Untangling the causes of Terror Birds extinction (Cariamiformes, Phorusrhacidae): the interplay of biotic and abiotic factors

Fossil occurrence datasets at the species level for Phorusrhacidae and its putative competitors (Carnivora order and the carnivore species of the metatherian groups, Sparassodonta and Didelphimorphia). The datasets include 16 species of Phorusrhacidae (70 occurrences), 66 species of Carnivora (382 occurrences), 68 species of Sparassodonta (161 occurrences), and 25 species of Didelphimorphia (80 occurrences). Seven abiotic abiotic variables: the time-continuous Andean paleo-elevation as a proxy for regional environmental and landscape change. The paleo-elevation data for the central-southern (CS) Andes. The leaf area index (LAI). The proportion of open habitat as proxies of the expansion of the arid biomes (i.e., grasslands, savannas). Climatic global variables: mean temperature variation; mean sea-level reconstruction; and mean carbon dioxide levels. Sources detailed in Methods in the referred study.