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Mao F, Li Z, Wang Z, Zhang C, Rich T, Vickers-Rich P, Meng J. Jurassic shuotheriids show earliest dental diversification of mammaliaforms. Nature 2024; 628:569-575. [PMID: 38570681 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07258-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2023] [Accepted: 02/29/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024]
Abstract
Shuotheriids are Jurassic mammaliaforms that possess pseudotribosphenic teeth in which a pseudotalonid is anterior to the trigonid in the lower molar, contrasting with the tribosphenic pattern of therian mammals (placentals, marsupials and kin) in which the talonid is posterior to the trigonid1-4. The origin of the pseudotribosphenic teeth remains unclear, obscuring our perception of shuotheriid affinities and the early evolution of mammaliaforms1,5-9. Here we report a new Jurassic shuotheriid represented by two skeletal specimens. Their complete pseudotribosphenic dentitions allow reidentification of dental structures using serial homology and the tooth occlusal relationship. Contrary to the conventional view1,2,6,10,11, our findings show that dental structures of shuotheriids can be homologized to those of docodontans and partly support homologous statements for some dental structures between docodontans and other mammaliaforms6,12. The phylogenetic analysis based on new evidence removes shuotheriids from the tribosphenic ausktribosphenids (including monotremes) and clusters them with docodontans to form a new clade, Docodontiformes, that is characterized by pseudotribosphenic features. In the phylogeny, docodontiforms and 'holotherians' (Kuehneotherium, monotremes and therians)13 evolve independently from a Morganucodon-like ancestor with triconodont molars by labio-lingual widening their posterior teeth for more efficient food processing. The pseudotribosphenic pattern passed a cusp semitriangulation stage9, whereas the tribosphenic pattern and its precursor went through a stage of cusp triangulation. The two different processes resulted in complex tooth structures and occlusal patterns that elucidate the earliest diversification of mammaliaforms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fangyuan Mao
- Key Laboratory of Evolutionary Systematics of Vertebrates, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
- Division of Paleontology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, USA.
| | - Zhiyu Li
- Inner Mongolia Museum of Natural History, Hohhot, China
| | - Zhili Wang
- Inner Mongolia Museum of Natural History, Hohhot, China
| | - Chi Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Evolutionary Systematics of Vertebrates, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Thomas Rich
- Museums Victoria, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Patricia Vickers-Rich
- Museums Victoria, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- School of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Jin Meng
- Division of Paleontology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, USA.
- Earth and Environmental Sciences, City University of New York, New York, NY, USA.
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2
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Wang H, Wang Y. Middle ear innovation in Early Cretaceous eutherian mammals. Nat Commun 2023; 14:6831. [PMID: 37884521 PMCID: PMC10603157 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-42606-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2022] [Accepted: 10/16/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
The middle ear ossicles in modern mammals are repurposed from postdentary bones in non-mammalian cynodonts. Recent discoveries by palaeontological and embryonic studies have developed different models for the middle ear evolution in mammaliaforms. However, little is known about the evolutionary scenario of the middle ear in early therians. Here we report a detached middle ear preserved in a new eutherian mammal from the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota. The well-preserved articulation of the malleus and incus suggest that the saddle-shaped incudomallear joint is a major apomorphy of Early Cretaceous eutherians. By contrast to the distinct saddle-like incudomallear articulation in therians, differences between the overlapping versus the half-overlapping incudomallear joints in monotremes and stem mammals would be relatively minor. The middle ear belongs to the microtype by definition, indicating its adaptation to high-frequency hearing. Current evidence indicates that significant evolutionary innovations of the middle ear in modern therians evolved in Early Cretaceous.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haibing Wang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100044, Beijing, China.
| | - Yuanqing Wang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100044, Beijing, China.
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China.
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3
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Gavrilov VM, Golubeva TB, Bushuev AV. Metabolic rate, sleep duration, and body temperature in evolution of mammals and birds: the influence of geological time of principal groups divergence. Zookeys 2023; 1148:1-27. [DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.1148.93458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2022] [Accepted: 01/11/2023] [Indexed: 02/16/2023] Open
Abstract
This study contains an analysis of basal metabolic rate (BMR) in 1817 endothermic species. The aim was to establish how metabolic scaling varies between the main groups of endotherms during evolution. The data for all the considered groups were combined and the common exponent in the allometric relationship between the BMR and body weight was established as b = 0.7248. Reduced to the common slope, the relative metabolic rate forms the following series: Neognathae – Passeriformes – 1.00, Neognathae – Non-Passeriformes – 0.75, Palaeognathae – 0.53, Eutheria – 0.57, Marsupialia – 0.44, and Monotremata – 0.26. The main finding is that the metabolic rate in the six main groups of mammals and birds consistently increases as the geological time of the group’s divergence approaches the present. In parallel, the average body temperature in the group rises, the duration of sleep decreases and the duration of activity increases. BMR in a taxon correlates with its evolutionary age: the later a clade diverged, the higher is its metabolic rate and the longer is its activity period; group exponents decrease as group divergence nears present times while with increase metabolic rate during activity, they not only do not decrease but can increase. Sleep duration in mammals was on average 40% longer than in birds while BMR, in contrast, was 40% higher in birds. The evolution of metabolic scaling, body temperature, sleep duration, and activity during the development of endothermic life forms is demonstrated, allowing for a better understanding of the underlying principles of endothermy formation.
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4
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Gônet J, Bardin J, Girondot M, Hutchinson JR, Laurin M. Unravelling the postural diversity of mammals: Contribution of humeral cross-sections to palaeobiological inferences. J MAMM EVOL 2023. [DOI: 10.1007/s10914-023-09652-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/11/2023]
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5
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Zhou Z. The Rising of Paleontology in China: A Century-Long Road. BIOLOGY 2022; 11:1104. [PMID: 35892960 PMCID: PMC9332504 DOI: 10.3390/biology11081104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2022] [Revised: 07/09/2022] [Accepted: 07/14/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
In this paper, the history of paleontology in China from 1920 to 2020 is divided into three major stages, i.e., 1920-1949, 1949-1978, and 1979-2020. As one of the first scientific disciplines to have earned international fame in China, the development of Chinese paleontology benefitted from international collaborations and China's rich resources. Since 1978, China's socio-economic development and its open-door policy to the outside world have also played a key role in the growth of Chinese paleontology. In the 21st century, thanks to constant funding from the government and the rise of the younger generation of paleontologists, Chinese paleontology is expected to make even more contributions to the integration of paleontology with both biological and geological research projects by taking advantage of new technologies and China's rich paleontological resources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhonghe Zhou
- Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 142 Xizhimenwai Dajie, Beijing 100044, China
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6
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Beck RM, Voss RS, Jansa SA. Craniodental Morphology and Phylogeny of Marsupials. BULLETIN OF THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY 2022. [DOI: 10.1206/0003-0090.457.1.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Robin M.D. Beck
- School of Science, Engineering and Environment University of Salford, U.K. School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences University of New South Wales, Australia Division of Vertebrate Zoology (Mammalogy) American Museum of Natural History
| | - Robert S. Voss
- Division of Vertebrate Zoology (Mammalogy) American Museum of Natural History
| | - Sharon A. Jansa
- Bell Museum and Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior University of Minnesota
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7
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Bansal M, Mishra S, Prasad V. Biogeographic and evolutionary history of Crotonoideae based on pollen evidence from Indian Late Cretaceous and Paleogene sediments. Biotropica 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/btp.13091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Mahi Bansal
- Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences Lucknow India
| | - Shreya Mishra
- Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences Lucknow India
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8
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Zhou Z, Meng Q, Zhu R, Wang M. Spatiotemporal evolution of the Jehol Biota: Responses to the North China craton destruction in the Early Cretaceous. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:e2107859118. [PMID: 34400505 PMCID: PMC8403929 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2107859118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota is a terrestrial lagerstätte that contains exceptionally well-preserved fossils indicating the origin and early evolution of Mesozoic life, such as birds, dinosaurs, pterosaurs, mammals, insects, and flowering plants. New geochronologic studies have further constrained the ages of the fossil-bearing beds, and recent investigations on Early Cretaceous tectonic settings have provided much new information for understanding the spatiotemporal distribution of the biota and dispersal pattern of its members. Notably, the occurrence of the Jehol Biota coincides with the initial and peak stages of the North China craton destruction in the Early Cretaceous, and thus the biotic evolution is related to the North China craton destruction. However, it remains largely unknown how the tectonic activities impacted the development of the Jehol Biota in northeast China and other contemporaneous biotas in neighboring areas in East and Central Asia. It is proposed that the Early Cretaceous rift basins migrated eastward in the northern margin of the North China craton and the Great Xing'an Range, and the migration is regarded to have resulted from eastward retreat of the subducting paleo-Pacific plate. The diachronous development of the rift basins led to the lateral variations of stratigraphic sequences and depositional environments, which in turn influenced the spatiotemporal evolution of the Jehol Biota. This study represents an effort to explore the linkage between terrestrial biota evolution and regional tectonics and how plate tectonics constrained the evolution of a terrestrial biota through various surface geological processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhonghe Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China;
- Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
| | - Qingren Meng
- State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric Evolution, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China
| | - Rixiang Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric Evolution, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China
| | - Min Wang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
- Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
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9
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Marjanović D. The Making of Calibration Sausage Exemplified by Recalibrating the Transcriptomic Timetree of Jawed Vertebrates. Front Genet 2021; 12:521693. [PMID: 34054911 PMCID: PMC8149952 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2021.521693] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2020] [Accepted: 03/22/2021] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Molecular divergence dating has the potential to overcome the incompleteness of the fossil record in inferring when cladogenetic events (splits, divergences) happened, but needs to be calibrated by the fossil record. Ideally but unrealistically, this would require practitioners to be specialists in molecular evolution, in the phylogeny and the fossil record of all sampled taxa, and in the chronostratigraphy of the sites the fossils were found in. Paleontologists have therefore tried to help by publishing compendia of recommended calibrations, and molecular biologists unfamiliar with the fossil record have made heavy use of such works (in addition to using scattered primary sources and copying from each other). Using a recent example of a large node-dated timetree inferred from molecular data, I reevaluate all 30 calibrations in detail, present the current state of knowledge on them with its various uncertainties, rerun the dating analysis, and conclude that calibration dates cannot be taken from published compendia or other secondary or tertiary sources without risking strong distortions to the results, because all such sources become outdated faster than they are published: 50 of the (primary) sources I cite to constrain calibrations were published in 2019, half of the total of 280 after mid-2016, and 90% after mid-2005. It follows that the present work cannot serve as such a compendium either; in the slightly longer term, it can only highlight known and overlooked problems. Future authors will need to solve each of these problems anew through a thorough search of the primary paleobiological and chronostratigraphic literature on each calibration date every time they infer a new timetree, and that literature is not optimized for that task, but largely has other objectives.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Marjanović
- Department of Evolutionary Morphology, Science Programme “Evolution and Geoprocesses”, Museum für Naturkunde – Leibniz Institute for Evolutionary and Biodiversity Research, Berlin, Germany
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10
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Fossoriality and evolutionary development in two Cretaceous mammaliamorphs. Nature 2021; 592:577-582. [PMID: 33828300 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-021-03433-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2020] [Accepted: 03/09/2021] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
Mammaliamorpha comprises the last common ancestor of Tritylodontidae and Mammalia plus all its descendants1. Tritylodontids are nonmammaliaform herbivorous cynodonts that originated in the Late Triassic epoch, diversified in the Jurassic period2-5 and survived into the Early Cretaceous epoch6,7. Eutriconodontans have generally been considered to be an extinct mammalian group, although different views exist8. Here we report a newly discovered tritylodontid and eutriconodontan from the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota of China. Eutriconodontans are common in this biota9, but it was not previously known to contain tritylodontids. The two distantly related species show convergent features that are adapted for fossorial life, and are the first 'scratch-diggers' known from this biota. Both species also show an increased number of presacral vertebrae, relative to the ancestral state in synapsids or mammals10,11, that display meristic and homeotic changes. These fossils shed light on the evolutionary development of the axial skeleton in mammaliamorphs, which has been the focus of numerous studies in vertebrate evolution12-17 and developmental biology18-28. The phenotypes recorded by these fossils indicate that developmental plasticity in somitogenesis and HOX gene expression in the axial skeleton-similar to that observed in extant mammals-was already in place in stem mammaliamorphs. The interaction of these developmental mechanisms with natural selection may have underpinned the diverse phenotypes of body plan that evolved independently in various clades of mammaliamorph.
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11
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Wang J, Wible JR, Guo B, Shelley SL, Hu H, Bi S. A monotreme-like auditory apparatus in a Middle Jurassic haramiyidan. Nature 2021; 590:279-283. [PMID: 33505017 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-03137-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2020] [Accepted: 12/10/2020] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Among extant vertebrates, mammals are distinguished by having a chain of three auditory ossicles (the malleus, incus and stapes) that transduce sound waves and promote an increased range of audible-especially high-frequencies1. By contrast, the homologous bones in early fossil mammals and relatives also functioned in chewing through their bony attachments to the lower jaw2. Recent discoveries of well-preserved Mesozoic mammals have provided glimpses into the transition from the dual (masticatory and auditory) to the single auditory function for the ossicles, which is now widely accepted to have occurred at least three times in mammal evolution3-6. Here we report a skull and postcranium that we refer to the haramiyidan Vilevolodon diplomylos (dating to the Middle Jurassic epoch (160 million years ago)) and that shows excellent preservation of the malleus, incus and ectotympanic (which supports the tympanic membrane). After comparing this fossil with other Mesozoic and extant mammals, we propose that the overlapping incudomallear articulation found in this and other Mesozoic fossils, in extant monotremes and in early ontogeny in extant marsupials and placentals is a morphology that evolved in several groups of mammals in the transition from the dual to the single function for the ossicles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junyou Wang
- Centre for Vertebrate Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Palaeontology, Yunnan University, Kunming, China.,Inner Mongolia Museum of Natural History, Hohhot, China
| | - John R Wible
- Centre for Vertebrate Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Palaeontology, Yunnan University, Kunming, China. .,Section of Mammals, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
| | - Bin Guo
- Inner Mongolia Museum of Natural History, Hohhot, China
| | - Sarah L Shelley
- Section of Mammals, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.,School of Geosciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Han Hu
- Zoology Division, School of Environmental and Rural Sciences, University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Shundong Bi
- Centre for Vertebrate Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Palaeontology, Yunnan University, Kunming, China. .,Department of Biology, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Indiana, PA, USA.
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12
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Celik MA, Phillips MJ. Conflict Resolution for Mesozoic Mammals: Reconciling Phylogenetic Incongruence Among Anatomical Regions. Front Genet 2020; 11:0651. [PMID: 32774343 PMCID: PMC7381353 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2020.00651] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2019] [Accepted: 05/28/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The evolutionary history of Mesozoic mammaliaformes is well studied. Although the backbone of their phylogeny is well resolved, the placement of ecologically specialized groups has remained uncertain. Functional and developmental covariation has long been identified as an important source of phylogenetic error, yet combining incongruent morphological characters altogether is currently a common practice when reconstructing phylogenetic relationships. Ignoring incongruence may inflate the confidence in reconstructing relationships, particularly for the placement of highly derived and ecologically specialized taxa, such as among australosphenidans (particularly, crown monotremes), haramiyidans, and multituberculates. The alternative placement of these highly derived clades can alter the taxonomic constituency and temporal origin of the mammalian crown group. Based on prior hypotheses and correlated homoplasy analyses, we identified cheek teeth and shoulder girdle character complexes as having a high potential to introduce phylogenetic error. We showed that incongruence among mandibulodental, cranial, and postcranial anatomical partitions for the placement of the australosphenidans, haramiyids, and multituberculates could largely be explained by apparently non-phylogenetic covariance from cheek teeth and shoulder girdle characters. Excluding these character complexes brought agreement between anatomical regions and improved the confidence in tree topology. These results emphasize the importance of considering and ameliorating major sources of bias in morphological data, and we anticipate that these will be valuable for confidently integrating morphological and molecular data in phylogenetic and dating analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mélina A Celik
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Matthew J Phillips
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
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13
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King B, Beck RMD. Tip dating supports novel resolutions of controversial relationships among early mammals. Proc Biol Sci 2020; 287:20200943. [PMID: 32517606 PMCID: PMC7341916 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2020.0943] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
The estimation of the timing of major divergences in early mammal evolution is challenging owing to conflicting interpretations of key fossil taxa. One contentious group is Haramiyida, the earliest members of which are from the Late Triassic. Many phylogenetic analyses have placed haramiyidans in a clade with multituberculates within crown Mammalia, thus extending the minimum divergence date for the crown group deep into the Triassic. A second taxon of interest is the eutherian Juramaia from the Middle-Late Jurassic Yanliao Biota, which is morphologically very similar to eutherians from the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota and implies a very early origin for therian mammals. Here, we apply Bayesian tip-dated phylogenetic methods to investigate these issues. Tip dating firmly rejects a monophyletic Allotheria (multituberculates and haramiyidans), which are split into three separate clades, a result not found in any previous analysis. Most notably, the Late Triassic Haramiyavia and Thomasia are separate from the Middle Jurassic euharamiyidans. We also test whether the Middle-Late Jurassic age of Juramaia is 'expected' given its known morphology by assigning an age prior without hard bounds. Strikingly, this analysis supports an Early Cretaceous age for Juramaia, but similar analyses on 12 other mammaliaforms from the Yanliao Biota return the correct, Jurassic age. Our results show that analyses incorporating stratigraphic data can produce results very different from other methods. Early mammal evolution may have involved multiple instances of convergent morphological evolution (e.g. in the dentition), and tip dating may be a method uniquely suitable to recognizing this owing to the incorporation of stratigraphic data. Our results also confirm that Juramaia is anomalous in exhibiting a much more derived morphology than expected given its age, which in turn implies very high rates of evolution at the base of therian mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benedict King
- Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden, the Netherlands.,College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Robin M D Beck
- School of Environmental and Life Sciences, University of Salford, Salford M5 4WT, UK
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14
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Skeleton of a Cretaceous mammal from Madagascar reflects long-term insularity. Nature 2020; 581:421-427. [DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2234-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2019] [Accepted: 02/26/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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15
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16
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Kusuhashi N, Wang YQ, Jin X. A New Eobaatarid Multituberculate (Mammalia) from the Lower Cretaceous Fuxin Formation, Fuxin-Jinzhou Basin, Liaoning, Northeastern China. J MAMM EVOL 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s10914-019-09481-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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17
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Grossnickle DM, Smith SM, Wilson GP. Untangling the Multiple Ecological Radiations of Early Mammals. Trends Ecol Evol 2019; 34:936-949. [PMID: 31229335 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2019.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2019] [Revised: 05/14/2019] [Accepted: 05/21/2019] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The ecological diversification of early mammals is one of the most globally transformative events in Earth's history and the Cretaceous Terrestrial Revolution (KTR) and end-Cretaceous mass extinction are commonly hailed as catalysts. However, a confounding issue when examining this diversification is that it comprised nested radiations of mammalian subclades within the broader scope of mammalian evolution. In the past 200 million years, various independent groups experienced large-scale radiations, each involving ecological diversification from ancestral lineages of small insectivores; examples include Jurassic mammaliaforms, Late Cretaceous metatherians, and Cenozoic placentals. Here, we review these ecological radiations, highlighting the nuanced complexity of early mammal evolution, the value of ecomorphological fossil data, and the importance of phylogenetic context in macroevolutionary studies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Stephanie M Smith
- Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Gregory P Wilson
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
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18
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Eldridge MDB, Beck RMD, Croft DA, Travouillon KJ, Fox BJ. An emerging consensus in the evolution, phylogeny, and systematics of marsupials and their fossil relatives (Metatheria). J Mammal 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/jmammal/gyz018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Mark D B Eldridge
- Australian Museum Research Institute, Australian Museum, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Robin M D Beck
- School of Environment and Life Sciences, University of Salford, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Darin A Croft
- School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA
| | | | - Barry J Fox
- School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
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19
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Chen M, Strömberg CAE, Wilson GP. Assembly of modern mammal community structure driven by Late Cretaceous dental evolution, rise of flowering plants, and dinosaur demise. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2019; 116:9931-9940. [PMID: 31036651 PMCID: PMC6525522 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1820863116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The long-standing view that Mesozoic mammaliaforms living in dinosaur-dominated ecosystems were ecologically constrained to small size and insectivory has been challenged by astonishing fossil discoveries over the last three decades. By studying these well-preserved early mammaliaform specimens, paleontologists now agree that mammaliaforms underwent ecomorphological diversification during the Mesozoic Era. This implies that Mesozoic mammaliaform communities had ecological structure and breadth that were comparable to today's small-bodied mammalian communities. However, this hypothesis remains untested in part because the primary focus of most studies is on individual taxa. Here, we present a study quantifying the ecological structure of Mesozoic mammaliaform communities with the aim of identifying evolutionary and ecological drivers that influenced the deep-time assembly of small-bodied mammaliaform communities. We used body size, dietary preference, and locomotor mode to establish the ecospace occupation of 98 extant, small-bodied mammalian communities from diverse biomes around the world. We calculated ecological disparity and ecological richness to measure the magnitude of ecological differences among species in a community and the number of different eco-cells occupied by species of a community, respectively. This modern dataset served as a reference for analyzing five exceptionally preserved, extinct mammaliaform communities (two Jurassic, two Cretaceous, one Eocene) from Konservat-Lagerstätten. Our results indicate that the interplay of at least three factors, namely the evolution of the tribosphenic molar, the ecological rise of angiosperms, and potential competition with other vertebrates, may have been critical in shaping the ecological structure of small-bodied mammaliaform communities through time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meng Chen
- School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China;
- State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Caroline A E Strömberg
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-1800
- Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-3010
| | - Gregory P Wilson
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-1800;
- Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-3010
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20
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Mao FY, Meng J. A new haramiyidan mammal from the Jurassic Yanliao Biota and comparisons with other haramiyidans. Zool J Linn Soc 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/zoolinnean/zly088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Fang-Yuan Mao
- Key Laboratory of Evolutionary Systematics of Vertebrates, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- CAS Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing, China
| | - Jin Meng
- Division of Paleontology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, USA
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21
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An Early Cretaceous eutherian and the placental–marsupial dichotomy. Nature 2018; 558:390-395. [DOI: 10.1038/s41586-018-0210-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2018] [Accepted: 05/10/2018] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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22
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Han G, Mao F, Bi S, Wang Y, Meng J. A Jurassic gliding euharamiyidan mammal with an ear of five auditory bones. Nature 2017; 551:451-456. [DOI: 10.1038/nature24483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2017] [Accepted: 10/03/2017] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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23
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Han G, Meng J. A new spalacolestine mammal from the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota and implications for the morphology, phylogeny, and palaeobiology of Laurasian ‘symmetrodontans’. Zool J Linn Soc 2016. [DOI: 10.1111/zoj.12416] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Gang Han
- Hainan Tropical Ocean University; Sanya; Hainan Province 572022 China
- Paleontology Center; Bohai University; Jinzhou Liaoning Province; 121013 China
| | - Jin Meng
- Division of Paleontology; American Museum of Natural History; New York NY 10024 USA
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24
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Meng J, Bi S, Zheng X, Wang X. Ear ossicle morphology of the Jurassic euharamiyidanArboroharamiyaand evolution of mammalian middle ear. J Morphol 2016; 279:441-457. [DOI: 10.1002/jmor.20565] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2015] [Revised: 04/27/2016] [Accepted: 05/04/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jin Meng
- Division of Paleontology; American Museum of Natural History; New York City New York
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origin of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Beijing China
| | - Shundong Bi
- Department of Biology; Indiana University of Pennsylvania; Indiana Pennsylvania
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origin of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Beijing China
| | - Xiaoting Zheng
- Shandong Tianyu Museum of Nature; Pingyi Shandong China
- Institute of Geology and Paleontology, Linyi University; Linyi Shandong China
| | - Xiaoli Wang
- Shandong Tianyu Museum of Nature; Pingyi Shandong China
- Institute of Geology and Paleontology, Linyi University; Linyi Shandong China
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25
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Abstract
There is increasing evidence that early mammals evolved rapidly into a range of body forms and habitats, right under the noses of the dinosaurs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael S Y Lee
- South Australian Museum, North Terrace, Adelaide SA 5000, Australia; School of Biological Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide SA 5005, Australia.
| | - Robin M D Beck
- School of Environment & Life Sciences, University of Salford, Salford M5 4WT, UK
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26
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Lovegrove BG. A phenology of the evolution of endothermy in birds and mammals. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2016; 92:1213-1240. [DOI: 10.1111/brv.12280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 79] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2015] [Revised: 04/11/2016] [Accepted: 04/12/2016] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Barry G. Lovegrove
- School of Life Sciences; University of KwaZulu-Natal; P/Bag X01 Scottsville Pietermaritzburg 3209 South Africa
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27
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Largest known Mesozoic multituberculate from Eurasia and implications for multituberculate evolution and biology. Sci Rep 2015; 5:14950. [PMID: 26492455 PMCID: PMC4615031 DOI: 10.1038/srep14950] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2015] [Accepted: 09/09/2015] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
A new multituberculate, Yubaartar zhongyuanensis gen. and sp. nov., is reported from the Upper Cretaceous of Luanchuan County, Henan Province, China. The holotype of the new taxon is a partial skeleton with nearly complete cranium and associated lower jaws with in situ dentitions. The new species is the southern-most record of a Late Cretaceous multituberculate from outside of the Mongolian Plateau in Asia and represents the largest known Mesozoic multituberculate from Eurasia. The new specimen displays some intriguing features previously unknown in multituberculates, such as the first evidence of replacement of the ultimate upper premolar and a unique paleopathological case in Mesozoic mammals in which the animal with a severely broken right tibia could heal and survive in natural condition. The phylogenetic analysis based on craniodental characters places Yubaartar as the immediate outgroup of Taeniolabidoidea, a group consisting of a North American clade and an Asian clade. This relationship indicates at least a faunal interchange of multituberculates before the K-Pg transition. The new evidence further supports the hypothesis that disparity in dental complexity, which relates to animal diets, increased with generic richness and disparity in body size, and that an adaptive shift towards increased herbivory across the K-Pg transitional interval.
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28
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Evidence for a Mid-Jurassic Adaptive Radiation in Mammals. Curr Biol 2015; 25:2137-42. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2015.06.047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 91] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2015] [Revised: 05/13/2015] [Accepted: 06/18/2015] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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29
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Bi S, Jin X, Li S, Du T. A new Cretaceous Metatherian mammal from Henan, China. PeerJ 2015; 3:e896. [PMID: 25893149 PMCID: PMC4400878 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.896] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2015] [Accepted: 03/27/2015] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
We report a new deltatheroidan mammal from the Upper Cretaceous of Henna, China. The new taxon, Lotheridium mengi, is based on a nearly complete skull and associated lower jaws with full adult dentition. Deltatheroidans are known mostly from fragmentary specimens from Asia and North America. Previous views on deltatheroidan relationships were diverse, but recent studies favored their metatherian affinity. The new specimen represents the most complete skull known for deltatheroidans and provides additional evidence that deltatheroidans already had the distinctive metatherian dental formula and replacement pattern and several other derived metatherian features, supporting the metatherian status for this clade. The new species also indicates that deltatheroidan mammals were more diverse and had broader geographical distributions than previously thought.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shundong Bi
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing , China ; Department of Biology, Indiana University of Pennsylvania , Indiana, PA , United States of America
| | - Xingsheng Jin
- Zhejiang Museum of Natural History , Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province , China
| | - Shuo Li
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing , China
| | - Tianming Du
- Zhejiang Museum of Natural History , Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province , China
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