Abstract
Aim: The aim was to test whether large-scale patterns of variation in the bodily proportions of small mammals relate to latitude and climate. Location: The New World. Time period: Current. Major taxa studied: Marsupials, lipotyphlans and rodents. Methods: Distributional, morphological and phylogenetic data were compiled for 149 faunal samples including 360 species of New World small mammals. Phylogenetic autocorrelation was addressed using phylogenetic generalized least squares regression. Results: The faunal data show that tails are systematically larger in the tropics relative to head and body lengths. Furthermore, the data for individual species demonstrate a negative relationship between tail length and the distance of the midpoint of a geographical range from the equator. Hind foot and ear length also decline at high latitudes, but the relationships are much weaker. Allen's rule states that all extremities, including ears, feet and tails, should be larger at low latitudes because heat loss is not a limiting factor. However, no correlation between any measurement and mean annual temperature is found in two major groups (cricetid rodents and didelphid marsupials) or in all mammals combined. Main conclusions: Allen's rule does not apply at the macroevolutionary scale, and a new one does. Given that long tails stabilize movement between tree branches and are better suited for being prehensile, this rule might relate to increasing arboreality in the tropics.
| Language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages | 1042-1050 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | Global Ecology and Biogeography |
| Volume | 28 |
| Issue number | 8 |
| Early online date | Apr 2019 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Aug 2019 |
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Keywords
- Allen's rule
- ecomorphology
- latitudinal gradients
- macroecology
- mammals
- tail length
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Small mammals have big tails in the tropics. / Alroy, John.
In: Global Ecology and Biogeography, Vol. 28, No. 8, 08.2019, p. 1042-1050.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
TY - JOUR
T1 - Small mammals have big tails in the tropics
AU - Alroy, John
PY - 2019/8
Y1 - 2019/8
N2 - Aim: The aim was to test whether large-scale patterns of variation in the bodily proportions of small mammals relate to latitude and climate. Location: The New World. Time period: Current. Major taxa studied: Marsupials, lipotyphlans and rodents. Methods: Distributional, morphological and phylogenetic data were compiled for 149 faunal samples including 360 species of New World small mammals. Phylogenetic autocorrelation was addressed using phylogenetic generalized least squares regression. Results: The faunal data show that tails are systematically larger in the tropics relative to head and body lengths. Furthermore, the data for individual species demonstrate a negative relationship between tail length and the distance of the midpoint of a geographical range from the equator. Hind foot and ear length also decline at high latitudes, but the relationships are much weaker. Allen's rule states that all extremities, including ears, feet and tails, should be larger at low latitudes because heat loss is not a limiting factor. However, no correlation between any measurement and mean annual temperature is found in two major groups (cricetid rodents and didelphid marsupials) or in all mammals combined. Main conclusions: Allen's rule does not apply at the macroevolutionary scale, and a new one does. Given that long tails stabilize movement between tree branches and are better suited for being prehensile, this rule might relate to increasing arboreality in the tropics.
AB - Aim: The aim was to test whether large-scale patterns of variation in the bodily proportions of small mammals relate to latitude and climate. Location: The New World. Time period: Current. Major taxa studied: Marsupials, lipotyphlans and rodents. Methods: Distributional, morphological and phylogenetic data were compiled for 149 faunal samples including 360 species of New World small mammals. Phylogenetic autocorrelation was addressed using phylogenetic generalized least squares regression. Results: The faunal data show that tails are systematically larger in the tropics relative to head and body lengths. Furthermore, the data for individual species demonstrate a negative relationship between tail length and the distance of the midpoint of a geographical range from the equator. Hind foot and ear length also decline at high latitudes, but the relationships are much weaker. Allen's rule states that all extremities, including ears, feet and tails, should be larger at low latitudes because heat loss is not a limiting factor. However, no correlation between any measurement and mean annual temperature is found in two major groups (cricetid rodents and didelphid marsupials) or in all mammals combined. Main conclusions: Allen's rule does not apply at the macroevolutionary scale, and a new one does. Given that long tails stabilize movement between tree branches and are better suited for being prehensile, this rule might relate to increasing arboreality in the tropics.
KW - Allen's rule
KW - ecomorphology
KW - latitudinal gradients
KW - macroecology
KW - mammals
KW - tail length
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85064514395&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/geb.12912
DO - 10.1111/geb.12912
M3 - Article
VL - 28
SP - 1042
EP - 1050
JO - Global Ecology and Biogeography
T2 - Global Ecology and Biogeography
JF - Global Ecology and Biogeography
SN - 1466-822X
IS - 8
ER -