Metacommunity analyses show an increase in ecological specialisation throughout the Ediacaran period.

ABSTRACT: The first animals appear during the late Ediacaran (572 to 541 Ma); an initial diversity increase was followed reduction in diversity, often interpreted as catastrophic mass extinction. We investigate Ediacaran ecosystem structure changes over this time period using the "Elements of Metacommunity Structure" framework to assess whether this diversity reduction in the Nama was likely caused by an external mass extinction, or internal metacommunity restructuring. The oldest metacommunity was characterised by taxa with wide environmental tolerances, and limited specialisation or intertaxa associations. Structuring increased in the second oldest metacommunity, with groups of taxa sharing synchronous responses to environmental gradients, aggregating into distinct communities. This pattern streng

SUBMITTER: Eden R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9113585 | biostudies-literature | 2022 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature