The data schema ABCD (Access to Biological Collection Data version 2.06) is a standard for biological collection units, including living and preserved specimen, together with field observation data. Its extension EFG (Extension for Geosciences) is suitable for sharing and publishing data related to paleontological, mineralogical, and petrological objects. In addition to detailed object descriptions and collection events, ABCD EFG provides fine-grained data structures for information on stratigraphy, chemical analyses and host rock composition. The comprehensive EFG was developed in 2006. Since then it has been used by different initiatives, including the publication of collection-related data in domain-specific and interdisciplinary portals such as GBIF, GeoCASe, GFBio and Europeana.

The TDWG Paleo Interest Group meeting 2017 will include a focus on the relationship between Darwin Core and ABCD EFG, and following that theme this presentation will give an introduction to the current state of ABCD EFG, its common use cases and an outlook towards the next version ABCD 3.0. We expect that the ABCD EFG terms are suitable for embedding elements into the Darwin Core Paleo Context. Thus, this talk will also initiate the discussion about the most important elements for further use cases from the paleobiological community.