The Influence of Oxygen Percentage, Carbon Dioxide Percentage, and Sea Level on the Mean Size and Diversity of Marine Animals during the Cambrian-Neogene Transition
Abstract
Throughout the course of time, mean body size and diversity have increased arguably due to relationship with environmental factors. Oxygen, carbon dioxide, and sea level are possibly among the most essential environmental factors that influence body size and diversification of marine animals. We test this hypothesis using correlations between animal size and diversity and these environmental variables, but the correlation tests show that oxygen and carbon dioxide levels have no significant relationships with mean body size and diversity in general. According to Pearson's product-moment correlation test, sea level and mean body size of marine animals are inversely related to each other; sea level increases, the mean body sizes decrease or vise versa. Therefore, we looked at trends within individual phyla seeking correlations between the two factors and diversity. Carbon dioxide and oxygen levels are directly related to the diversification of Brachiopoda; sea level is directly related to the diversification of Arthropoda and Echinodermata. Oxygen percentage, carbon dioxide percentage, and sea level have influence toward the increase in mean body size and diversity of marine animals in specific phylum, with the exception of inverse relation between sea level and mean body size. Environmental factors do indeed influence the fluctuation of the mean body size and diversification of marine animals during the Cambrian-Neogene transition, which is proven through correlation test.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2016
- Bibcode:
- 2016AGUFMED41A0814G
- Keywords:
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- 0805 Elementary and secondary education;
- EDUCATIONDE: 0825 Teaching methods;
- EDUCATIONDE: 0850 Geoscience education research;
- EDUCATIONDE: 0855 Diversity;
- EDUCATION