When an animal's environment changes faster than it can adapt, its chances of survival can plummet. Scientists from MIT and the University of Leicester have discovered that this connection between evolutionary adaptation and the pace of environmental change is also valid on a global scale, potentially determining life’s susceptibility to mass extinction. The researchers developed a theoretical model, presented in Physical Review Letters, comparing it with data from past major extinction events, including the rate of global environmental change during each event. The model successfully predicted the severity of most mass extinctions in Earth's history, indicating the fraction of life that failed to adapt and subsequently went extinct. Interestingly, they found that the range of adaptation rates among animal groups closely resembles the rates of environmental change. Study author Daniel Rothman states, “Life's range of adaptability may have evolved to match the range of stresses it encounters.”
The link between extinction and environmental change is not new; the concept of