TY  - JOUR
A1  - Valente, Luis
A1  - Illera, Juan Carlos
A1  - Havenstein, Katja
A1  - Pallien, Tamara
A1  - Etienne, Rampal S.
A1  - Tiedemann, Ralph
T1  - Equilibrium Bird Species Diversity in Atlantic Islands
JF  - Current biology
Y1  - 2017
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2017.04.053
SN  - 0960-9822
SN  - 1879-0445
VL  - 27
SP  - 1660
EP  - +
PB  - Cell Press
CY  - Cambridge
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Valente, Luis
A1  - Etienne, Rampal S.
A1  - Davalos, Liliana M.
T1  - Recent extinctions disturb path to equilibrium diversity in Caribbean bats
JF  - Nature Ecology & Evolution
N2  - Islands are ideal systems to model temporal changes in biodiversity and reveal the influence of humans on natural communities. Although theory predicts biodiversity on islands tends towards an equilibrium value, the recent extinction of large proportions of island biotas complicates testing this model. The well-preserved subfossil record of Caribbean bats-involving multiple insular radiations-provides a rare opportunity to model diversity dynamics in an insular community. Here, we reconstruct the diversity trajectory in noctilionoid bats of the Greater Antilles by applying a dynamic model of colonization, extinction and speciation to phylogenetic and palaeontological data including all known extinct and extant species. We show species richness asymptotes to an equilibrium value, a demonstration of natural equilibrium dynamics across an entire community. However, recent extinctions-many caused by humans-have wiped out nearly a third of island lineages, dragging diversity away from equilibrium. Using a metric to measure island biodiversity loss, we estimate it will take at least eight million years to regain pre-human diversity levels. Our integrative approach reveals how anthropogenic extinctions can drastically alter the natural trajectory of biological communities, resulting in evolutionary disequilibrium.
Y1  - 2017
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-016-0026
SN  - 2397-334X
VL  - 1
PB  - Nature Publ. Group
CY  - London
ER  -