Insights from macroevolutionary modelling and ancestral state reconstruction into the radiation and historical dietary ecology of Lemuriformes (Primates, Mammalia).

ABSTRACT:

Background

Lemurs once rivalled the diversity of rest of the primate order despite thier confinement to the island of Madagascar. We test the adaptive radiation model of Malagasy lemur diversity using a novel combination of phylogenetic comparative methods and geometric methods for quantifying tooth shape.

Results

We apply macroevolutionary model fitting approaches and disparity through time analysis to dental topography metrics associated with dietary adaptation, an aspect of mammalian ecology which appears to be closely related to diversification in many clades. Metrics were also reconstructed at internal nodes of the lemur tree and these reconstructions were combined to generate dietary classification probabilities at internal nodes using discriminant function analysis. W

SUBMITTER: Fulwood EL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8061064 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature