Premium
Urbanisation and the loss of phylogenetic diversity in birds
Author(s) -
Sol Daniel,
Bartomeus Ignasi,
GonzálezLagos César,
Pavoine Sandrine
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
ecology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.852
H-Index - 265
eISSN - 1461-0248
pISSN - 1461-023X
DOI - 10.1111/ele.12769
Subject(s) - phylogenetic diversity , urbanization , phylogenetic tree , biodiversity , ecology , biology , species richness , optimal distinctiveness theory , phylogenetics , diversity (politics) , geography , evolutionary biology , psychology , biochemistry , sociology , gene , anthropology , psychotherapist
Despite the recognised conservation value of phylogenetic diversity, little is known about how it is affected by the urbanisation process. Combining a complete avian phylogeny with surveys along urbanisation gradients from five continents, we show that highly urbanised environments supported on average 450 million fewer years of evolutionary history than the surrounding natural environments. This loss was primarily caused by species loss and could have been higher had not been partially compensated by the addition of urban exploiters and some exotic species. Highly urbanised environments also supported fewer evolutionary distinctive species, implying a disproportionate loss of evolutionary history. Compared with highly urbanised environments, changes in phylogenetic richness and evolutionary distinctiveness were less substantial in moderately urbanised environments. Protecting pristine environments is therefore essential for maintaining phylogenetic diversity, but moderate levels of urbanisation still preserve much of the original diversity.