Biodiversity and Topographic Complexity: Modern and Geohistorical Perspectives
Document Type
Review
Publication Date
3-1-2017
Description
Topographically complex regions on land and in the oceans feature hotspots of biodiversity that reflect geological influences on ecological and evolutionary processes. Over geologic time, topographic diversity gradients wax and wane over millions of years, tracking tectonic or climatic history. Topographic diversity gradients from the present day and the past can result from the generation of species by vicariance or from the accumulation of species from dispersal into a region with strong environmental gradients. Biological and geological approaches must be integrated to test alternative models of diversification along topographic gradients. Reciprocal illumination among phylogenetic, phylogeographic, ecological, paleontological, tectonic, and climatic perspectives is an emerging frontier of biogeographic research.
Citation Information
Badgley, Catherine; Smiley, Tara M.; Terry, Rebecca; Davis, Edward B.; DeSantis, Larisa R.G.; Fox, David L.; Hopkins, Samantha S.B.; Jezkova, Tereza; Matocq, Marjorie D.; Matzke, Nick; McGuire, Jenny L.; Mulch, Andreas; Riddle, Brett R.; Roth, V. Louise; Samuels, Joshua X.; Strömberg, Caroline A.E.; and Yanites, Brian J.. 2017. Biodiversity and Topographic Complexity: Modern and Geohistorical Perspectives. Trends in Ecology and Evolution. Vol.32(3). 211-226. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2016.12.010 PMID: 28196688 ISSN: 0169-5347