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美国研究人员发现，在至少两次远古全球气候变暖事件中哺乳动物的体型缩小。这暗示伴随着未来全球气候转暖变化，或将再次出现类似现象。多年以来，科学家发现古新世-始新世极热时期哺乳动物出现体型缩小，该时期已距今约5500万年。目前，美国密歇根大学一名古生物学家发现哺乳动物“侏儒化”也出现于5300万年前另一次全球气温升高时期。科学家认为，体型缩小是哺乳动物受全球极端气温升高事件影响的一种普遍进化反应，这将有助于预测一些物种在未来全球气温升高趋势下的自然反应。
（来源：http：//www.sciencedaily.com）
Dwarfism in Mammals due to Global Warming
Mammal body size decreased significantly during at least two ancient global warming events. A new finding that suggests a similar outcome is possible in response to human-caused climate change， according to a University of Michigan paleontologist and his colleagues. Researchers have known for years that mammals such as primates became much smaller during a period of warming， called the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum （PETM）， about 55 million years ago and a s smaller global warming event that occurred about 2 million years after the PETM， around 53 million years ago. They concluded that decreased body size “seems to be a common evolutionary response” by mammals to extreme global warming events， known as hyperthermals， “and thus may be a predictable natural response for some lineages to future global warming.”
（Source： http：//www.sciencedaily.com）
（来源：http：//www.sciencedaily.com）
Dwarfism in Mammals due to Global Warming
Mammal body size decreased significantly during at least two ancient global warming events. A new finding that suggests a similar outcome is possible in response to human-caused climate change， according to a University of Michigan paleontologist and his colleagues. Researchers have known for years that mammals such as primates became much smaller during a period of warming， called the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum （PETM）， about 55 million years ago and a s smaller global warming event that occurred about 2 million years after the PETM， around 53 million years ago. They concluded that decreased body size “seems to be a common evolutionary response” by mammals to extreme global warming events， known as hyperthermals， “and thus may be a predictable natural response for some lineages to future global warming.”
（Source： http：//www.sciencedaily.com）