Data from: Non-reef environments impact the diversification of extant jacks, remoras and allies (Carangoidei, Percomorpha)

Various factors may impact the processes of diversification of a clade. In the marine realm it has been shown that coral reef environments have promoted diversification in various fish groups. With the exception of requiem sharks, all the groups showing higher level of diversity in reefs than in non-reef habitats have diets based predominantly on plankton, algae, or benthic invertebrates. Here we explore the pattern of diversification of carangoid fishes, a clade that includes numerous piscivorous species (e.g. trevallies, jacks and dolphinfishes), using time-calibrated phylogenies as well as ecological and morphological data from both extant and fossil species. The study of carangoid morphospace suggests that reef environments played a role in their early radiation during the Eocene. However, contrary to the hypothesis of a reef-association promoting effect, we show that habitat shifts to non-reef environments have increased the rates of morphological diversification (i.e. size and body shape) in extant carangoids. Piscivory did not have a major impact on the tempo of diversification of this group. Through the ecological radiation of carangoid fishes, we demonstrate that non-reef environments may sustain and promote processes of diversification of different marine fish groups, at least those including a large proportion of piscivorous species.

支系（clade）的多样化进程可能受到多种因素的影响。在海洋环境中，已有研究证实珊瑚礁（coral reef）生境可推动多个鱼类类群的多样化演化。除真鲨（requiem sharks）外，所有在珊瑚礁生境中多样性水平显著高于非礁生境的鱼类类群，其食性均以浮游生物、藻类或底栖无脊椎动物为主。本研究以鲹亚目鱼类（carangoid fishes）为对象，该支系包含众多肉食性鱼类（如鲳鲹、鲹类及鲯鳅，trevallies, jacks and dolphinfishes），我们将结合时间校准系统发育树（time-calibrated phylogenies），以及现生物种（extant species）与化石物种（fossil species）的生态及形态学数据，探究其多样化模式。针对鲹亚目鱼类形态空间（morphospace）的研究表明，珊瑚礁生境在其始新世（Eocene）早期辐射演化中发挥了一定作用。然而，与“珊瑚礁关联可促进多样化”的假说相悖，本研究发现，向非礁生境的生境转换显著提升了现生鲹亚目鱼类的形态多样化速率，即体型大小与躯体形态的多样化速率。肉食性习性（piscivory）并未对该类群的多样化速率产生显著影响。通过对鲹亚目鱼类生态辐射（ecological radiation）的研究，本研究证实，非礁生境同样可以维持并推动多种海洋鱼类类群的多样化进程，至少对于肉食性物种占比颇高的类群而言亦是如此。