scholarly journals Out of the extratropics: the evolution of the latitudinal diversity gradient of Cenozoic marine plankton

2021 ◽  
Vol 288 (1950) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nussaïbah B. Raja ◽  
Wolfgang Kiessling
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Opposite Direction ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Climatic Changes ◽  
Marine Plankton ◽  
Latitudinal Diversity Gradient ◽  
Diversity Gradient ◽  
Cenozoic Era ◽  
The Tropics ◽  
Early Cenozoic

Many ecological and evolutionary hypotheses have been proposed to explain the latitudinal diversity gradient, i.e. the increase in species richness from the poles to the tropics. Among the evolutionary hypotheses, the ‘out of the tropics’ (OTT) hypothesis has received considerable attention. The OTT posits that the tropics are both a cradle and source of biodiversity for extratropical regions. To test the generality of the OTT hypothesis, we explored the spatial biodiversity dynamics of unicellular marine plankton over the Cenozoic era (the last 66 Myr). We find large-scale climatic changes during the Cenozoic shaped the diversification and dispersal of marine plankton. Origination was generally more likely in the extratropics and net dispersal was towards the tropics rather than in the opposite direction, especially during the warmer climates of the early Cenozoic. Although migration proportions varied among major plankton groups and climate phases, we provide evidence that the extratropics were a source of tropical microplankton biodiversity over the last 66 Myr.

scholarly journals The latitudinal diversity gradient in New World swallowtail butterflies is caused by contrasting patterns of out-of- and into-the-tropics dispersal

2017 ◽  
Vol 26 (12) ◽  
pp. 1447-1458 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannah L. Owens ◽  
Delano S. Lewis ◽  
Julian R. Dupuis ◽  
Anne-Laure Clamens ◽  
Felix A. H. Sperling ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New World ◽  
Latitudinal Diversity Gradient ◽  
Diversity Gradient ◽  
Swallowtail Butterflies ◽  
The Tropics

scholarly journals Macroevolutionary thermodynamics: Temperature and the tempo of evolution in the tropics

PLoS Biology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (8) ◽  
pp. e3001368
Author(s):  
Daniel L. Rabosky
Keyword(s):  
Latitudinal Diversity Gradient ◽  
Diversity Gradient ◽  
The Tropics

An influential hypothesis proposes that the tempo of evolution is faster in the tropics. Emerging evidence, including a study in this issue of PLOS Biology, challenges this view, raising new questions about the causes of Earth’s iconic latitudinal diversity gradient (LDG).

scholarly journals Tempo and mode of morphological evolution are decoupled from latitude in birds

PLoS Biology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (8) ◽  
pp. e3001270
Author(s):  
Jonathan P. Drury ◽  
Julien Clavel ◽  
Joseph A. Tobias ◽  
Jonathan Rolland ◽  
Catherine Sheard ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Interactions ◽  
Morphological Evolution ◽  
Phenotypic Evolution ◽  
Trait Evolution ◽  
Trait Divergence ◽  
Latitudinal Diversity Gradient ◽  
Diversity Gradient ◽  
The Tropics ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Phylogenetic Models

The latitudinal diversity gradient is one of the most striking patterns in nature, yet its implications for morphological evolution are poorly understood. In particular, it has been proposed that an increased intensity of species interactions in tropical biota may either promote or constrain trait evolution, but which of these outcomes predominates remains uncertain. Here, we develop tools for fitting phylogenetic models of phenotypic evolution in which the impact of species interactions—namely, competition—can vary across lineages. Deploying these models on a global avian trait dataset to explore differences in trait divergence between tropical and temperate lineages, we find that the effect of latitude on the mode and tempo of morphological evolution is weak and clade- or trait dependent. Our results indicate that species interactions do not disproportionately impact morphological evolution in tropical bird families and question the validity of previously reported patterns of slower trait evolution in the tropics.

Out of the Tropics: Evolutionary Dynamics of the Latitudinal Diversity Gradient

Science ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 314 (5796) ◽  
pp. 102-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Jablonski ◽  
K. Roy ◽  
J. W. Valentine
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary Dynamics ◽  
Latitudinal Diversity Gradient ◽  
Diversity Gradient ◽  
The Tropics

scholarly journals Large-scale phylogenetic analyses reveal the causes of high tropical amphibian diversity

2013 ◽  
Vol 280 (1770) ◽  
pp. 20131622 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Alexander Pyron ◽  
John J. Wiens
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Time Scales ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Geological Time ◽  
Tropical Regions ◽  
Extinction Rates ◽  
Tropical Diversity ◽  
Limited Dispersal ◽  
The Tropics

Many groups show higher species richness in tropical regions but the underlying causes remain unclear. Despite many competing hypotheses to explain latitudinal diversity gradients, only three processes can directly change species richness across regions: speciation, extinction and dispersal. These processes can be addressed most powerfully using large-scale phylogenetic approaches, but most previous studies have focused on small groups and recent time scales, or did not separate speciation and extinction rates. We investigate the origins of high tropical diversity in amphibians, applying new phylogenetic comparative methods to a tree of 2871 species. Our results show that high tropical diversity is explained by higher speciation in the tropics, higher extinction in temperate regions and limited dispersal out of the tropics compared with colonization of the tropics from temperate regions. These patterns are strongly associated with climate-related variables such as temperature, precipitation and ecosystem energy. Results from models of diversity dependence in speciation rate suggest that temperate clades may have lower carrying capacities and may be more saturated (closer to carrying capacity) than tropical clades. Furthermore, we estimate strikingly low tropical extinction rates over geological time scales, in stark contrast to the dramatic losses of diversity occurring in tropical regions presently.

scholarly journals The contribution of global mountains to the latitudinal diversity gradient

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elkin A. Tenorio ◽  
Paola Montoya ◽  
Natalia Norden ◽  
Susana Rodríguez-Buriticá ◽  
Beatriz Salgado-Negret ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Unit Area ◽  
Species Turnover ◽  
Geographical Information ◽  
Mountain Ranges ◽  
Terrestrial Vertebrates ◽  
Latitudinal Diversity Gradient ◽  
Diversity Gradient ◽  
Diversity Gradients ◽  
Time And Energy

AbstractThe latitudinal diversity gradient (LDG) is widely attributed to be the result of factors such as time, area, and energy. Although these factors explain most of the variation in lowlands, they fail in mountainous systems, which are biodiversity hotspots that may contribute meaningfully to the strength of the pattern following different evolutionary pathways. However, because lowlands cover the largest portion of the total land, they may have overshadowed the contribution of mountains to the LDG, but no study has addressed this issue in previous macroecological analyses. Here, we propose that the LDG shows a stronger trend in mountain ranges due to their high species turnover, in spite of covering less than one third of the Earth’s land. Using the geographical information for ∼22000 species of terrestrial vertebrates, we show that worldwide mountains harbor the 40% of the global diversity, and when taking into account the area effect, we quantified that mountains harbor close to double the species inhabiting lowlands per unit area. Moreover, when we evaluated the LDG after accounting for area size, we found that species richness increased faster towards the Equator and was better predicted by latitude in mountains than in lowlands. Our findings challenge previously well-supported hypotheses that predict that those regions with greater area, time and energy accumulate more species richness, since mountains are geologically younger, exhibit less energy, and cover smaller areas than lowlands. Hence, mountains represent a paradox, which invites to reevaluate hypotheses regarding macroecological and evolutionary processes driving species diversity gradients.

scholarly journals The latitudinal diversity gradient of tetrapods across the Permo-Triassic mass extinction and recovery interval

2020 ◽  
Vol 287 (1929) ◽  
pp. 20201125 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bethany J. Allen ◽  
Paul B. Wignall ◽  
Daniel J. Hill ◽  
Erin E. Saupe ◽  
Alexander M. Dunhill
Keyword(s):  
Mass Extinction ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Middle Triassic ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Time Interval ◽  
Late Permian ◽  
Biodiversity Patterns ◽  
Latitudinal Diversity Gradient ◽  
Earth History ◽  
Diversity Gradient

The decline in species richness from the equator to the poles is referred to as the latitudinal diversity gradient (LDG). Higher equatorial diversity has been recognized for over 200 years, but the consistency of this pattern in deep time remains uncertain. Examination of spatial biodiversity patterns in the past across different global climate regimes and continental configurations can reveal how LDGs have varied over Earth history and potentially differentiate between suggested causal mechanisms. The Late Permian–Middle Triassic represents an ideal time interval for study, because it is characterized by large-scale volcanic episodes, extreme greenhouse temperatures and the most severe mass extinction event in Earth history. We examined terrestrial and marine tetrapod spatial biodiversity patterns using a database of global tetrapod occurrences. Terrestrial tetrapods exhibit a bimodal richness distribution throughout the Late Permian–Middle Triassic, with peaks in the northern low latitudes and southern mid-latitudes around 20–40° N and 60° S, respectively. Marine reptile fossils are known almost exclusively from the Northern Hemisphere in the Early and Middle Triassic, with highest diversity around 20° N. Reconstructed terrestrial LDGs contrast strongly with the generally unimodal gradients of today, potentially reflecting high global temperatures and prevailing Pangaean super-monsoonal climate system during the Permo-Triassic.

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