BIOL 350 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Unimodality, Species Richness, Spatial Analysis
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I(cid:374) a(cid:374) a(cid:395)uati(cid:272) syste(cid:373) a(cid:374) a(cid:374)i(cid:373)al has the a(cid:271)ility to (cid:271)e la(cid:396)ge(cid:396) (cid:271)e(cid:272)ause it does(cid:374)"t ha(cid:448)e to carry its own weight (cid:894)does(cid:374)"t ha(cid:448)e to deal (cid:449)ith g(cid:396)a(cid:448)ity(cid:895) Global distribution of mammalian body mass at the late. Data are prior to the anthropogenic extinction of megafauna in the americas at the terminal pleistocene, which significantly depressed the right mode. Whatever the reason, results are remarkably consistent across continents and time. Proportion of each continental fauna composed of the major mammalian orders as a function of body mass. General unimodal distribution in all of them, favoring smaller animals. Should(cid:374)"t the st(cid:396)ess of li(cid:448)i(cid:374)g i(cid:374) cold climates limit growth: surface to area ratio. In cold climates, animals need to keep the heat in so reduce surface to area ratio. In warmer climates, animals need to cool off, so increase surface-to-area ratio. Relationships are often allometirc rather than isometric. Larger animals have a relative lower metabolic rates and costs of locomotion.
