Extinction at the End-Cretaceous and the Origin of Modern Neotropical Rainforests
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
4-2-2021
Abstract
The end-Cretaceous event was catastrophic for terrestrial communities worldwide, yet its long-lasting effect on tropical forests remains largely unknown. We quantified plant extinction and ecological change in tropical forests resulting from the end-Cretaceous event using fossil pollen (>50,000 occurrences) and leaves (>6000 specimens) from localities in Colombia. Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) rainforests were characterized by an open canopy and diverse plant–insect interactions. Plant diversity declined by 45% at the Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary and did not recover for ~6 million years. Paleocene forests resembled modern Neotropical rainforests, with a closed canopy and multistratal structure dominated by angiosperms. The end-Cretaceous event triggered a long interval of low plant diversity in the Neotropics and the evolutionary assembly of today’s most diverse terrestrial ecosystem.
Publication Information
Carvalho, Mónica R.; Jaramillo, Carlos; de la Perra, Felipe; Caballero-Rodríguez; Herrara, Fabiany; Wing, Scott; . . . and Silvestro, Daniele. (2021). "Extinction at the End-Cretaceous and the Origin of Modern Neotropical Rainforests". Science, 372(6537), 63-68. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abf1969
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