The tempo of avian diversification: A response to Johnson and Cicero
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2-2006
Publication Title
Evolution
Publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
Volume
60
Issue
2
First page number:
411
Last page number:
412
Abstract
Johnson and Cicero (2004) claimed that inspection of a distribution of uncorrected mitochondrial DNA avian sister-taxon distances illustrated that the late Pleistocene was an important time for avian speciation. They believed this finding to be at odds with conclusions of Klicka and Zink (1997). However, both studies document recent speciation events. More germane to the discussion is what is meant by an ‘‘important’’ time for speciation, which we take to mean above some baseline diversification rate. We constructed a null distribution of sister-taxon distances based on a model of constant speciation and extinction rates. The empirical distribution of sister-taxon distances in Johnson and Cicero (2004) did not differ from the null model. Therefore, our analysis of Johnson and Cicero’s data suggests that the late Pleistocene was no more important for avian speciation than any other time during this time period.
Keywords
Biodiversity; Biogeography; Birds; Phylogeny
Controlled Subject
Biodiversity; Phylogeography; Population Biology
Disciplines
Biodiversity | Evolution | Molecular Genetics | Ornithology
File Format
File Size
23 KB
Language
English
Permissions
Use Find in Your Library, contact the author, or use interlibrary loan to garner a copy of the article. Publisher copyright policy allows author to archive post-print (author’s final manuscript). When post-print is available or publisher policy changes, the article will be deposited.
Rights
IN COPYRIGHT. For more information about this rights statement, please visit http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Repository Citation
Zink, R. M.,
Klicka, J.
(2006).
The tempo of avian diversification: A response to Johnson and Cicero.
Evolution, 60(2),
411-412.
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