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Published on: March 31, 2023
Climate predictors of late quaternary extinctions
David Nogués-Bravo1, Ralf Ohlemüller, Persaram Batra
1Department of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, National Museum of Natural Sciences, CSIC, C/ José Gutiérrez Abascal, 2, 28006 Madrid, Spain. dnogues@bio.ku.dk
Evolution; International Journal of Organic Evolution
|August 17, 2010
Summary
Global climate change significantly impacted Late Quaternary mammal extinctions. Continents experiencing greater climate shifts showed higher extinction rates, supporting climate
Area of Science:
- Paleontology
- Climate Science
- Ecology
Background:
- The Late Quaternary period (50,000–3,000 years Before Present) witnessed significant mammal extinctions, particularly among large genera (>44 kg).
- The drivers of these mass extinctions remain debated, with climate change being a prominent hypothesis lacking comprehensive global quantitative evidence.
- Understanding extinction patterns is crucial for predicting future biodiversity responses to environmental change.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantitatively assess the global role of climate change in Late Quaternary mammal extinctions.
- To investigate the relationship between the magnitude of climate change and extinction rates across different continents.
- To provide a dataset for further research into Late Quaternary biodiversity dynamics.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of extinction data for mammal genera during the Late Quaternary.
- Development and application of a climate footprint dataset to quantify climate change magnitudes.
- Statistical modeling to correlate climate footprint values with extinction rates across continents and body masses.
Main Results:
- A positive correlation was found between higher climate footprint values (greater climate change) and increased mammal extinction rates globally.
- This pattern held across various mammal body masses, reinforcing the impact of climate shifts.
- South America showed an exception, suggesting unique regional factors influenced its extinction patterns.
Conclusions:
- Global climate change was a significant contributing factor to Late Quaternary mammal extinctions.
- The developed climate change footprint dataset offers a valuable resource for future biodiversity research.
- Findings underscore the sensitivity of mammalian fauna to substantial climatic variability.
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