Find research datasets worth reusing

Figure 7 in A New Species of Extinct False Vampire Bat (Megadermatidae: Macroderma) from the Kimberley Region of Western Australia

Figure 7. Scanning electron micrographs of paratype material of Macroderma handae sp. nov. (A) anterior half of a right C1, paratype WAM 2020.4.7; (B) lingual view of a right C1 of M. gigas ANWC CM568; (C, D) labial and lingual views of a right C1 with a damaged paracone, paratype WAM 2020.4.9. Scale bars 1 mm.

Figure 6 in A New Species of Extinct False Vampire Bat (Megadermatidae: Macroderma) from the Kimberley Region of Western Australia

Figure 6. Scanning electron micrographs of paratype material of Macroderma handae sp. nov. (A, C) occlusal-oblique views of a right M1, paratype WAM 2020.4.6; (B, D) corresponding views of the right M1 of M. gigas ANWC CM568; (E) occlusal view of a fragment of a right M2, paratype WAM 2020.4.10; (F) corresponding view of the right M2 of M. gigas ANWC CM568. Scale bars 1 mm.

Figure 9 in A New Species of Extinct False Vampire Bat (Megadermatidae: Macroderma) from the Kimberley Region of Western Australia

Figure 9. Scanning electron micrographs of other unidentified and undescribed bat material recovered from the same deposit at Dingo Gap. (A–D) WAM 2020.4.13; (E–G) right C1 of an emballonurid, WAM 2020.4.14; (H) right C1 of an emballonurid, WAM 2020.4.15; (I, J) left C1 of an emballonurid, WAM 2020.4.16; (K, L) left C1 of an emballonurid, WAM 2020.4.17; (M, N) lingual and occlusal views of a fragment of dentary of a vespertilionid containing M1–M3 (M1 is on the right in both views), WAM 2020.4.18. Scale bars 1 mm.

Figure 3 in A New Species of Extinct False Vampire Bat (Megadermatidae: Macroderma) from the Kimberley Region of Western Australia

Figure 3. Scanning electron micrographs of holotype and paratype material of Macroderma handae sp. nov. (A) lateral view of the left dentary of holotype WAM 2020.4.1 with mostly intact M2, broken P4, M1 and M3, and alveoli of single-rooted P2 and C1; (B) occlusal view of the holotype WAM 2020.4.1 anterior to the M2; (C) occlusal view of a fragment of left dentary, paratype WAM 2020.4.3; (D, E) lateral and occlusal view of a fragment of left dentary, paratype WAM 2020.4.2; (F) digital photograph of the left dentary of M. gigas WAM M18284. Scale bars 1 mm.

opencc-by-4.0May 2023View details →

Timing and provenance of volcanic fluxes around the Permian-Triassic Boundary Mass Extinction in South China: U-Pb zircon geochronology, volcanic ash geochemistry and mercury isotopes

The enclosed dataset contains all of the raw data supporting the results presented in the paper titled: "Timing and provenance of volcanic fluxes around the Permian-Triassic Boundary Mass Extinction in South China: U-Pb zircon geochronology, volcanic ash geochemistry and mercury isotopes".  The Excel data file contains four data sheets as follows:  1. Table S1: This sheet contains the U-Pb output table from ETRedux. The data sheet contains all the U and Pb isotopic data generated for the current study. 2. Table S2: This excel sheet contains the geochemical compositions of analyzed volcanic ash beds as well as LOI-normalized major element compositions of these ashes. 3. Table S3: This excel sheet contains the other geochemical and isotope data for all analyzed samples. This includes Hg concentration and isotope compositions, TOC data, as well as major and trace element concentrations and ratios. 4. a final table containing the analyzed Hg isotope compositions for the utilized standard reference materials -  ETH Fluka, UM-Almaden, NIST 1632D and MESS-3.

opencc-zeroJun 2023View details →

Developmental and functional controls on enrolment in an ancient, extinct arthropod

Three-dimensional models reveal how the mechanics of exoskeletal enrolment changed during the development of a model organism for insights into ancient arthropod development, the 429-million-year old trilobite Aulacopleura koninckii. Changes in the number, size and allocation of segments within the trunk, coupled with the need to maintain effective exoskeletal shielding of soft tissue during enrolment, necessitated a transition in enrolment style about the onset of mature growth. During an earlier growth phase, enrolment was sphaeroidal, with the venter of the trunk fitting exactly against that of the head. In later growth, if lateral exoskeletal encapsulation was to be maintained trunk length proportions did not permit such exact fitting, requiring an alternative, non-sphaeoridal enrolment style. Our study favours adoption of a posture in later growth in which the posterior trunk extended beyond the front of the head. This change in enrolment accommodated a pattern of notable variation in the number of mature trunk segments, well known to characterize the development of this species. It suggests how an animal whose early segmental development was remarkably precisely controlled was able to realize marked variation in mature segment number that was related, apparently, to life in a physically challenging, reduced oxygen setting.

opencc-zeroJun 2023View details →

Reduced strength and increased variability of extinction selectivity during mass extinctions

Two of the traits most often observed to correlate with extinction risk in marine animals are geographic range and body size. However, the relative effects of these two traits on extinction risk has not been investigated systematically for either background times or during mass extinctions. To close this knowledge gap, we measure and compare extinction selectivity of geographic range and body size of genera within five classes of benthic marine animals across the Phanerozoic using capture-mark-recapture models. During background intervals, narrow geographic range is strongly associated with greater extinction probability, whereas smaller body size is more weakly associated with greater extinction probability. During mass extinctions, the association between geographic range and extinction probability is reduced in every class and fully eliminated in some, whereas the association between body size and extinction probability varies in strength and direction across classes. While geographic range is universally the stronger predictor of survival during background intervals, variation among classes during mass extinction suggests a fundamental shift in extinction processes during these global catastrophes.

opencc-zeroJun 2023View details →

Ecological marginalization is widespread and increases extinction risk in mammals

Human land-use results in widespread range change across taxa. Anthropogenic pressures can result in species' realized niches expanding, shifting, or contracting. Marginalization occurs when contraction constrains species to the geographic or ecological extremes of their historic niche. Using 4,785 terrestrial mammal species, we show that range contraction results in niche space and habitat diversity loss. Additionally, ecological marginalization is a common consequence of range contraction caused by human land use change. Remnant populations become located in the climatic and topographic extremes of their historic niche that are more likely to be at the periphery of their historic niche at greater distances from historic niche centroids. This ecological marginalization is associated with poor performance and increased extinction risk independent of geographic range loss. Range loss and marginalization may create a "double whammy" in vulnerable groups, such as large-bodied species and species with small geographical range size. Our results reveal a hitherto unrecognized conservation threat that is vital to incorporate into conservation assessment and management.

opencc-zeroJul 2023View details →

Testing relationships between multiple regional features and biogeographic processes of speciation, extinction, and dispersal

The spatial and environmental features of regions where clades are evolving are expected to impact biogeographic processes such as speciation, extinction, and dispersal. Any number of regional features (such as altitude, distance, area, etc.) may be directly or indirectly related to these processes. For example, it may be that distances or differences in altitude or both may limit dispersal rates. However, it is difficult to disentangle which features are most strongly related to rates of different processes. Here, we present an extensible Multi-feature Feature-Informed GeoSSE (MultiFIG) model that allows for the simultaneous investigation of any number of regional features. MultiFIG provides a conceptual framework for incorporating large numbers of features of different types, including categorical, quantitative, within-region, and between-region features, along with a mathematical framework for translating those features into biogeographic rates for statistical hypothesis testing. Using traditional Bayesian parameter estimation and reversible-jump Markov chain Monte Carlo, MultiFIG allows for the exploration of models with different numbers and combinations of feature-effect parameters, and generates estimates for the strengths of relationships between each regional feature and core process. We validate this model with a simulation study covering a range of scenarios with different numbers of regions, tree sizes, and feature values. We also demonstrate the application of MultiFIG with an empirical case study of the South American lizard genus Liolaemus, investigating sixteen regional features related to area, distance, and altitude. Our results show two important feature-process relationships: a negative distance/dispersal relationship, and a negative area/extinction relationship. Interestingly, although speciation rates were found to be higher in Andean versus non-Andean regions, the model did not assign significance to Andean- or altitude-related parameters. These results highlight the need to consider multiple regional features in biogeographic hypothesis testing.

opencc-zeroAug 2023View details →

Data from: Evolvability predicts evolutionary divergence in extant and extinct species

Heritable variation is a prerequisite for evolutionary change. Yet, whether genetic potential for microevolution is relevant on macroevolutionary timescales is debated. Here we show that evolutionary divergence among populations, and to a lesser extent among species, increases with microevolutionary evolvability in both extant and extinct taxa. We evaluate and reject a number of hypotheses put forward to explain this relationship and propose that an effect of evolvability on population and species divergence can be explained by the influence of genetic constraints on population's ability to track rapid stationary environmental fluctuations.

opencc-zeroAug 2023View details →

Data from: Accelerating local extinction associated with very recent climate change

Climate change has already caused local extinction in many plants and animals, based on surveys spanning many decades. As climate change accelerates, the pace of these extinctions may also accelerate, potentially leading to large-scale, species-level extinctions. We tested this hypothesis in a montane lizard. We resurveyed 18 mountain ranges in 2021–2022 after only ~7 years. We found rates of local extinction among the fastest ever recorded, which have tripled in the past ~7 years relative to the preceding ~42 years. Further, climate change generated local extinction in ~7 years similar to that seen in other organisms over ~70 years. Yet, contrary to expectations, populations at two of the hottest sites survived. We found that genomic data helped predict which populations survived and which went extinct. Overall, we show the increasing risk to biodiversity posed by accelerating climate change, and the opportunity to study its effects over surprisingly brief timescales.

opencc-by-4.0Dec 2004View details →

Fig. 3 in Diversity dynamics of Early-Middle Jurassic brachiopods of Caucasus, and the Pliensbachian-Toarcian mass extinction

Fig. 3. Total species diversity changes, origination and extinction rates of NW Caucasus brachiopods in Early–Middle Jurassic.