Mechanistic phylodynamic models do not provide conclusive evidence that non-avian dinosaurs were in decline before their final extinction.

ABSTRACT: Phylodynamic models can be used to estimate diversification trajectories from time-calibrated phylogenies. Here we apply two such models to phylogenies of non-avian dinosaurs, a clade whose evolutionary history has been widely debated. Although some authors have suggested that the clade experienced a decline in diversity, potentially starting millions of years before the end-Cretaceous mass extinction, others have suggested that the group remained highly diverse right up until the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) boundary. Our results show that model assumptions, likely with respect to incomplete sampling, have a large impact on whether dinosaurs appear to have experienced a long-term decline or not. The results are also highly sensitive to the topology and branch lengths of the phylogeny used.

SUBMITTER: Allen BJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11895757 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature