The Reef Traits Database (RTD) is a unique, specimen based compilation of reef builders’ traits. The database currently focuses on scleractinian corals and it covers the time period from the Triassic (~ 250 Ma) until today. The Database is designed in a way that provides easy integration with the biggest resource of paleontological data - the Paleobiology Database. This project is part of the CoralTrace project under the umbrella of the TERSANE project (Research Unit 2332) funded by Deutsche Forchungs Gemeinschaft (German Research Foundation).

Reef builders are organisms that construct complex geobiological structures that we call reefs. Corals are the main reef builders today, but other organisms such as sponges, bivalves, and algae contribute to reef building as well. However, there were times in geological history when corals were common reef dwellers, but did not build reefs. Such was the time at the end Cretaceous (~ 66 Ma) when rudist bivalves were the dominant reef builders, while corals were only a minor contributor to reef building.

Scleractinian corals are the dominant reef builders in modern oceans. They are mostly confined to warm, shallow waters within the low latitudes. They serve as hubs for tropical marine biodiversity, providing habitat for more than one million species. Modern corals are extremely sensitive to stressors such as global warming, acidification, and pollution.

Every organism is characterized by a number of traits that can be morphological, reproductive, ecological, geographical, etc. However, morphological traits are best preserved in fossil organisms.