more recent periods of Earth history (i.e., the last several million years), an increasing number of studies have extended ENMs deeper into the geologic past. Overall, ENMs are powerful tools for illuminating paleobiogeographic patterns; further integration of ENMs with traits, phylogenies, and other methods may extend insights.