The influence of ecological and geographic limits on the evolution of species distributions and diversity.

ABSTRACT: The role of ecological limits in regulating the distribution and diversification of species remains controversial. Although such limits must ultimately arise from constraints on local species coexistence, this spatial context is missing from most macroevolutionary models. Here, we develop a stochastic, spatially explicit model of species diversification to explore the phylogenetic and biogeographic patterns expected when local diversity is bounded. We show how local ecological limits, by regulating opportunities for range expansion and thus rates of speciation and extinction, lead to temporal slowdowns in diversification and predictable differences in equilibrium diversity between regions. However, our models also show that even when regions have identical diversity limits, the dynamics of

SUBMITTER: Herrera-Alsina L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6220796 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature