It has long been speculated that biological evolution was influenced by ultraviolet radiation (UVR) reaching the Earth's surface, despite imprecise knowledge of the timing of both UVR flux and evolutionary events. The past strength of Earth's dipole field provides a proxy for UVR flux because of its role in maintaining stratospheric ozone. The timing of Quaternary evolutionary events has become better constrained by fossil finds, improved radiometric dating, use of dung fungi as proxies for herbivore populations, and improved ages for nodes in human phylogeny from human mitochondrial DNA and Y chromosomes. The demise of Neanderthals at ~41 ka can now be closely tied to the intensity minimum associated with the Laschamp magnetic excursion, and the survival of anatomically modern humans can be attributed to differences in the aryl hydrocarbon receptor that has a key role in the evolutionary response to UVR flux. Fossil occurrences and dung‐fungal proxies in Australia indicate that episodes of Late Quaternary extinction of mammalian megafauna occurred close to the Laschamp and Blake magnetic excursions. Fossil and dung fungal evidence for the age of the Late Quaternary extinction in North America (and Europe) coincide with a prominent decline in geomagnetic field intensity at ~13 ka. Over the last ~200 kyr, phylogeny based on mitochondrial DNA and Y chromosomes in modern humans yields nodes and bifurcations in evolution corresponding to geomagnetic intensity minima, which supports the proposition that UVR reaching Earth's surface influenced mammalian evolution with the loci of extinction controlled by the geometry of stratospheric ozone depletion. Plain Language Summary The strength of Earth's magnetic field in the past, recorded by rocks and sediments, provides a proxy for past flux of ultraviolet radiation (UVR) to Earth's surface due to the role of the field in modulating stratigraphic ozone. About 40,000 years ago, mammalian fossils in Australia and Eurasia record an important die‐off of large mammals that included Neanderthals in Europe. In the Americas and Europe, a large mammalian die‐off appears to have occurred ~13,000 years ago. Both die‐offs can be linked to minima in Earth's magnetic field strength implying that UVR flux variations to Earth's surface influenced mammalian evolution. For the last ~200,000 years, estimates of the timing of branching episodes in the human evolutionary tree, frommodern and fossil DNA and Y chromosomes, can be linked to minima in field strength, which implies a long‐term role for UVR in human evolution. New fossil finds, improved fossil dating, knowledge of the past strength of Earth's magnetic field, and refinements in the human evolutionary tree, are sharpening the focus on a possible link between UVR arriving at the Earth's surface, magnetic field strength, and events in mammalian evolution.

中文翻译：

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地磁场强度在人类和大型哺乳动物第四纪晚期演化中的作用

长期以来，人们一直推测生物进化受到到达地球表面的紫外线辐射 (UVR) 的影响，尽管对 UVR 通量和进化事件的时间的了解并不准确。由于其在维持平流层臭氧方面的作用，地球偶极子场的过去强度提供了 UVR 通量的代表。第四纪进化事件的时间已经受到化石发现、改进的放射性测年、使用粪便真菌作为食草动物种群的代理以及人类线粒体 DNA 和 Y 染色体的人类系统发育节点年龄的改善的限制。尼安德特人在~41 ka 的消亡现在可以与与拉尚磁偏移相关的强度最小值密切相关，解剖学上现代人类的生存可归因于芳烃受体的差异，该受体在对 UVR 通量的进化反应中起关键作用。澳大利亚的化石发生和粪便真菌代理表明，哺乳动物巨型动物群的晚第四纪灭绝事件发生在拉尚和布莱克磁偏移附近。北美（和欧洲）晚第四纪灭绝时代的化石和粪便真菌证据与约 13 ka 时地磁场强度的显着下降相吻合。在过去的约 200 kyr 中，基于现代人类线粒体 DNA 和 Y 染色体的系统发育产生了对应于地磁强度最小值的进化节点和分叉，这支持了 UVR 到达地球的命题。s 表面影响了哺乳动物的进化，灭绝地点受平流层臭氧消耗的几何形状控制。简明语言总结 过去地球磁场强度由岩石和沉积物记录，由于磁场在调节地层臭氧中的作用，它提供了过去到达地球表面的紫外线辐射 (UVR) 通量的代表。大约 40,000 年前，澳大利亚和欧亚大陆的哺乳动物化石记录了大型哺乳动物的重要灭绝，其中包括欧洲的尼安德特人。在美洲和欧洲，大型哺乳动物的灭绝似乎发生在大约 13,000 年前。两种死亡都可能与地球磁场强度的最小值有关，这意味着地球表面的 UVR 通量变化影响了哺乳动物的进化。在过去的大约 200,000 年中，来自现代和化石 DNA 和 Y 染色体的人类进化树中分支事件时间的估计可以与场强的最小值相关联，这意味着 UVR 在人类进化中的长期作用。新的化石发现、改进的化石年代测定、对过去地球磁场强度的了解以及人类进化树的改进，正在使人们更加关注到达地球表面的 UVR、磁场强度和哺乳动物事件之间可能存在的联系。进化。