Climatic controls on the ecological ascendancy of dinosaurs

Farnsworth A, Benson RBJ, Godoy PL, Greene SE, Valdes PJ, Lunt DJ, Butler RJ, Dunne E (2023)

Publication Type: Journal article

Publication year: 2023

Journal

Current Biology Elsevier (Cell Press)

Book Volume: 33

Pages Range: 206-+

Journal Issue: 1

DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.11.064

Abstract

The ascendancy of dinosaurs to become dominant components of terrestrial ecosystems was a pivotal event in the history of life, yet the drivers of their early evolution and biodiversity are poorly understood.1-3 During their early diversification in the Late Triassic, dinosaurs were initially rare and geographically restricted, only attain-ing wider distributions and greater abundance following the end-Triassic mass extinction event.4-6 This pattern is consistent with an opportunistic expansion model, initiated by the extinction of co-occurring groups such as aetosaurs, rauisuchians, and therapsids.4,7,8 However, this pattern could instead be a response to changes in global climatic distributions through the Triassic to Jurassic transition, especially given the increasing evidence that climate played a key role in constraining Triassic dinosaur distributions.7,9-16 Here, we test this hypothesis and elucidate how climate influenced early dinosaur distribution by quantitatively examining changes in dino-saur and tetrapod "climatic niche space"across the Triassic-Jurassic boundary. Statistical analyses show that Late Triassic sauropodomorph dinosaurs occupied a more restricted climatic niche space than other tetrapods and dinosaurs, being excluded from the hottest, low-latitude climate zones. A subsequent, earliest Jurassic expansion of sauropodomorph geographic distribution is linked to the expansion of their preferred climatic conditions. Evolutionary model-fitting analyses provide evidence for an important evolutionary shift from cooler to warmer climatic niches during the origin of Sauropoda. These results are consistent with the hypoth-esis that global abundance of sauropodomorph dinosaurs was facilitated by climatic change and provide sup-port for the key role of climate in the ascendancy of dinosaurs.

Authors with CRIS profile

Emma Dunne

Involved external institutions

University of Birmingham GB United Kingdom (GB) University of Oxford GB United Kingdom (GB) University of Bristol GB United Kingdom (GB) University of São Paulo / Universidade de São Paulo (USP) BR Brazil (BR)

How to cite

APA:

Farnsworth, A., Benson, R.B.J., Godoy, P.L., Greene, S.E., Valdes, P.J., Lunt, D.J.,... Dunne, E. (2023). Climatic controls on the ecological ascendancy of dinosaurs. Current Biology, 33(1), 206-+. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2022.11.064

MLA:

Farnsworth, Alexander, et al. "Climatic controls on the ecological ascendancy of dinosaurs." Current Biology 33.1 (2023): 206-+.

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