The role of phylogeny in desert rodent community assembly

摘要: Recent advances in molecular genetics and phylogenetic reconstruction have the potential to transform ecology by providing new insights into historical evolution of ecological communities. This study Stevens collaborators complements decades previous research on desert rodents, combining data from a field tree for Mojave Desert rodents address patterns processes community assembly. The number coexisting rodent species is positively correlated, average distance among these negatively correlated with perennial plant richness. As diversity increases along gradient increasing environmental heterogeneity, communities are composed increasingly related species: there consistent pattern structure over-dispersed through random clumped. I discuss this light complementary results studies. paper noteworthy calling attention still unanswered questions about how events speciation, colonization, extinction, trait their relationship past climates vegetation given rise current organization.