scholarly journals Rapid increase in snake dietary diversity and complexity following the end-Cretaceous mass extinction

PLoS Biology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (10) ◽  
pp. e3001414 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael C. Grundler ◽  
Daniel L. Rabosky
Keyword(s):  
Mass Extinction ◽  
Phylogenetic Trees ◽  
Dietary Diversity ◽  
Global Radiation ◽  
Trophic Niche ◽  
Ecological Opportunity ◽  
Ecological Diversification ◽  
Prey Preferences ◽  
Dietary Niche ◽  
Evolutionary Tempo And Mode

The Cenozoic marked a period of dramatic ecological opportunity in Earth history due to the extinction of non-avian dinosaurs as well as to long-term physiographic changes that created new biogeographic theaters and new habitats. Snakes underwent massive ecological diversification during this period, repeatedly evolving novel dietary adaptations and prey preferences. The evolutionary tempo and mode of these trophic ecological changes remain virtually unknown, especially compared with co-radiating lineages of birds and mammals that are simultaneously predators and prey of snakes. Here, we assemble a dataset on snake diets (34,060 observations on the diets of 882 species) to investigate the history and dynamics of the multidimensional trophic niche during the global radiation of snakes. Our results show that per-lineage dietary niche breadths remained remarkably constant even as snakes diversified to occupy disparate outposts of dietary ecospace. Rapid increases in dietary diversity and complexity occurred in the early Cenozoic, and the overall rate of ecospace expansion has slowed through time, suggesting a potential response to ecological opportunity in the wake of the end-Cretaceous mass extinction. Explosive bursts of trophic innovation followed colonization of the Nearctic and Neotropical realms by a group of snakes that today comprises a majority of living snake diversity. Our results indicate that repeated transformational shifts in dietary ecology are important drivers of adaptive radiation in snakes and provide a framework for analyzing and visualizing the evolution of complex ecological phenotypes on phylogenetic trees.

Identification of trophic niches of subterranean diving beetles in a calcrete aquifer by DNA and stable isotope analyses

2014 ◽  
Vol 65 (2) ◽  
pp. 95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tessa M. Bradford ◽  
William F. Humphreys ◽  
Andrew D. Austin ◽  
Steven J. B. Cooper
Keyword(s):  
Stable Isotope ◽  
Trophic Ecology ◽  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Niche Differentiation ◽  
Trophic Niche ◽  
Coi Gene ◽  
Stable Isotope Analyses ◽  
Prey Preferences ◽  
Diving Beetles ◽  
Isotope Analyses

The Yilgarn calcrete aquifers in Western Australia are an interesting system for investigating the process of speciation within subterranean habitats, because of the limited opportunities for dispersal between isolated calcretes. The presence of different-sized diving beetles (Dytiscidae) in separate calcretes, including sympatric sister-species pairs, suggests that species may have evolved within calcretes by an adaptive shift as a result of ecological-niche differentiation. We have studied the potential for trophic niche partitioning in a sister triplet of diving beetles, of distinctly different sizes, from a single aquifer. Fragments of the mitochondrial COI gene, specific to known species of amphipods and copepods, were polymerase chain reaction-amplified from each of the three beetle species, indicating that there is an overlap in their prey items. Significant differences were found in the detected diets of the three species, and results showed a propensity for prey preferences of amphipods by the large beetles and one species of copepod for the small beetles. A terrestrial source of carbon to the calcrete was suggested by stable isotope analyses. The combined approach of molecular, stable isotope and behavioural studies have provided insight into the trophic ecology of this difficult-to-access environment, providing a framework for more fine-scale analyses of the diet of different-sized species to examine speciation underground.

scholarly journals Post-Cretaceous bursts of evolution along the benthic-pelagic axis in marine fishes

2018 ◽  
Vol 285 (1893) ◽  
pp. 20182010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emanuell Ribeiro ◽  
Aaron M. Davis ◽  
Rafael A. Rivero-Vega ◽  
Guillermo Ortí ◽  
Ricardo Betancur-R
Keyword(s):  
Morphological Variation ◽  
Mass Extinction ◽  
Marine Fishes ◽  
Ecological Opportunity ◽  
Pelagic Habitat ◽  
History Of ◽  
Evolutionary Radiations ◽  
Extinction Events ◽  
Mass Extinction Events ◽  
Lineage Diversification

Ecological opportunity arising in the aftermath of mass extinction events is thought to be a powerful driver of evolutionary radiations. Here, we assessed how the wake of the Cretaceous–Palaeogene (K-Pg) mass extinction shaped diversification dynamics in a clade of mostly marine fishes (Carangaria), which comprises a disparate array of benthic and pelagic dwellers including some of the most astonishing fish forms (e.g. flatfishes, billfishes, remoras, archerfishes). Analyses of lineage diversification show time-heterogeneous rates of lineage diversification in carangarians, with highest rates reached during the Palaeocene. Likewise, a remarkable proportion of Carangaria's morphological variation originated early in the history of the group and in tandem with a marked incidence of habitat shifts. Taken together, these results suggest that all major lineages and body plans in Carangaria originated in an early burst shortly after the K-Pg mass extinction, which ultimately allowed the occupation of newly released niches along the benthic-pelagic habitat axis.

scholarly journals K-Pg events facilitated lineage transitions between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems

2014 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 20140010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Şerban Procheş ◽  
Gianluca Polgar ◽  
David J. Marshall
Keyword(s):  
Resource Availability ◽  
Mass Extinction ◽  
Aquatic Ecosystems ◽  
Phylogenetic Trees ◽  
Competitive Pressure ◽  
Extinction Events ◽  
Mass Extinction Events

We use dated phylogenetic trees for tetrapod vertebrates to identify lineages that shifted between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems in terms of feeding or development, and to assess the timing of such events. Both stem and crown lineage ages indicate a peak in transition events in correspondence with the K-Pg mass extinction. This meets the prediction that changes in competitive pressure and resource availability following mass extinction events should facilitate such transitions.

scholarly journals DIETARY ANALYSIS OF THREE SPECIES OF THE GENUS Anolis (SAURIA: DACTYLOIDAE) IN “LOS TUXTLAS,” VERACRUZ, MEXICO

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 26
Author(s):  
Oscar Alberto Flores Villela
Keyword(s):  
Dietary Diversity ◽  
Stomach Contents ◽  
Niche Overlap ◽  
Los Tuxtlas ◽  
Generic Competition ◽  
Dietary Analysis ◽  
Shannon’S Index ◽  
Dietary Niche ◽  
Niche Displacement ◽  
Generalist Diet

Anoles have been studied by researchers to a greater extent than any other group of lizards. Their high diversity has led them to colonize a variety of niches, making them an ideal model group for evaluating ecological hypotheses such as dietary niche overlap. This work analyzes the stomach contents of 73 individuals from three species of the genus Anolis: A. barkeri (34), A. sericeus (17), and A. tropidonotus (22) occurring in the vicinity of Los Tuxtlas, Veracruz. Analyses performed included Shannon’s index in its log form to calculate dietary diversity, the Jaccard index to estimate the dissimilarity of the species’ diets, and Schoener’s index to measure dietary overlap.  The results suggest that A. barkeri (10.08) hast the most generalist diet, followed by A. sericeus (8.75) and A. tropidonotus (5.78). Schoener’s index showed a considerable amount of diet overlap between A. barkeri and A. sericeus (0.76). We conclude that the three focal species show a generalist feeding behavior in times of abundant prey, such as the rainy season in which this study was conducted. This may lead to the elusion of intra-generic competition, explaining why we did not observe dietary niche displacement between these three species of Anolis.

scholarly journals Trophic niche shifts and phenotypic trait evolution are largely decoupled in Australasian parrots

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vicente García-Navas ◽  
Joseph A. Tobias ◽  
Manuel Schweizer ◽  
Daniel Wegmann ◽  
Richard Schodde ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Trophic Niche ◽  
Phenotypic Trait ◽  
Dispersal Capacity ◽  
Trait Evolution ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Niche Shifts ◽  
Dietary Niche ◽  
Evolutionary Trajectories ◽  
Best Fitting ◽  
Trophic Shifts

Abstract Background Trophic shifts from one dietary niche to another have played major roles in reshaping the evolutionary trajectories of a wide range of vertebrate groups, yet their consequences for morphological disparity and species diversity differ among groups. Methods Here, we use phylogenetic comparative methods to examine whether the evolution of nectarivory and other trophic shifts have driven predictable evolutionary pathways in Australasian psittaculid parrots in terms of ecological traits such as body size, beak shape, and dispersal capacity. Results We found no evidence for an ‘early-burst’ scenario of lineage or morphological diversification. The best-fitting models indicate that trait evolution in this group is characterized by abrupt phenotypic shifts (evolutionary jumps), with no sign of multiple phenotypic optima correlating with different trophic strategies. Thus, our results point to the existence of weak directional selection and suggest that lineages may be evolving randomly or slowly toward adaptive peaks they have not yet reached. Conclusions This study adds to a growing body of evidence indicating that the relationship between avian morphology and feeding ecology may be more complex than usually assumed and highlights the importance of adding more flexible models to the macroevolutionary toolbox.

scholarly journals Genomic bases underlying the adaptive radiation of core landbirds

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yonghua Wu ◽  
Yi Yan ◽  
Yuanqin Zhao ◽  
Li Gu ◽  
Songbo Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Adaptive Radiation ◽  
Strong Support ◽  
Bright Light ◽  
Ecological Niches ◽  
Ecological Diversification ◽  
Fat Digestion ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
Adaptive Enhancement ◽  
Dietary Niche ◽  
Dim Light

Abstract Background Core landbirds undergo adaptive radiation with different ecological niches, but the genomic bases that underlie their ecological diversification remain unclear. Results Here we used the genome-wide target enrichment sequencing of the genes related to vision, hearing, language, temperature sensation, beak shape, taste transduction, and carbohydrate, protein and fat digestion and absorption to examine the genomic bases underlying their ecological diversification. Our comparative molecular phyloecological analyses show that different core landbirds present adaptive enhancement in different aspects, and two general patterns emerge. First, all three raptorial birds (Accipitriformes, Strigiformes, and Falconiformes) show a convergent adaptive enhancement for fat digestion and absorption, while non-raptorial birds tend to exhibit a promoted capability for protein and carbohydrate digestion and absorption. Using this as a molecular marker, our results show relatively strong support for the raptorial lifestyle of the common ancestor of core landbirds, consequently suggesting a single origin of raptors, followed by two secondary losses of raptorial lifestyle within core landbirds. In addition to the dietary niche, we find at temporal niche that diurnal birds tend to exhibit an adaptive enhancement in bright-light vision, while nocturnal birds show an increased adaption in dim-light vision, in line with previous findings. Conclusions Our molecular phyloecological study reveals the genome-wide adaptive differentiations underlying the ecological diversification of core landbirds.

scholarly journals Trophic Niche Shifts and Phenotypic Trait Evolution are Largely Decoupled in Australasian Parrots

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vicente García-Navas ◽  
Joseph A. Tobias ◽  
Manuel Schweizer ◽  
Daniel Wegmann ◽  
Richard Schodde ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Trophic Niche ◽  
Phenotypic Trait ◽  
Dispersal Capacity ◽  
Trait Evolution ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Niche Shifts ◽  
Dietary Niche ◽  
Evolutionary Trajectories ◽  
Best Fitting ◽  
Trophic Shifts

Abstract Background: Trophic shifts from one dietary niche to another have played major roles in reshaping the evolutionary trajectories of a wide range of vertebrate groups, yet its consequences for morphological disparity and species diversity differs among groups. Methods: Here, we use phylogenetic comparative methods to examine whether the evolution of nectarivory and other trophic shifts have driven predictable evolutionary pathways in Australasian psittaculid parrots in terms of ecological traits such as body size, beak shape, and dispersal capacity. Results: Rates of lineage diversification appear to be constant over time and we find no evidence for an ‘early-burst’ scenario of morphological diversification. The best-fitting models indicate that trait evolution in this group is characterized by abrupt phenotypic shifts (evolutionary jumps), with no sign of multiple phenotypic optima correlating with different trophic strategies. Thus, our results point to the existence of weak directional selection and suggest that lineages may be evolving randomly or slowly toward adaptive peaks they have not yet reached. Conclusions: This study adds to a growing body of evidence indicating that the relationship between avian morphology and feeding ecology may be more complex than usually assumed and highlights the importance of adding more flexible models to the macroevolutionary toolbox.

Effects of mass extinction and recovery dynamics on long-term evolutionary trends: a morphological study of Strophomenida (Brachiopoda) across the Late Ordovician mass extinction

Paleobiology ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 603-619 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith A. Sclafani ◽  
Curtis R. Congreve ◽  
Andrew Z. Krug ◽  
Mark E. Patzkowsky
Keyword(s):  
Mass Extinction ◽  
Phylogenetic Trees ◽  
Late Ordovician ◽  
Ecological Communities ◽  
Evolutionary Trends ◽  
Mass Extinctions ◽  
Principal Coordinates Analysis ◽  
Principal Coordinates ◽  
Recovery Dynamics

AbstractMass extinctions affect the history of life by decimating existing diversity and ecological structure and creating new evolutionary and ecological pathways. Both the loss of diversity during these events and the rebound in diversity following extinction had a profound effect on Phanerozoic evolutionary trends. Phylogenetic trees can be used to robustly assess the evolutionary implications of extinction and origination.We examine both extinction and origination during the Late Ordovician mass extinction. This mass extinction was the second largest in terms of taxonomic loss but did not appear to radically alter Paleozoic marine assemblages. We focus on the brachiopod order Strophomenida, whose evolutionary relationships have been recently revised, to explore the disconnect between the processes that drive taxonomic loss and those that restructure ecological communities.A possible explanation for this disconnect is if extinction and origination were random with respect to morphology. We define morphospace using principal coordinates analysis (PCO) of character data from 61 Ordovician–Devonian taxa and their 45 ancestral nodes, defined by a most parsimonious reconstruction in Mesquite. A bootstrap of the centroid of PCO values indicates that genera were randomly removed from morphospace by the Late Ordovician mass extinction, and new Silurian genera were clustered within a smaller previously unoccupied region of morphospace. Diversification remained morphologically constrained throughout the Silurian and into the Devonian. This suggests that the recovery from the Late Ordovician mass extinction resulted in a long-term shift in strophomenide evolution. More broadly, recovery intervals may hold clues to understanding the evolutionary impact of mass extinctions.

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