Latitudinal diversity gradients (LDG) and their explanatory factors are among the most challenging topics in macroecology and biogeography. Despite of its apparent generality, a growing body of evidence shows that ‘anomalous’ LDG (i.e., inverse or hump-shaped trends) are common among marine organisms along the Southeastern Pacific (SEP) coast. Here, we evaluate the shape of the LDG of marine benthic polychaetes and its underlying causes using a dataset of 643 species inhabiting the continental shelf (