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Foerster SÍA, Clarke JT, Õunap E, Teder T, Tammaru T. A comparative study of body size evolution in moths: evidence of correlated evolution with feeding and phenology-related traits. J Evol Biol 2024; 37:891-904. [PMID: 38847298 DOI: 10.1093/jeb/voae072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2023] [Revised: 03/07/2024] [Accepted: 06/05/2024] [Indexed: 08/02/2024]
Abstract
Interspecific variation in body size is one of the most popular topics in comparative studies. Despite recent advances, little is known about the patterns and processes behind the evolution of body size in insects. Here, we used a robust data set comprising all geometrid moth species occurring in Northern Europe to examine the evolutionary associations involving body size and several life-history traits under an explicitly phylogenetic framework. We provided new insights into the interactive effects of life-history traits on body size and evidence of correlated evolution. We further established the sequence of trait evolution linking body size with the life-history traits correlated with it. We found that most (but not all) of the studied life-history traits, to some extent, influenced interspecific variation in body size, but interactive effects were uncommon. Both bi- and multivariate phylogenetic analyses indicated that larger species tend to be nocturnal flyers, overwinter in the larval stage, feed on the foliage of trees rather than herbs, and have a generalist feeding behaviour. We found evidence of correlated evolution involving body size with overwintering stage, host-plant growth form, and dietary specialization. The examination of evolutionary transitions within the correlated evolution models signalled that overwintering as larvae commonly preceded the evolution of large sizes, as did feeding on tree foliage and the generalist feeding behaviour. By showing that both body size and all life-history traits correlated with it evolve at very slow rates, we caution against uncritical attempts to propose causal explanations for respective associations based on contemporary ecological settings.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - John T Clarke
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle- Jena- Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- Institute of Biodiversity, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Jena, Germany
- GeoBio-Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Paleontology & Geobiology, Ludwig Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Department of Ecology and Biogeography, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun, Torun, Poland
| | - Erki Õunap
- Department of Zoology, Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Tiit Teder
- Department of Zoology, Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague-Suchdol, Czech Republic
| | - Toomas Tammaru
- Department of Zoology, Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
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Fromm B, Sorger T. Rapid adaptation of cellular metabolic rate to the MicroRNA complements of mammals and its relevance to the evolution of endothermy. iScience 2024; 27:108740. [PMID: 38327773 PMCID: PMC10847693 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.108740] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2022] [Revised: 09/13/2023] [Accepted: 12/12/2023] [Indexed: 02/09/2024] Open
Abstract
The metabolic efficiency of mammalian cells depends on the attenuation of intrinsic translation noise by microRNAs. We devised a metric of cellular metabolic rate (cMR), rMR/Mexp optimally fit to the number of microRNA families (mirFam), that is robust to variation in mass and sensitive to body temperature (Tb), consistent with the heat dissipation limit theory of Speakman and Król (2010). Using mirFam as predictor, an Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process of stabilizing selection, with an adaptive shift at the divergence of Boreoeutheria, accounted for 95% of the variation in cMR across mammals. Branchwise rates of evolution of cMR, mirFam and Tb concurrently increased 6- to 7-fold at the divergence of Boreoeutheria, independent of mass. Cellular MR variation across placental mammals was also predicted by the sum of model conserved microRNA-target interactions, revealing an unexpected degree of integration of the microRNA-target apparatus into the energy economy of the mammalian cell.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bastian Fromm
- The Arctic University Museum of Norway, UiT- The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Thomas Sorger
- Department of Biology, Roger Williams University, Bristol, RI 02809, USA
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Voje KL, Saulsbury JG, Starrfelt J, Latorre DV, Rojas A, Kinneberg VB, Liow LH, Wilson CJ, Saupe EE, Grabowski M. Measurement theory and paleobiology. Trends Ecol Evol 2023; 38:1165-1176. [PMID: 37696719 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2023.08.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2023] [Revised: 08/07/2023] [Accepted: 08/08/2023] [Indexed: 09/13/2023]
Abstract
Measurement theory, a branch of applied mathematics, offers guiding principles for extracting meaning from empirical observations and is applicable to any science involving measurements. Measurement theory is highly relevant in paleobiology because statistical approaches assuming ratio-scaled variables are commonly used on data belonging to nominal and ordinal scale types. We provide an informal introduction to representational measurement theory and argue for its importance in robust scientific inquiry. Although measurement theory is widely applicable in paleobiology research, we use the study of disparity to illustrate measurement theoretical challenges in the quantitative study of the fossil record. Respecting the inherent properties of different measurements enables meaningful inferences about evolutionary and ecological processes from paleontological data.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Alexis Rojas
- Department of Computer Science, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | | | | | - Connor J Wilson
- Natural History Museum, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Erin E Saupe
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Mark Grabowski
- Research Centre in Evolutionary Anthropology and Paleoecology, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK
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Cerezer FO, Dambros CS, Coelho MTP, Cassemiro FAS, Barreto E, Albert JS, Wüest RO, Graham CH. Accelerated body size evolution in upland environments is correlated with recent speciation in South American freshwater fishes. Nat Commun 2023; 14:6070. [PMID: 37770447 PMCID: PMC10539357 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41812-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2023] [Accepted: 09/15/2023] [Indexed: 09/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Speciation rates vary greatly among taxa and regions and are shaped by both biotic and abiotic factors. However, the relative importance and interactions of these factors are not well understood. Here we investigate the potential drivers of speciation rates in South American freshwater fishes, the most diverse continental vertebrate fauna, by examining the roles of multiple biotic and abiotic factors. We integrate a dataset on species geographic distribution, phylogenetic, morphological, climatic, and habitat data. We find that Late Neogene-Quaternary speciation events are strongly associated with body-size evolution, particularly in lineages with small body sizes that inhabit higher elevations near the continental periphery. Conversely, the effects of temperature, area, and diversity-dependence, often thought to facilitate speciation, are negligible. By evaluating multiple factors simultaneously, we demonstrate that habitat characteristics associated with elevation, as well as body size evolution, correlate with rapid speciation in South American freshwater fishes. Our study emphasizes the importance of integrative approaches that consider the interplay of biotic and abiotic factors in generating macroecological patterns of species diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felipe O Cerezer
- Swiss Federal Research Institute for Forest, Snow, and Landscape (WSL), Birmensdorf, Switzerland.
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biodiversidade Animal, Departamento de Ecologia e Evolução, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Santa Maria, Brazil.
| | - Cristian S Dambros
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biodiversidade Animal, Departamento de Ecologia e Evolução, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Santa Maria, Brazil
| | - Marco T P Coelho
- Swiss Federal Research Institute for Forest, Snow, and Landscape (WSL), Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Fernanda A S Cassemiro
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia e Evolução, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Goiânia, Brazil
| | - Elisa Barreto
- Swiss Federal Research Institute for Forest, Snow, and Landscape (WSL), Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - James S Albert
- Department of Biology, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, LA, USA
| | - Rafael O Wüest
- Swiss Federal Research Institute for Forest, Snow, and Landscape (WSL), Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Catherine H Graham
- Swiss Federal Research Institute for Forest, Snow, and Landscape (WSL), Birmensdorf, Switzerland
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Brinkworth A, Green E, Li Y, Oyston J, Ruta M, Wills MA. Bird clades with less complex appendicular skeletons tend to have higher species richness. Nat Commun 2023; 14:5817. [PMID: 37726273 PMCID: PMC10509246 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41415-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 09/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Species richness is strikingly uneven across taxonomic groups at all hierarchical levels, but the reasons for this heterogeneity are poorly understood. It is well established that morphological diversity (disparity) is decoupled from taxonomic diversity, both between clades and across geological time. Morphological complexity has been much less studied, but there is theory linking complexity with differential diversity across groups. Here we devise an index of complexity from the differentiation of the fore and hind limb pairs for a sample of 983 species of extant birds. We test the null hypothesis that this index of morphological complexity is uncorrelated with clade diversity, revealing a significant and negative correlation between the species richness of clades and the mean morphological complexity of those clades. Further, we find that more complex clades tend to occupy a smaller number of dietary and habitat niches, and that this proxy for greater ecological specialisation correlates with lower species richness. Greater morphological complexity in the appendicular skeleton therefore appears to hinder the generation and maintenance of species diversity. This may result from entrenchment into morphologies and ecologies that are less capable of yielding further diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Brinkworth
- Milner Centre for Evolution, Department of Life Sciences, University of Bath, Bath, BA2 7AZ, UK.
| | - Emily Green
- Joseph Banks Laboratories, Department of Life Sciences, University of Lincoln, Green Lane, Lincoln, LN6 7DL, UK
| | - Yimeng Li
- Nanjing Institute of Geology and Paleontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, 210008, China
| | - Jack Oyston
- Milner Centre for Evolution, Department of Life Sciences, University of Bath, Bath, BA2 7AZ, UK
- Centre for Integrative Anatomy, Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University College London, London, WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Marcello Ruta
- Joseph Banks Laboratories, Department of Life Sciences, University of Lincoln, Green Lane, Lincoln, LN6 7DL, UK
| | - Matthew A Wills
- Milner Centre for Evolution, Department of Life Sciences, University of Bath, Bath, BA2 7AZ, UK
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Wang M, Zhou Z. Low morphological disparity and decelerated rate of limb size evolution close to the origin of birds. Nat Ecol Evol 2023; 7:1257-1266. [PMID: 37277496 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-023-02091-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 05/09/2023] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
The origin of birds from theropod dinosaurs involves many changes in musculoskeletal anatomy and epidermal structures, including multiple instances of convergence and homology-related traits that contribute to the refinement of flight capability. Changes in limb sizes and proportions are important for locomotion (for example, the forelimb for bird flight); thus, understanding these patterns is central to investigating the transition from terrestrial to volant theropods. Here we analyse the patterns of morphological disparity and the evolutionary rate of appendicular limbs along avialan stem lineages using phylogenetic comparative approaches. Contrary to the traditional wisdom that an evolutionary innovation like flight would promote and accelerate evolvability, our results show a shift to low disparity and decelerated rate near the origin of avialans that is largely ascribed to the evolutionarily constrained forelimb. These results suggest that natural selection shaped patterns of limb evolution close to the origin of avialans in a way that may reflect the winged forelimb 'blueprint' associated with powered flight.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min Wang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
| | - Zhonghe Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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