Morphological selectivity of the Permian-Triassic ammonoid mass extinction

Abstract

Abstract Ammonoids suffered a diversity bottleneck during the Permian-Triassic mass extinction (PTME) and experienced a rapid diversification in the Early Triassic. However, the kinds of ammonoids that were more likely to survive the PTME and that fueled subsequent diversification are still poorly known. We compiled a comprehensive morphological data set and used the nonmetric multidimensional scaling method to reveal the impact of the PTME on the morphological selectivity of ammonoids. Our results show that postextinction taxa occupied a quite different morphospace when compared with the pre-extinction assemblages. The survivors were mainly smooth and weakly ornamented forms, while the late Permian species were dominated by coarsely ornamented forms. Contrary to previously recognized nonselective patterns, these results suggest a morphological selectivity of the Permian-Triassic crisis. Newcomers in the Griesbachian were mainly compressed and smooth forms. This morphological shift from the coarsely ornamented ammonoids dominating the Changhsingian to the smooth ammonoids dominating the Griesbachian possibly suggests an ecological turnover of ammonoids during the PTME.