Primate diversification inferred from phylogenies and fossils

Area of Science:

• Paleontology
• Evolutionary Biology
• Phylogenetics

Background:

• Biodiversity is shaped by speciation and extinction dynamics.
• Fossil records and molecular phylogenies offer insights into evolutionary history.
• Discrepancies often exist between diversification patterns inferred from fossils versus molecular phylogenies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To test hypotheses on primate diversification using both fossil and molecular data.
• To investigate whether diversification rates increased through time.
• To determine if a significant extinction event occurred during the Oligocene.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of approximately 600 fossil primate species.
• Examination of phylogenies for over 90% of living primate species.
• Estimation of speciation and extinction rates from both data sources.

Main Results:

• Phylogenetic analyses indicated increasing speciation and negligible extinction rates.
• Fossil data suggested increasing speciation but near-equal speciation and extinction rates, resulting in zero net diversification.
• Fossil data showed a diversity decline in the Oligocene; phylogenetic data supported increased extinction around 34 and 10 million years ago.

Conclusions:

• Estimates of speciation and extinction rates that ignore fossils are insufficient for inferring diversification.
• Incorporating data from extinct lineages into phylogenetic analyses is essential for a comprehensive understanding of diversification patterns.
• Discrepancies highlight the need for integrated approaches in evolutionary studies.