Keeping to warm climates may have helped crocodiles outlast the dinosaurs
Keeping to warm climates throughout their 250-million-year history may have helped crocodiles and their relatives survive the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs, finds a new study led by UCL (University College London) researchers.
A new study led by UCL researchers suggests that the resilience of crocodiles and their relatives to the extinction of dinosaurs may be tied to their preference for warm climates. Examining over 7,000 fossils and records of 400 species, both living and extinct, researchers found that these reptiles consistently followed warm climates as they moved and evolved over 245 million years.
This behavior, known as climatic niche conservatism, appears to have placed crocodile survivors in equatorial and subtropical refuges that could later support their recovery after mass extinctions. Despite their current appearance, pseudosuchians, the group to which crocodiles belong, once included a diverse array of species ranging from giant armored herbivores to agile land predators.
The study's simulations show that, except in extreme scenarios, warm regions near the equator and in the subtropics have remained suitable for crocodile relatives, even following the asteroid impact that caused the dinosaurs' extinction 66 million years ago. This region's suitability is less impacted by decreases in sunlight caused by volcanic activity or decreased carbon dioxide levels.
Researchers stress that while climate has played a role, other factors like smaller body size, semiaquatic lifestyles, and ectothermic metabolism have also contributed to crocodiles' survival. These findings have implications for today's species, suggesting that their survival will depend on their ability to move to suitable habitats as the planet warms and their habitats shrink due to human activity.
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