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Marfurt SM, Allen SJ, Bizzozzero MR, Willems EP, King SL, Connor RC, Kopps AM, Wild S, Gerber L, Wittwer S, Krützen M. Association patterns and community structure among female bottlenose dolphins: environmental, genetic and cultural factors. Mamm Biol 2022; 102:1373-1387. [PMID: 36998433 PMCID: PMC10040398 DOI: 10.1007/s42991-022-00259-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2021] [Accepted: 05/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
AbstractSocial structuring from assortative associations may affect individual fitness, as well as population-level processes. Gaining a broader understanding of social structure can improve our knowledge of social evolution and inform wildlife conservation. We investigated association patterns and community structure of female Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) in Shark Bay, Western Australia, assessing the role of kinship, shared culturally transmitted foraging techniques, and habitat similarity based on water depth. Our results indicated that associations are influenced by a combination of uni- and biparental relatedness, cultural behaviour and habitat similarity, as these were positively correlated with a measure of dyadic association. These findings were matched in a community level analysis. Members of the same communities overwhelmingly shared the same habitat and foraging techniques, demonstrating a strong homophilic tendency. Both uni- and biparental relatedness between dyads were higher within than between communities. Our results illustrate that intraspecific variation in sociality in bottlenose dolphins is influenced by a complex combination of genetic, cultural, and environmental aspects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Svenja M. Marfurt
- Evolutionary Genetics Group, Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Simon J. Allen
- Evolutionary Genetics Group, Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Perth, WA 6009 Australia
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, BS8 1TQ UK
| | - Manuela R. Bizzozzero
- Evolutionary Genetics Group, Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Erik P. Willems
- Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Stephanie L. King
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Perth, WA 6009 Australia
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, BS8 1TQ UK
| | | | - Anna M. Kopps
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052 Australia
| | - Sonja Wild
- Cognitive and Cultural Ecology Research Group, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour, Am Obstberg 1, 78315 Radolfzell, Germany
- Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstrasse 10, 78464 Constance, Germany
| | - Livia Gerber
- Evolutionary Genetics Group, Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052 Australia
| | - Samuel Wittwer
- Evolutionary Genetics Group, Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Michael Krützen
- Evolutionary Genetics Group, Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
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Pratt EAL, Beheregaray LB, Bilgmann K, Zanardo N, Diaz-Aguirre F, Brauer C, Sandoval-Castillo J, Möller LM. Seascape genomics of coastal bottlenose dolphins along strong gradients of temperature and salinity. Mol Ecol 2022; 31:2223-2241. [PMID: 35146819 DOI: 10.1111/mec.16389] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2021] [Revised: 02/01/2022] [Accepted: 02/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Heterogeneous seascapes and strong environmental gradients in coastal waters are expected to influence adaptive divergence, particularly in species with large population sizes where selection is expected to be highly efficient. However, these influences might also extend to species characterized by strong social structure, natal philopatry and small home ranges. We implemented a seascape genomic study to test this hypothesis in Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) distributed along the environmentally heterogeneous coast of southern Australia. The datasets included oceanographic and environmental variables thought to be good predictors of local adaptation in dolphins and 8,081 filtered single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) genotyped for individuals sampled from seven different bioregions. From a neutral perspective, population structure and connectivity of the dolphins were generally influenced by habitat type and social structuring. Genotype-environment association analysis identified 241 candidate adaptive loci and revealed that sea surface temperature and salinity gradients influenced adaptive divergence in these animals at both large- (1,000s km) and fine-scales (<100 km). Enrichment analysis and annotation of candidate genes revealed functions related to sodium-activated ion transport, kidney development, adipogenesis and thermogenesis. The findings of spatial adaptive divergence and inferences of putative physiological adaptations challenge previous suggestions that marine megafauna is most likely to be affected by environmental and climatic changes via indirect, trophic effects. Our work contributes to conservation management of coastal bottlenose dolphins subjected to anthropogenic disturbance and to efforts of clarifying how seascape heterogeneity influences adaptive diversity and evolution in small cetaceans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eleanor A L Pratt
- Molecular Ecology Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Bedford Park, 5042, South Australia, Australia.,Cetacean Ecology, Behaviour and Evolution Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Bedford Park, 5042, South Australia, Australia
| | - Luciano B Beheregaray
- Molecular Ecology Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Bedford Park, 5042, South Australia, Australia
| | - Kerstin Bilgmann
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, 2109, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Nikki Zanardo
- Molecular Ecology Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Bedford Park, 5042, South Australia, Australia.,Cetacean Ecology, Behaviour and Evolution Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Bedford Park, 5042, South Australia, Australia.,Department of Environment and Water, Adelaide, 5000, South Australia, Australia
| | - Fernando Diaz-Aguirre
- Molecular Ecology Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Bedford Park, 5042, South Australia, Australia.,Cetacean Ecology, Behaviour and Evolution Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Bedford Park, 5042, South Australia, Australia
| | - Chris Brauer
- Molecular Ecology Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Bedford Park, 5042, South Australia, Australia
| | - Jonathan Sandoval-Castillo
- Molecular Ecology Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Bedford Park, 5042, South Australia, Australia
| | - Luciana M Möller
- Molecular Ecology Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Bedford Park, 5042, South Australia, Australia.,Cetacean Ecology, Behaviour and Evolution Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Bedford Park, 5042, South Australia, Australia
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