Phylogenetic and functional clustering illustrate the roles of adaptive radiation and dispersal filtering in jointly shaping late‐Quaternary mammal assemblages on oceanic islands

• Published in: Ecology letters 2022-05, Vol.25 (5), p.1250-1262
• Main Authors: Si, Xingfeng, Cadotte, Marc W., Davies, T. Jonathan, Antonelli, Alexandre, Ding, Ping, Svenning, Jens‐Christian, Faurby, Søren, Poisot, Timothée
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adaptive radiation; Animals; Anthropogenic factors; Biogeography; Biological evolution; character displacement; Cluster Analysis; Clustering; community assembly; community ecology; Dispersal; Dispersion; diversification; diversity; eco-evolutionary dynamic; Ecology; Ekologi; Environmental Sciences & Ecology; Evolution; Extinct species; extinctions; Filtration; global patterns; Harbors; introductions; island; Island biogeography; Islands; mammal; Mammals; Oceanic islands; Oceans and Seas; Phylogenetics; Phylogeny; Radiation; Small mammals; Speciation; species coexistence; species pool
• ISSN: 1461-023X; 1461-0248
• DOI: 10.1111/ele.13997

Islands frequently harbour unique assemblages of species, yet their ecological roles and differences are largely ignored in island biogeography studies. Here, we examine eco‐evolutionary processes structuring mammal assemblages on oceanic islands worldwide, including all extant and extinct late‐Quaternary mammal species. We find island mammal assemblages tend to be phylogenetically clustered (share more recent evolutionary histories), with clustering increasing with island area and isolation. We also observe that mammal assemblages often tend to be functionally clustered (share similar traits), but the strength of clustering is weak and generally independent from island area or isolation. These findings indicate the important roles of in situ speciation and dispersal filtering in shaping island mammal assemblages under pre‐anthropogenic conditions, notably through adaptive radiation of a few clades (e.g. bats, with generally high dispersal abilities). Our study demonstrates that considering the functional and phylogenetic axes of diversity can better reveal the eco‐evolutionary processes of island community assembly. We examine the ecological and evolutionary processes structuring mammal assemblages on oceanic islands worldwide, including all extant and extinct late‐Quaternary mammal species. We find island mammal assemblages tend to be phylogenetically and functionally clustered, illustrating the joint effects of adaptive radiation and dispersal filtering on island community assembly.