Intercontinental dispersal of giant thermophilic ants across the Arctic during early Eocene hyperthermals

被引:70
作者
Archibald, S. Bruce [1 ,2 ,3 ]
Johnson, Kirk R. [4 ]
Mathewes, Rolf W. [1 ]
Greenwood, David R. [5 ]
机构
[1] Simon Fraser Univ, Dept Biol Sci, Burnaby, BC V5A 1S6, Canada
[2] Royal BC Museum, Victoria, BC V8W 1A1, Canada
[3] Harvard Univ, Museum Comparat Zool, Cambridge, MA 02138 USA
[4] Denver Museum Nat & Sci, Denver, CO 80205 USA
[5] Brandon Univ, Dept Biol, Brandon, MB R7A 6A9, Canada
基金
加拿大自然科学与工程研究理事会;
关键词
Formicidae; Formiciinae; Titanomyrma; Holarctic dispersal; hyperthermals; OKANAGAN HIGHLANDS; NORTH-AMERICA; BRITISH-COLUMBIA; FOSSIL LEAVES; HYMENOPTERA; TEMPERATURE; TERTIARY; HISTORY; CLIMATE; SEASONALITY;
D O I
10.1098/rspb.2011.0729
中图分类号
Q [生物科学];
学科分类号
090105 [作物生产系统与生态工程];
摘要
Early Eocene land bridges allowed numerous plant and animal species to cross between Europe and North America via the Arctic. While many species suited to prevailing cool Arctic climates would have been able to cross throughout much of this period, others would have found dispersal opportunities only during limited intervals when their requirements for higher temperatures were met. Here, we present Titanomyrma lubei gen. et sp. nov. from Wyoming, USA, a new giant (greater than 5 cm long) formiciine ant from the early Eocene (approx. 49.5 Ma) Green River Formation. We show that the extinct ant subfamily Formiciinae is only known from localities with an estimated mean annual temperature of about 20 degrees C or greater, consistent with the tropical ranges of almost all of the largest living ant species. This is, to our knowledge, the first known formiciine of gigantic size in the Western Hemisphere and the first reported cross-Arctic dispersal by a thermophilic insect group. This implies intercontinental migration during one or more brief high-temperature episodes (hyperthermals) sometime between the latest Palaeocene establishment of intercontinental land connections and the presence of giant formiciines in Europe and North America by the early middle Eocene.
引用
收藏
页码:3679 / 3686
页数:8
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