Document Detail


Tempo of trophic evolution and its impact on mammalian diversification.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  22509033     Owner:  NLM     Status:  MEDLINE    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
Mammals are characterized by the complex adaptations of their dentition, which are an indication that diet has played a critical role in their evolutionary history. Although much attention has focused on diet and the adaptations of specific taxa, the role of diet in large-scale diversification patterns remains unresolved. Contradictory hypotheses have been proposed, making prediction of the expected relationship difficult. We show that net diversification rate (the cumulative effect of speciation and extinction), differs significantly among living mammals, depending upon trophic strategy. Herbivores diversify fastest, carnivores are intermediate, and omnivores are slowest. The tempo of transitions between the trophic strategies is also highly biased: the fastest rates occur into omnivory from herbivory and carnivory and the lowest transition rates are between herbivory and carnivory. Extant herbivore and carnivore diversity arose primarily through diversification within lineages, whereas omnivore diversity evolved by transitions into the strategy. The ability to specialize and subdivide the trophic niche allowed herbivores and carnivores to evolve greater diversity than omnivores.
Authors:
Samantha A Price; Samantha S B Hopkins; Kathleen K Smith; V Louise Roth
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Publication Detail:
Type:  Journal Article; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.     Date:  2012-04-16
Journal Detail:
Title:  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America     Volume:  109     ISSN:  1091-6490     ISO Abbreviation:  Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.     Publication Date:  2012 May 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2012-05-02     Completed Date:  2012-07-10     Revised Date:  2013-02-19    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  7505876     Medline TA:  Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A     Country:  United States    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  7008-12     Citation Subset:  IM    
Affiliation:
Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA. saprice@ucdavis.edu
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MeSH Terms
Descriptor/Qualifier:
Adaptation, Physiological
Animals
Biodiversity
Biological Evolution*
Carnivory
Databases, Factual
Diet*
Ecosystem
Extinction, Biological
Herbivory
Humans
Mammals / classification*,  physiology*
Phylogeny
Comments/Corrections

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine


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