Data from: The modulating role of traits on the biogeographic dynamics of chondrichthyans from the Neogene to the present

The environmental transformations that occurred during the Neogene had
profound effects on spatio-temporal biodiversity patterns, yet the
modulating role of traits (i.e. physiological, ecological and life history
traits) remains little understood. We tested this idea using the Neogene
fossil record of chondrichthyans along the temperate Pacific coast of
South America (TPSA). Information of georeferenced occurrences and
ecological and life history information of 38 chondrichthyan fossil genera
in 42 Neogene sites was collected. Global georeferenced records were used
to estimate present-day biogeographic distributions of the genera and to
characterize the range of oceanographic conditions in which each genus
lives as a proxy of their realized niche. Biogeographic range shifts
(Neogene - present) were evaluated at regional and local scales. The role
of traits as drivers of different range dynamics was evaluated using
random forest models. The magnitude and direction of biogeographic range
shifts were different at both spatial scales. At a regional scale, 34% of
genera contracted their ranges, disappearing from the TPSA. At a local
scale, a similar proportion of genera expanded and contracted their
southern endpoints of distribution. The models showed a high precision at
both spatial scales of analyses, but the relative importance of predictor
variables were different. At a regional scale, disappearing genera tended
to have a higher tolerance to salinity, lower sea surface temperature
(SST) range, and smaller body sizes. At a local scale, genera contracting
their ranges tended to live at greater depths, tolerate lower levels of
primary productivity, and show a reduced tolerance to higher and lower SST
ranges. The magnitude and direction of the changes in the range
distribution were scale-dependent and variable across the genera. Hence,
the multiple environmental exogenous factors interacted with taxon traits
during the Neogene, creating a mosaic of biogeographic dynamics.