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

Raja NB, Kießling W (2021)


Publication Type: Journal article

Publication year: 2021

Journal

Book Volume: 288

Article Number: rspb.2021.0545

Issue: 1950

DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2021.0545

Abstract

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.

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APA:

Raja, N.B., & Kießling, W. (2021). Out of the extratropics: the evolution of the latitudinal diversity gradient of Cenozoic marine plankton. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, Series B: Biological Sciences, 288. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2021.0545

MLA:

Raja, Nussaïbah Begum, and Wolfgang Kießling. "Out of the extratropics: the evolution of the latitudinal diversity gradient of Cenozoic marine plankton." Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, Series B: Biological Sciences 288 (2021).

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