Phylogenetic Clustering of Origination and Extinction across the Late Ordovician Mass Extinction.

ABSTRACT: Mass extinctions can have dramatic effects on the trajectory of life, but in some cases the effects can be relatively small even when extinction rates are high. For example, the Late Ordovician mass extinction is the second most severe in terms of the proportion of genera eliminated, yet is noted for the lack of ecological consequences and shifts in clade dominance. By comparison, the end-Cretaceous mass extinction was less severe but eliminated several major clades while some rare surviving clades diversified in the Paleogene. This disconnect may be better understood by incorporating the phylogenetic relatedness of taxa into studies of mass extinctions, as the factors driving extinction and recovery are thought to be phylogenetically conserved and should therefore promote both origination

SUBMITTER: Krug AZ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4682825 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature