2025/06/10 by Pauline Guenser, Marc Leu, Néo Nicollet +4 · 1 voice
Earth and Planetary Sciences · #Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils #Paleontology and Evolutionary Biology #Evolution and Paleontology Studies
paper · doi:10.18261/let.58.3.2
openalex publication_date 2025/06/10 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/23
The Permian/Triassic boundary (PTB) crisis represents one of the most severe mass extinction events, resulting in the extinction of over 80% of marine species. The subsequent biotic recovery during the Early Triassic was characterized by alternating phases of high and low taxonomic richness. This study investigates the macroecological processes that shaped biogeographical patterns during this recovery period by examining two marine nektonic groups: conodonts and ammonoids. Using an extensive database of species occurrences and advanced multivariate and network analyses, we identified distinct biogeographical units (biochores) and evaluated the relative influence of niche and dispersal processes on these patterns. Our results reveal that biogeographical structures evolved from longitudinal differentiation during the Griesbachian to latitudinal differentiation by the Spathian. Conodont biogeography was primarily influenced by functional constraints in the Griesbachian and by a combination of niche and dispersal constraints from the Dienerian to Spathian. In contrast, ammonoid biogeography was primarily dispersal-constrained during the Griesbachian and Spathian, and niche-constrained during the Smithian. This study highlights the importance of integrating macroecological theories to understand recovery dynamics of marine ecosystems after mass extinction events. Our findings suggest a complex interplay of biotic (ecological) and abiotic factors in driving the distribution of biodiversity after the PTB crisis. Conodonts and ammonoids were not driven by the same constraints and it may be due to a difference of sensitivity to abiotic parameters and environmental disturbances. By extending these methodologies to other taxonomic groups and other crises, future research may offer critical insights into the drivers of biodiversity’s distribution after a mass extinction.