Researchers at the National Evolutionary Synthesis Center in NC came to the same conclusion that a few studies before have as well. While we all know that areas near the equator host the most biodiversity, there seems to be some data suggesting we may be giving it too much credit. It's easy to picture the tropical rain forests, rich with a multitude of species. But this data, studying 2300 species of mammals and 6700 species of birds, suggests that there is a greater number of "subspecies" in the harsher environments of higher latitudes than the equator. A subspecies is a potential stepping stone in the process by which one species becomes two, and there are many reasons as to why it is possibly true that more exist in harsher conditions, as discussed in a study published in an issue of Molecular Ecology, which is also consistent with a study by the University of British Columbia.
Botero, a lead author of the NC study, makes the metaphor "comparing biodiversity in the temperate zones with that in the tropics" to "the coins in your pocket with the coins in your piggy bank...there are usually more coins in your piggy bank than in your pocket, but you're always spending the coins in your pocket, and receiving new coins in the from of change...the coins in your piggy bank turn over less often, but over time they add up". For me, that cleared up the situation and I thought it was a clever way of explaining it. This just goes to show that both the environment and scientific data are constantly changing, and there is most definitely something new to look into every day!
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