Untangling the causes of terror birds extinction (cariamiformes, phorusrhacidae): the interplay of biotic and abiotic factors.
Date
2025
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Universidad de Concepción
Abstract
Los patrones de biodiversidad a lo largo del tiempo están determinados por una compleja interacción de factores bióticos y abióticos. Los Phorusrhacidae (aves del terror), depredadores ápice de Sudamérica durante gran parte del Cenozoico, se enfrentaron a la extinción a través de mecanismos que siguen siendo poco conocidos. En este trabajo, utilizando datos de ocurrencia de fósiles y modelos bayesianos de diversificación, comprobamos cómo los cambios ambientales y las interacciones bióticas influyeron en su dinámica evolutiva. Encontramos que las tasas de especiación se correlacionan positivamente con la autodiversidad, los niveles atmosféricos de CO₂ y la diversidad de Sparassodonta, mientras que las tasas de extinción aumentan con la diversidad del propio linaje, la apertura del hábitat y la diversidad de Carnivora y Didelphimorphia. Nuestros resultados apoyan un modelo mixto Reina Roja-Bufón de la Corte, en el que tanto la competencia biótica como los grandes cambios ambientales contribuyeron sinérgicamente a la extinción de Phorusrhacidae. Esto subraya la necesidad de tener en cuenta causas multifactoriales a la hora de reconstruir las trayectorias evolutivas de los clados dominantes.
Biodiversity patterns through time are shaped by a complex interplay of biotic and abiotic factors. The Phorusrhacidae (terror birds), apex predators of South America during much of the Cenozoic, faced extinction through mechanisms that remain poorly understood. Here, using fossil occurrence data and Bayesian diversification models, we test how environmental changes and biotic interactions influenced their diversification dynamics. We find that speciation rates positively correlate with self-diversity, atmospheric CO₂ levels, and Sparassodonta diversity, while extinction rates increase with self-diversity, evolution of open habitats and the diversity of Carnivora and Didelphimorphia. Our results support a mixed biotic-abiotic model, where both biotic competition and major environmental shifts contributed synergistically to the extinction of Phorusrhacidae. This emphasizes the need to consider multifactorial causes when reconstructing the evolutionary trajectories of dominant clades.
Biodiversity patterns through time are shaped by a complex interplay of biotic and abiotic factors. The Phorusrhacidae (terror birds), apex predators of South America during much of the Cenozoic, faced extinction through mechanisms that remain poorly understood. Here, using fossil occurrence data and Bayesian diversification models, we test how environmental changes and biotic interactions influenced their diversification dynamics. We find that speciation rates positively correlate with self-diversity, atmospheric CO₂ levels, and Sparassodonta diversity, while extinction rates increase with self-diversity, evolution of open habitats and the diversity of Carnivora and Didelphimorphia. Our results support a mixed biotic-abiotic model, where both biotic competition and major environmental shifts contributed synergistically to the extinction of Phorusrhacidae. This emphasizes the need to consider multifactorial causes when reconstructing the evolutionary trajectories of dominant clades.
Description
Tesis presentada para optar al grado de Magíster en Ciencias con mención en Zoología.
Keywords
Biodiversity, Cenozoic, Birds, Extinción (Biology)