scholarly journals Conservation evidence from climate-related stressors in the deep-time marine fossil record

2019 ◽  
Vol 374 (1788) ◽  
pp. 20190223 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew E. Clapham
Keyword(s):  
Global Change ◽  
Fossil Record ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
Activity Levels ◽  
Deep Time ◽  
Geographical Patterns ◽  
Time Record ◽  
Uncertain Future ◽  
Natural Settings

Conservation of marine species requires the ability to predict the effects of climate-related stressors in an uncertain future. Experiments and observations in modern settings provide crucial information, but lack temporal scale and cannot anticipate emergent effects during ongoing global change. By contrast, the deep-time fossil record contains the long-term perspective at multiple global change events that can be used, at a broad scale, to test hypothesized effects of climate-related stressors. For example, geologically rapid carbon cycle disruption has often caused crises in reef ecosystems, and selective extinctions support the hypothesis that greater activity levels promote survival. Geographical patterns of extinction and extirpation were more variable than predicted from modern physiology, with tropical and temperate extinction peaks observed at different ancient events. Like any data source, the deep-time record has limitations but also provides opportunities that complement the limitations of modern and historical data. In particular, the deep-time record is the best source of information on actual outcomes of climate-related stressors in natural settings and over evolutionary timescales. Closer integration of modern and deep-time evidence can expand the types of hypotheses testable with the fossil record, yielding better predictions of extinction risk as climate-related stressors continue to intensify in future oceans. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘The past is a foreign country: how much can the fossil record actually inform conservation?’

scholarly journals Adding fossil occupancy trajectories to the assessment of modern extinction risk

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 20150813 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wolfgang Kiessling ◽  
Ádám T. Kocsis
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Record ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Strong Predictor ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
Species Traits ◽  
Latent Extinction ◽  
Extant Species ◽  
Temporal Trajectory

Besides helping to identify species traits that are commonly linked to extinction risk, the fossil record may also be directly relevant for assessing the extinction risk of extant species. Standing geographical distribution or occupancy is a strong predictor of both recent and past extinction risk, but the role of changes in occupancy is less widely assessed. Here we demonstrate, based on the Cenozoic fossil record of marine species, that both occupancy and its temporal trajectory are significant determinants of risk. Based on extinct species we develop a model on the additive and interacting effects of occupancy and its temporal changes on extinction risk. We use this model to predict extinction risk of extant species. The predictions suggest a moderate risk for marine species on average. However, some species seem to be on a long-term decline and potentially at a latent extinction risk, which is not considered in current risk assessments.

The Evolutionary Diversity and Ecological Complexity of Coral Reefs

2011 ◽  
Vol 17 ◽  
pp. 111-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy Knowlton ◽  
Jeremy Jackson
Keyword(s):  
Coral Reefs ◽  
Small Proportion ◽  
Fossil Record ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
Foreseeable Future ◽  
Ecological Complexity ◽  
The Face ◽  
Open Question ◽  
Trophic Linkages ◽  
Bounce Back

Coral reefs are the most biodiverse marine ecosystems on the planet, with at least one quarter of all marine species associated with reefs today. This diversity, which remains very poorly understood, is nevertheless extraordinary when one considers the small proportion of ocean area that is occupied by coral reefs. Networks of competitive and trophic linkages are also exceptionally complex and dense. Reefs have a long fossil record, although extensive reef building comes and goes. In the present, coral reefs sometimes respond dramatically to disturbances, and collapses are not always followed by recoveries. Today, much of this failure to recover appears to stem from the fact that most reefs are chronically stressed by human activities, judging by observations of recovery at exceptional locations where local human activity is minimal. How long reefs can continue to bounce back in the face of warming and acidification remains an open question. Another big uncertainty is how much loss of biodiversity will occur with the inevitable degradation of coral reefs that will continue in most places for the foreseeable future.

scholarly journals Conservation Status of Marine Biodiversity in Oceania: An Analysis of Marine Species on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beth A. Polidoro ◽  
Cristiane T. Elfes ◽  
Jonnell C. Sanciangco ◽  
Helen Pippard ◽  
Kent E. Carpenter
Keyword(s):  
Threatened Species ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Conservation Status ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
Iucn Red List ◽  
Red List ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
Conservation Priorities ◽  
Conservation Action

Given the economic and cultural dependence on the marine environment in Oceania and a rapidly expanding human population, many marine species populations are in decline and may be vulnerable to extinction from a number of local and regional threats. IUCN Red List assessments, a widely used system for quantifying threats to species and assessing species extinction risk, have been completed for 1190 marine species in Oceania to date, including all known species of corals, mangroves, seagrasses, sea snakes, marine mammals, sea birds, sea turtles, sharks, and rays present in Oceania, plus all species in five important perciform fish groups. Many of the species in these groups are threatened by the modification or destruction of coastal habitats, overfishing from direct or indirect exploitation, pollution, and other ecological or environmental changes associated with climate change. Spatial analyses of threatened species highlight priority areas for both site- and species-specific conservation action. Although increased knowledge and use of newly available IUCN Red List assessments for marine species can greatly improve conservation priorities for marine species in Oceania, many important fish groups are still in urgent need of assessment.

scholarly journals The effects of geographic range size and abundance on extinction during a time of “sluggish”’ evolution

Paleobiology ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Michelle M. Casey ◽  
Erin E. Saupe ◽  
Bruce S. Lieberman
Keyword(s):  
North American ◽  
Fossil Record ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Geographic Range ◽  
Range Size ◽  
Late Paleozoic ◽  
The North ◽  
Geographic Range Size ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Habitat Tracking

Abstract Geographic range size and abundance are important determinants of extinction risk in fossil and extant taxa. However, the relationship between these variables and extinction risk has not been tested extensively during evolutionarily “quiescent” times of low extinction and speciation in the fossil record. Here we examine the influence of geographic range size and abundance on extinction risk during the late Paleozoic (Mississippian–Permian), a time of “sluggish” evolution when global rates of origination and extinction were roughly half those of other Paleozoic intervals. Analyses used spatiotemporal occurrences for 164 brachiopod species from the North American midcontinent. We found abundance to be a better predictor of extinction risk than measures of geographic range size. Moreover, species exhibited reductions in abundance before their extinction but did not display contractions in geographic range size. The weak relationship between geographic range size and extinction in this time and place may reflect the relative preponderance of larger-ranged taxa combined with the physiographic conditions of the region that allowed for easy habitat tracking that dampened both extinction and speciation. These conditions led to a prolonged period (19–25 Myr) during which standard macroevolutionary rules did not apply.

Marine Metazoan Modern Mass Extinction: Improving Predictions by Integrating Fossil, Modern, and Physiological Data

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 369-390 ◽  
Author(s):  
Piero Calosi ◽  
Hollie M. Putnam ◽  
Richard J. Twitchett ◽  
Fanny Vermandele
Keyword(s):  
Global Change ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Marine Ecosystems ◽  
Physiological Data ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
Global Changes ◽  
History Of ◽  
Extinction Events ◽  
Modern Mass

Evolution, extinction, and dispersion are fundamental processes affecting marine biodiversity. Until recently, studies of extant marine systems focused mainly on evolution and dispersion, with extinction receiving less attention. Past extinction events have, however, helped shape the evolutionary history of marine ecosystems, with ecological and evolutionary legacies still evident in modern seas. Current anthropogenic global changes increase extinction risk and pose a significant threat to marine ecosystems, which are critical for human use and sustenance. The evaluation of these threats and the likely responses of marine ecosystems requires a better understanding of evolutionary processes that affect marine ecosystems under global change. Here, we discuss how knowledge of ( a) changes in biodiversity of ancient marine ecosystems to past extinctions events, ( b) the patterns of sensitivity and biodiversity loss in modern marine taxa, and ( c) the physiological mechanisms underpinning species’ sensitivity to global change can be exploited and integrated to advance our critical thinking in this area.

El Niño, grazers and fisheries interact to greatly elevate extinction risk for Galapagos marine species

2010 ◽  
Vol 16 (10) ◽  
pp. 2876-2890 ◽  
Author(s):  
GRAHAM J. EDGAR ◽  
STUART A. BANKS ◽  
MARGARITA BRANDT ◽  
RODRIGO H. BUSTAMANTE ◽  
ANGEL CHIRIBOGA ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
El Niño ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Marine Species

scholarly journals Spider crabs of the Western Atlantic with special reference to fossil and some modern Mithracidae

PeerJ ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. e1301 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adiël A. Klompmaker ◽  
Roger W. Portell ◽  
Aaron T. Klier ◽  
Vanessa Prueter ◽  
Alyssa L. Tucker
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Record ◽  
Early Pleistocene ◽  
Caribbean Region ◽  
Deep Time ◽  
Western Atlantic ◽  
Extant Species ◽  
Length Width ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Abundance And Diversity ◽  
First Time

Spider crabs (Majoidea) are well-known from modern oceans and are also common in the western part of the Atlantic Ocean. When spider crabs appeared in the Western Atlantic in deep time, and when they became diverse, hinges on their fossil record. By reviewing their fossil record, we show that (1) spider crabs first appeared in the Western Atlantic in the Late Cretaceous, (2) they became common since the Miocene, and (3) most species and genera are found in the Caribbean region from the Miocene onwards. Furthermore, taxonomic work on some modern and fossil Mithracidae, a family that might have originated in the Western Atlantic, was conducted. Specifically,Maguimithraxgen. nov. is erected to accommodate the extant speciesDamithrax spinosissimus, whileDamithraxcf.pleuracanthusis recognized for the first time from the fossil record (late Pliocene–early Pleistocene, Florida, USA). Furthermore, two new species are described from the lower Miocene coral-associated limestones of Jamaica (Mithrax arawakumsp. nov. andNemausa windsoraesp. nov.). Spurred by a recent revision of the subfamily, two known species from the same deposits are refigured and transferred to new genera:Mithrax donovanitoNemausa, andMithrax unguistoDamithrax. The diverse assemblage of decapods from these coral-associated limestones underlines the importance of reefs for the abundance and diversity of decapods in deep time. Finally, we quantitatively show that these crabs possess allometric growth in that length/width ratios drop as specimens grow, a factor that is not always taken into account while describing and comparing among taxa.

scholarly journals How predictable is extinction? Forecasting species survival at million-year timescales

2019 ◽  
Vol 374 (1788) ◽  
pp. 20190392 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Smits ◽  
Seth Finnegan
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Record ◽  
Human Impacts ◽  
Rank Order ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Geographical Range ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Future ◽  
Out Of Sample ◽  
Extinction Events ◽  
Over Time

A tenet of conservation palaeobiology is that knowledge of past extinction patterns can help us to better predict future extinctions. Although the future is unobservable, we can test the strength of this proposition by asking how well models conditioned on past observations would have predicted subsequent extinction events at different points in the geological past. To answer this question, we analyse the well-sampled fossil record of Cenozoic planktonic microfossil taxa (Foramanifera, Radiolaria, diatoms and calcareous nanoplankton). We examine how extinction probability varies over time as a function of species age, time of observation, current geographical range, change in geographical range, climate state and change in climate state. Our models have a 70–80% probability of correctly forecasting the rank order of extinction risk for a random out-of-sample species pair, implying that determinants of extinction risk have varied only modestly through time. We find that models which include either historical covariates or account for variation in covariate effects over time yield equivalent forecasts, but a model including both is overfit and yields biased forecasts. An important caveat is that human impacts may substantially disrupt range-risk dynamics so that the future will be less predictable than it has been in the past. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘The past is a foreign country: how much can the fossil record actually inform conservation?’

scholarly journals How the past impacts the future: modelling the performance of evolutionarily distinct mammals through time

2019 ◽  
Vol 374 (1788) ◽  
pp. 20190210 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. J. Bennett ◽  
M. D. Sutton ◽  
S. T. Turvey
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Record ◽  
Distinct Species ◽  
Performance Impact ◽  
Deep Time ◽  
The Past ◽  
Living Fossils ◽  
Measuring Change ◽  
Molecular Phylogenetic ◽  
Time Changes ◽  
The One

How does past evolutionary performance impact future evolutionary performance? This is an important question not just for macroevolutionary biologists who wish to chart the phenomena that describe deep-time changes in biodiversity but also for conservation biologists, as evolutionarily distinct species—which may be deemed ‘low-performing’ in our current era—are increasingly the focus of conservation efforts. Contrasting hypotheses exist to account for the history and future of evolutionarily distinct species: on the one hand, they may be relicts of large radiations, potentially ‘doomed’ to extinction; or they may be slow-evolving, ‘living fossils’, likely neither to speciate nor go extinct; or they may be seeds of future radiations. Here, we attempt to test these hypotheses in Mammalia by combining a molecular phylogenetic supertree with fossil record occurrences and measuring change in evolutionary distinctness (ED) at different time slices. With these time slices, we modelled future ED as a function of past ED. We find that past evolutionary performance does indeed have an impact on future evolutionary performance: the most evolutionarily isolated clades tend to become more evolutionarily distinct with time, indicating that low-performing clades tend to remain low-performing throughout their evolutionary history. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘The past is a foreign country: how much can the fossil record actually inform conservation?’

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