A Global-Scale Mid-Domain Effect Cannot Explain the Latitudinal Gradient in Species Richness.

Abstract

The latitudinal gradient in species richness is perhaps the most fundamental pattern of biodiversity, yet a satisfactory explanation for its existence remains elusive. A geometric "mid-domain effect" is often cited as having potential to help explain the latitudinal gradient in species richness, but the logic underpinning this hypothesis is apparently built on two incorrect assumptions: (1) that a given great circle-usually the Equator-can constitute the geometric "mid-domain" of the Earth's surface, and (2) that geophysical or bioclimatic boundaries are of geometric relevance in the context of a global-scale mid-domain effect. This article gives a brief overview of the relevant literature and history of thought on the subject, and describes in clear and simple terms why a global-scale mid-domain effect cannot arise, and thus cannot possibly represent a mechanistic basis for the latitudinal gradient in species richness. Explicit acknowledgement of this fact is of great importance, as it allows us to dispense with a commonly cited hypothesis for the latitudinal gradient in species richness.