Seasonality, montane beta diversity, and Eocene insects: Testing Janzen's dispersal hypothesis in an equable world

We test Janzen's (1967) hypothesis that the low temperature seasonality in the modern tropics accounts for increased local species turnover (beta diversity) across montane landscapes relative to those of the more seasonal Temperate Zone. In the Eocene, low seasonality extended beyond the hot tropics to Polar Regions, therefore, its effects on montane dispersal ability should have been decoupled from low latitude. We sampled fossil insect communities across the Okanagan Highlands: a thousand kilometer transect of temperate, low temperature seasonality, higher mid-latitude Eocene uplands of far-western North America. We find high species turnover, supporting a prime role of temperature fluctuation in controlling montane beta diversity. This high upper mid-latitude montane endemism is consistent with greater Eocene global biodiversity.

► Modern montane beta diversity is associated with temperature seasonality.
► Lower Eocene global seasonality implies increased extra-tropical montane beta diversity.
► We examine Eocene montane insect beta diversity in western North America.
► We found high beta diversity across a 1000 km transect.
► This supports an isolated role of seasonality in regulating montane beta diversity.