The modelling and statistics group supports the work of many of the NCCR Plant Survival teams. For example, their tools are used to analyse data relating to gene identification via microarray techniques, for starch degradation (WP1.1) and to analyse the choices made by insects when they receive olfactory information from plants under attack from predators (WP2.1). They also are also used for modelling food- (WP2.3) or pollination (WP2.2) webs.

The group's competencies are also relevant to the development of predictive models for the spatial distribution of species, which is very useful when dealing with the problem of invasive plants (WP3.1). These models would be used to predict the changes of an invasive species' ecological niche in its new range or to evaluate the effect of climate change on its geographic distribution. The group also conducts its own research on topics stemming from problems posed by other teams, for example on classification and clustering, and on small-sample inference.