Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-t5tsf Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-03T00:06:04.144Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

A diffusion model of species selection

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 February 2016

Montgomery Slatkin*
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, NJ-15, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195

Abstract

A diffusion model of the distribution of a phenotypic character in a group of species is developed and analyzed. The model incorporates the combined effects of phyletic evolution, speciation and extinction. Directed speciation is modeled by assuming there is some bias to phenotypic changes during speciation. Species selection is modeled by assuming there is some dependence of either speciation or extinction rates on the phenotypic character. Three examples are analyzed to illustrate the use of the model. A model of completely random changes due to both phyletic evolution and speciation shows how between-species differences are established. A model of directed speciation due to multiplicative changes during speciation shows how a simple assumption about the speciation process can produce macroevolutionary trends. A model of species selection due to differences in extinction rates shows how the efficacy of species selection depends on the between-species variance produced both by speciation and by phyletic evolution.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © The Paleontological Society 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Literature Cited

Abramowitz, M. and Stegun, I. 1965. Handbook of Mathematical Functions. Dover; New York.Google Scholar
Alberch, P. 1980. Ontogenesis and morphological diversification. Am. Zool. 20:653667.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Crow, J. F. and Kimura, M. 1970. An Introduction to Population Genetics Theory. Harper & Row; New York.Google Scholar
Eldredge, N. and Gould, S. J. 1972. Punctuated equilibria: an alternative to phyletic gradualism. Pp. 82115. In: Schopf, T. J. M., ed. Models in Paleobiology. Freeman; San Francisco, Calif.Google Scholar
Ewens, W. J. 1969. Population Genetics, Methuen; London.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fisher, R. A. 1958. The Genetical Theory of Natural Selection. Second edition. Dover; New York.Google Scholar
Gould, S. J. and Eldredge, N. 1977. Punctuated equilibria: the tempo and mode of evolution reconsidered. Paleobiology. 3:115151.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hutchinson, G. E. and MacArthur, R. H. 1959. A theoretical ecological model of size distributions among species of animals. Am. Nat. 93:117125.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lande, R. 1976. Natural selection and random genetic drift in phenotypic evolution. Evolution. 30:314334.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lewontin, R. C. 1970. The units of selection. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 1:118.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Messiah, A. 1961. Quantum Mechanics, vol. I. North-Holland; Amsterdam.Google Scholar
Raup, D. M., Gould, S. J., Schopf, T. J. M., and Simberloff, D. S. 1973. Stochastic models of phylogeny and the evolution of diversity. J. Geol. 81:525542.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ricciardi, L. M. 1977. Diffusion processes and related topics. Lecture Notes in Biomathematics, Vol. 14. Springer-Verlag; New York.Google Scholar
Sawyer, S. 1976. Branching diffusion processes in population genetics. Adv. Appl. Prob. 8:659689.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stanley, S. M. 1973. An explanation for Cope's Rule. Evolution. 27:126.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stanley, S. M. 1975. A thoery of evolution above the species level. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 72:646650.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stanley, S. M. 1979. Macroevolution: Pattern and Process. Freeman; San Francisco, Calif.Google Scholar
Titchmarsh, E. C. 1962. Eigenfunction Expansions (second edition). Clarendon Press; Oxford.Google Scholar
Vrba, E. 1980. Evolution, species and fossils: how does life evolve? South African J. Sci. 76:6184.Google Scholar