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MACROECOLOGY

Fossils, phylogenies and the evolving climate niche

Nature Ecology & Evolution volume 2, pages 414–415 (2018)Cite this article

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A dataset that links geographical occurrences, phylogenies, fossils and climate reconstructions for more than 10,000 vertebrate species reveals accelerated rates of climate niche evolution in warm-blooded animals.

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Fig. 1: Endothermy, the ability to produce internal metabolic heat, has permitted climate niches to evolve much more quickly in mammals and birds than in reptiles and amphibians, who must rely on external heat sources (ectothermy).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Geography, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, NG7 2RD, UK

    Adam C. Algar & Simon Tarr

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  1. Adam C. Algar
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  2. Simon Tarr
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Correspondence to Adam C. Algar.

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The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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Algar, A.C., Tarr, S. Fossils, phylogenies and the evolving climate niche. Nat Ecol Evol 2, 414–415 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-018-0480-z

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