Garcia-Porta, JoanIrisarri, IkerKirchner, MartinRodriguez, ArielKirchhof, SebastianBrown, Jason L.MacLeod, AmyTurner, Alexander P.Ahmadzadeh, FarahamAlbaladejo, GonzaloCrnobrnja-Isailovic, JelkaJiménez Robles, Octavio2020-05-102020-05-102041-1723http://hdl.handle.net/1885/203947Climatic conditions changing over time and space shape the evolution of organisms at multiple levels, including temperate lizards in the family Lacertidae. Here we reconstruct a dated phylogenetic tree of 262 lacertid species based on a supermatrix relying on novel phylogenomic datasets and fossil calibrations. Diversification of lacertids was accompanied by an increasing disparity among occupied bioclimatic niches, especially in the last 10 Ma, during a period of progressive global cooling. Temperate species also underwent a genome-wide slowdown in molecular substitution rates compared to tropical and desert-adapted lacertids. Evaporative water loss and preferred temperature are correlated with bioclimatic parameters, indicating physiological adaptations to climate. Tropical, but also some populations of cool-adapted species experience maximum temperatures close to their preferred temperatures. We hypothesize these species-specific physiological preferences may constitute a handicap to prevail under rapid global warming, and contribute to explaining local lizard extinctions in cool and humid climates.This study was supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) to M.V. and J.M. (VE 247/11-1/MU 1760/9-1), and to L.R. in the framework of the “TaxonOmics” priority program (VE 247/16-1 – HO3492/6-1). J.G.-P. and I.I. were supported by Juan de la Cierva fellowships from the Spanish ‘Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad’ (FJCI2014-20380 and IJCI-2016-29566), D.S. by the ‘Rita Levi Montalcini’ program for recruitment of young researchers at the University of L’Aquila, M.A.C. by project NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000007, B.S. and D.B.M. by the US-National Science Foundation Emerging Frontiers program (EF-1241848), J.C.I. by project ON173025 MESTD RS, T.S., A.F., and A.S. by the Hassan II Academy of Sciences and Technologies (ICGVSA Project), A.Ž. by the Slovenian Research Agency Research Program P1-0255application/pdfen-AU© The Author(s) 2019http://creativecommons.org/ licenses/by/4.0/201910.1038/s41467-019-11943-x2019-11-25Creative Commons license