Macroecological and macroevolutionary factors related to vertebrate diversity

Abstract

Investigating the distribution of biodiversity in the planet and the involved processes and mechanisms might be important in order to plan successful strategies for its conservation. Probably, the most studied biodiversity pattern is the latitudinal species richness gradient, and current climatic conditions are a widely accepted explanation for this pattern. However, it is possible that the correlation between biodiversity and climate is not causal, due to the spatial structure of climatic variables, and other factors (like past climatic conditions and recolonisation of glaciated areas) could explain these patterns. Following the ecological niche theory, the niche could affect the geographic distributions of species, but neutral models consider that their distribution is the result of stochastic and limited migrations. The main objective of this dissertation is to analyse how these factors and processes are involved in shaping the biodiversity and distribution of terrestrial mammals at continental and global scales.