最早的马的进化是由气候变化在古世 - 世热量最大时期的驱动
Ross Secord1, Jonathan I Bloch, Stephen G B Chester
1Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA. rsecord2@unl.edu
概括
哺乳动物在古世 - 世热极值 (PETM) 期间由于温度升温和高CO2水平而迅速缩小. 随着气候的恢复,身体大小显著反弹,为未来全球变暖影响提供了洞察力.
科学领域:
- 古生物学的古生物学
- 气候科学 气候科学
- 哺乳动物生态学 哺乳动物生态
背景情况:
- 身体大小是哺乳动物生理学和生态作用的关键因素.
- 之前的研究表明,哺乳动物在古世 - 世热极值 (PETM) 期间出现化,但确切的时间和气候相关性是不确定的.
研究的目的:
- 在PETM期间调查大陆气候变化与马体大小之间的关系.
- 为了确定身体尺寸变化的时间和大小,与古世 - 世热极限气候动态相关.
主要方法:
- 高分辨率大陆气候记录的分析.
- 在PETM持续时间内检查马匹体型变化.
- 使用来自哺乳动物牙的氧同位素推断古气温.
主要成果:
- 马体大小的~30%的方向性减少发生在PETM的最初的~13万年.
- 在PETM的恢复阶段观察到显著的~76%的身体尺寸增加.
- 哺乳动物体型变化与推断温度和潜在的高大气二氧化碳水平有负相关性.
结论:
- 在PETM期间,温度升高和二氧化碳度升高可能导致哺乳动物体型的大幅波动.
- 了解这些过去的反应为预测哺乳动物对未来气候变化和全球变暖的进化适应提供了一个框架.
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