Resumo:
Unraveling patterns and processes that shaped species distribution is essential to
comprehend the evolutionary history of any biome, as well as to help conservation actions.
However, studies on species distribution have been carried out considering only the richness and
abundance of species associated with the factors climatic factors, disregarding the interplay
between evolutionary and ecological aspects, which is fundamental for obtaining more accurate
results on the species distribution patterns and which variables are influencing these patterns. In
this way, in this work we used the phylogenetic information to comprehend the diversity and
phylogenetic structure of bird assemblages from the Caatinga. Herein we estimated species
richness, phylogenetic diversity, and composition turnover based on species richness (GDM) and
phylogenetic relationships (Phylo-GDM) of the Caatinga bird assemblages. Our results evidenced
higher species richness and phylogenetic diversity in the boundary of Caatinga, surrounding
Cerrado and Atlantic Forest biomes. We also observed four large clusters based on turnover from
GDM model and five large clusters based on Phylo-GDM. These models indicated precipitation as
the main climatic variable associated with the species turnover throughout the Caatinga, both based
on richness and phylogenetic relationships. In this way, the inclusion of information on the
evolutionary history of species allowed a better prediction of the structure of the current bird
assemblages along the Caatinga. The next steps are the insertion of functional data and more
environmental variables that make the models more robust.
