Evolution: No extinction? No way!

Article Evolutionary Biology

A Total-Group Phylogenetic Metatree for Cetacea and the Importance of Fossil Data in Diversification Analyses

Graeme T. Lloyd et al.

Summary: Phylogenetic trees incorporating both extinct and extant taxa are crucial for accurately inferring macroevolutionary dynamics. While most diversification studies rely on molecular phylogenies, a meta-analytic approach can provide a well-resolved set of time-scaled phylogenetic hypotheses for extinct and extant species. The metatree approach offers a more immediate route for generating higher-level phylogenies of extinct taxa and allows for re-evaluation of macroevolutionary hypotheses derived only from extant taxa.

SYSTEMATIC BIOLOGY (2021)

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Article Biology

Fossils improve phylogenetic analyses of morphological characters

Nicolas Mongiardino Koch et al.

Summary: Fossils provide a direct window into evolutionary events in the distant past. Incorporating fossils into phylogenetic hypotheses of living clades can help time-calibrate divergences and elucidate macroevolutionary dynamics. Additionally, fossils improve the accuracy of phylogenetic analysis of morphological datasets and increase the number of resolved nodes.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES (2021)

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Article Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Why extinction estimates from extant phylogenies are so often zero

Stilianos Louca et al.

Summary: Time-calibrated phylogenies of extant species are commonly used in estimating historical speciation and extinction rates, but controversy exists due to zero inflation in extinction estimates. A novel explanation is provided based on the discovery of alternative congruent diversification scenarios, which may result in estimators converging to scenarios with negative extinction rates. This mechanism explains the zero inflation of extinction rate estimates without detectable model violations, potentially resolving a long-standing mystery in phylogenetics.

CURRENT BIOLOGY (2021)

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Article Multidisciplinary Sciences