The evolution of modern marine ecosystems: environmental controls on their structure and function
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Oxford
Department Name: Earth Sciences
Abstract
See text in lead RO submission (Plymouth)
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Matthew Friedman (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
Anderson P
(2012)
Using cladistic characters to predict functional variety: experiments using early gnathostomes
in Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology
Bellwood DR
(2015)
The Rise of Jaw Protrusion in Spiny-Rayed Fishes Closes the Gap on Elusive Prey.
in Current biology : CB
Clarke JT
(2016)
Little evidence for enhanced phenotypic evolution in early teleosts relative to their living fossil sister group.
in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Dornburg A
(2014)
Phylogenetic informativeness reconciles ray-finned fish molecular divergence times.
in BMC evolutionary biology
Friedman M
(2013)
Molecular and fossil evidence place the origin of cichlid fishes long after Gondwanan rifting.
in Proceedings. Biological sciences
Friedman M
(2012)
Parallel evolutionary trajectories underlie the origin of giant suspension-feeding whales and bony fishes.
in Proceedings. Biological sciences
FRIEDMAN M
(2012)
Five hundred million years of extinction and recovery: a phanerozoic survey of large-scale diversity patterns in fishes
in Palaeontology
Graeme Lloyd (Author)
(2012)
Confidence intervals on node age estimates in vertebrate phylogeny
Graeme Lloyd (Author)
(2012)
A new non-minimal algorithm for dating trees of fossil taxa.
| Description | To date, highlights of our in-progress research project include: 1) The discovery that the fossil record of fishes is not as strongly biased by aspects of the geological record as is the fossil record of land-living backboned creatures. This has important implications for estimating past species diversity and assessing the relative impacts of major extinction events, both of which provide important historical context for current biological crises. 2) The discovery, based on the fossil record of Great Britain, that the diversity of fishes has increased toward the modern day, and that this increase does not appear to be a consequence of a biased palaeontological record. 3) The discovery that, when combined, fossil and molecular-genetic resources provide a well-supported picture for the evolutionary origin of biological diversity in ray-finned fishes, which include roughly half of all living vertebrate species, and are of considerable economic and scientific importance. 4) The discovery that aspects of evolution in a particularly diverse group of ray-finned fishes, known as spiny-rayed fishes, show patterns characteristic of 'adaptive radiations'. These patterns are best known for species on short timescales in restricted geographical areas, so our analyses of a widespread and geologically long-lived group provide an important complement to these studies. 5) The discovery that the spectacularly diverse fishes living on coral reefs entered that important habitat in two 'bursts': one before and one after the extinction 66 million years ago that killed the dinosaurs. 6) The discovery that the specialized jaw structure of spiny-rayed fishes, which allows them to feed on elusive prey, evolved over 100 million years ago, and that species showing this capability have increased in frequency in the time that has followed. |
| Exploitation Route | By targeting the evolutionary histories of a well-known and charismatic group of organisms, the outcomes of this research can be used as a tool to help foster public awareness of key topics related to the origin and maintenance of biodiversity over very long (geological) timescales. Our results form necessary context for future work that seeks to examine the origin of half of all vertebrate species alive today. This represents critical historical and evolutionary background for the diversity of research that uses fish model systems. We anticipate that new statistical methods for estimating the timing of evolutionary events currently under development as a component of this work will represent a major new contribution to the study of the co-evolution of life and the planet. |
| Sectors | Environment |
| URL | http://www.lifeandplanet.net/project-ii-the-evolution-of-modern-marine-ecosystems.html |
| Description | Media coverage of Friedman et al. (2013), Near et al. (2013), Price et al. (2014). |
| First Year Of Impact | 2013 |
| Sector | Other |
| Impact Types | Cultural |
| Description | Leverhulme Research Project Grant (2012) |
| Amount | £212,663 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | RPG-2012-658 |
| Organisation | The Leverhulme Trust |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 01/2013 |
| End | 01/2016 |
| Description | Leverhulme Research Project Grant (2015) |
| Amount | £248,932 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | RPG 2015-126 |
| Organisation | The Leverhulme Trust |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2015 |
| End | 10/2019 |
| Description | Royal Society Newton Fellowship |
| Amount | £64,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | The Royal Society |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 01/2015 |
| End | 09/2015 |
| Description | Presentation of research results at Oxford Alumni Weekend 2013 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Talk resulted in extended discussion on evolutionary changes as revealed by fossils. Atendees indicated interest in the research discussed. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |