Humans have been driving a global erosion of species richness for millennia, but the consequences of past extinctions for other dimensions of biodiversity—functional and phylogenetic diversity—are poorly understood. In this work, we show that, since the Late Pleistocene, the extinction of 610 bird species has caused a disproportionate loss of the global avian functional space along with ~3 billion years of unique evolutionary history. For island endemics, proportional losses have been even greater. Projected future extinctions of more than 1000 species over the next two centuries will incur further substantial reductions in functional and phylogenetic diversity. These results highlight the severe consequences of the ongoing biodiversity crisis and the urgent need to identify the ecological functions being lost through extinction.

Research on island species–area relationships (ISAR) has expanded to incorporate functional (IFDAR) and phylogenetic (IPDAR) diversity. However, relative to the ISAR, we know little about IFDARs and IPDARs, and lack synthetic global analyses of variation in form of these three categories of island diversity–area relationship (IDAR). Here, we undertake the first comparative evaluation of IDARs at the global scale using 51 avian archipelagic data sets representing true and habitat islands. Using null models, we explore how richness‐corrected functional and phylogenetic diversity scale with island area. We also provide the largest global assessment of the impacts of species introductions and extinctions on the IDAR. Results show that increasing richness with area is the primary driver of the (non‐richness corrected) IPDAR and IFDAR for many data sets. However, for several archipelagos, richness‐corrected functional and phylogenetic diversity changes linearly with island area, suggesting that the dominant community assembly processes shift along the island area gradient. We also find that archipelagos with the steepest ISARs exhibit the biggest differences in slope between IDARs, indicating increased functional and phylogenetic redundancy on larger islands in these archipelagos. In several cases introduced species seem to have ‘re‐calibrated’ the IDARs such that they resemble the historic period prior to recent extinctions.

The Pleistocene vertebrate assemblage of Aldabra Atoll has been comparatively well studied. Three Upper Pleistocene fossil localities have been described yielding birds, reptiles and terrestrial molluscs. Those of Bassin Cabri and Bassin Lebine on Ile Picard are undated but must be in excess of 136,000 YBP, whereas Point Hodoul on Malabar Island is circa 100,000 YBP. Aldabra was seemingly completely submerged between deposition of the Ile Picard and Point Hodoul deposits, resulting in local faunal extinctions. Here we present the results of an ongoing study of fossil material collected on Ile Picard in 1987, which reveals a more diverse assemblage than previously realised. Notable discoveries are an Ardeola heron, three Procellariformes, tropic-bird Phaethon, gull Larus, rail Dryolimnas, harrier Circus and owl Tyto, plus evidence of recolonisation of the atoll by some seabirds, rail, harrier, owl, giant tortoises and lizards after the Ile Picard/Point Hodoul submergence event.

The dodo Raphus cucullatus Linnaeus, 1758 Linnaeus, C. 1758. Systema Naturae per Tegna Tria Naturae, Secundum Classes, Ordines, Genera, Species, cum Characteribus, Differentiis, Synonymis, Locis. Tenth Edition. Laurentii Salvii, Stockholm , 824 pp. [Google Scholar] , an extinct and flightless, giant pigeon endemic to Mauritius, has fascinated people since its discovery, yet has remained surprisingly poorly known. Until the mid-19th century, almost all that was known about the dodo was based on illustrations and written accounts by 17th century mariners, often of questionable accuracy. Furthermore, only a few fragmentary remains of dodos collected prior to the bird's extinction exist. Our understanding of the dodo's anatomy was substantially enhanced by the discovery in 1865 of subfossil bones in a marsh called the Mare aux Songes, situated in southeastern Mauritius. However, no contextual information was recorded during early excavation efforts, and the majority of excavated material comprised larger dodo bones, almost all of which were unassociated. Here we present a modern interdisciplinary analysis of the Mare aux Songes, a 4200-year-old multitaxic vertebrate concentration Lagerstätte. Our analysis of the deposits at this site provides the first detailed overview of the ecosystem inhabited by the dodo. The interplay of climatic and geological conditions led to the exceptional preservation of the animal and associated plant remains at the Mare aux Songes and provides a window into the past ecosystem of Mauritius. This interdisciplinary research approach provides an ecological framework for the dodo, complementing insights on its anatomy derived from the only associated dodo skeletons known, both of which were collected by Etienne Thirioux and are the primary subject of this memoir. Citation for this article: Rijsdijk, K. F., J. P. Hume, P. G. B. de Louw, H. J. M. Meijer, A. Janoo, E. J. de Boer, L. Steel, J. de Vos, L. G. van der Sluis, H. Hooghiemstra, F. B. V. Florens, C. Baider, T. J. J. Vernimmen, P. Baas, A. H. van Heteren, V. Rupear, G. Beebeejaun, A. Grihault, J. van der Plicht, M. Besselink, J. K. Lubeek, M. Jansen, S. J. Kluiving, H. Hollund, B. Shapiro, M. Collins, M. Buckley, R. M. Jayasena, N. Porch, R. Floore, F. Bunnik, A. Biedlingmaier, J. Leavitt, G. Monfette, A. Kimelblatt, A. Randall, P. Floore, and L. P. A. M. Claessens. 2015. A review of the dodo and its ecosystem: insights from a vertebrate concentration Lagerstätte in Mauritius; pp. 3–20 in L. P. A. M. Claessens, H. J. M. Meijer, J. P. Hume, and K. F. Rijsdijk (eds.), Anatomy of the Dodo (Raphus cucullatus L., 1758): An Osteological Study of the Thirioux Specimens. Society of Vertebrate Paleontology Memoir 15. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 35(6, Supplement).