The evolution of maximum body size of terrestrial mammals

Felisa A. Smith; Alison G. Boyer; James H. Brown; Daniel P. Costa; Tamar Dayan; S. K.Morgan Ernest; Alistair R. Evans; Mikael Fortelius; John L. Gittleman; Marcus J. Hamilton; Larisa E. Harding; Kari Lintulaakso; S. Kathleen Lyons; Christy McCain; Jordan G. Okie; Juha J. Saarinen; Richard M. Sibly; Patrick R. Stephens; Jessica Theodor; Mark D. Uhen

doi:10.1126/science.1194830

The evolution of maximum body size of terrestrial mammals

Felisa A. Smith, Alison G. Boyer, James H. Brown, Daniel P. Costa, Tamar Dayan, S. K.Morgan Ernest, Alistair R. Evans, Mikael Fortelius, John L. Gittleman, Marcus J. Hamilton, Larisa E. Harding, Kari Lintulaakso, S. Kathleen Lyons, Christy McCain, Jordan G. Okie, Juha J. Saarinen, Richard M. Sibly, Patrick R. Stephens, Jessica Theodor, Mark D. Uhen

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

212 Scopus citations

Abstract

The extinction of dinosaurs at the Cretaceous/Paleogene (K/Pg) boundary was the seminal event that opened the door for the subsequent diversification of terrestrial mammals. Our compilation of maximum body size at the ordinal level by sub-epoch shows a near-exponential increase after the K/Pg. On each continent, the maximum size of mammals leveled off after 40 million years ago and thereafter remained approximately constant. There was remarkable congruence in the rate, trajectory, and upper limit across continents, orders, and trophic guilds, despite differences in geological and climatic history, turnover of lineages, and ecological variation. Our analysis suggests that although the primary driver for the evolution of giant mammals was diversification to fill ecological niches, environmental temperature and land area may have ultimately constrained the maximum size achieved.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	1216-1219
Number of pages	4
Journal	Science
Volume	330
Issue number	6008
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1194830
State	Published - Nov 26 2010
Externally published	Yes

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Smith, F. A., Boyer, A. G., Brown, J. H., Costa, D. P., Dayan, T., Ernest, S. K. M., Evans, A. R., Fortelius, M., Gittleman, J. L., Hamilton, M. J., Harding, L. E., Lintulaakso, K., Lyons, S. K., McCain, C., Okie, J. G., Saarinen, J. J., Sibly, R. M., Stephens, P. R., Theodor, J., & Uhen, M. D. (2010). The evolution of maximum body size of terrestrial mammals. Science, 330(6008), 1216-1219. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1194830

Smith, FA, Boyer, AG, Brown, JH, Costa, DP, Dayan, T, Ernest, SKM, Evans, AR, Fortelius, M, Gittleman, JL, Hamilton, MJ, Harding, LE, Lintulaakso, K, Lyons, SK, McCain, C, Okie, JG, Saarinen, JJ, Sibly, RM, Stephens, PR, Theodor, J & Uhen, MD 2010, 'The evolution of maximum body size of terrestrial mammals', Science, vol. 330, no. 6008, pp. 1216-1219. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1194830

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title = "The evolution of maximum body size of terrestrial mammals",

abstract = "The extinction of dinosaurs at the Cretaceous/Paleogene (K/Pg) boundary was the seminal event that opened the door for the subsequent diversification of terrestrial mammals. Our compilation of maximum body size at the ordinal level by sub-epoch shows a near-exponential increase after the K/Pg. On each continent, the maximum size of mammals leveled off after 40 million years ago and thereafter remained approximately constant. There was remarkable congruence in the rate, trajectory, and upper limit across continents, orders, and trophic guilds, despite differences in geological and climatic history, turnover of lineages, and ecological variation. Our analysis suggests that although the primary driver for the evolution of giant mammals was diversification to fill ecological niches, environmental temperature and land area may have ultimately constrained the maximum size achieved.",

author = "Smith, {Felisa A.} and Boyer, {Alison G.} and Brown, {James H.} and Costa, {Daniel P.} and Tamar Dayan and Ernest, {S. K.Morgan} and Evans, {Alistair R.} and Mikael Fortelius and Gittleman, {John L.} and Hamilton, {Marcus J.} and Harding, {Larisa E.} and Kari Lintulaakso and Lyons, {S. Kathleen} and Christy McCain and Okie, {Jordan G.} and Saarinen, {Juha J.} and Sibly, {Richard M.} and Stephens, {Patrick R.} and Jessica Theodor and Uhen, {Mark D.}",

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AU - Boyer, Alison G.

AU - Brown, James H.

AU - Costa, Daniel P.

AU - Dayan, Tamar

AU - Ernest, S. K.Morgan

AU - Evans, Alistair R.

AU - Fortelius, Mikael

AU - Gittleman, John L.

AU - Hamilton, Marcus J.

AU - Harding, Larisa E.

AU - Lintulaakso, Kari

AU - Lyons, S. Kathleen

AU - McCain, Christy

AU - Okie, Jordan G.

AU - Saarinen, Juha J.

AU - Sibly, Richard M.

AU - Stephens, Patrick R.

AU - Theodor, Jessica

AU - Uhen, Mark D.

PY - 2010/11/26

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The evolution of maximum body size of terrestrial mammals

Abstract

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