Modélisation d'un réseau trophique paléoécologique de la faune fossile des schistes de Fezouata (Maroc) de l'Ordovicien inférieur

A newly reconstructed paleoecological food web from the Fezouata fossil site (Morocco) reveals that Ordovician marine ecosystems, despite their early stage, exhibited modern-like trophic complexity. The study, which compiled the most comprehensive species list to date and modeled 15 trophic properties, found that Fezouata's network shared similarities with Burgess Shale (Cambrian) but featured higher basal species proportions and lower mean trophic levels, reflecting the rise of filter-feeding animals post-Cambrian explosion. Comparisons across Chengjiang, Burgess, and Fezouata suggest the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event (GOBE) may not be as independent from the Cambrian diversification as previously thought, implying a continuous long-term evolutionary process rather than distinct events.

P. Soucy, C. (2024). Modélisation d'un réseau trophique paléoécologique de la faune fossile des schistes de Fezouata (Maroc) de l'Ordovicien inférieur [Université de Montréal]. https://doi.org/10.71781/20373