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Jónsdóttir GÓ, von Elm LM, Ingimarsson F, Tersigni S, Snorrason SS, Pálsson A, Steele SE. Diversity in the internal functional feeding elements of sympatric morphs of Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus). PLoS One 2024; 19:e0300359. [PMID: 38771821 PMCID: PMC11108142 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0300359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2023] [Accepted: 02/23/2024] [Indexed: 05/23/2024] Open
Abstract
The diversity of functional feeding anatomy is particularly impressive in fishes and correlates with various interspecific ecological specializations. Intraspecific polymorphism can manifest in divergent feeding morphology and ecology, often along a benthic-pelagic axis. Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) is a freshwater salmonid known for morphological variation and sympatric polymorphism and in Lake Þingvallavatn, Iceland, four morphs of charr coexist that differ in preferred prey, behaviour, habitat use, and external feeding morphology. We studied variation in six upper and lower jaw bones in adults of these four morphs using geometric morphometrics and univariate statistics. We tested for allometric differences in bone size and shape among morphs, morph effects on bone size and shape, and divergence along the benthic-pelagic axis. We also examined the degree of integration between bone pairs. We found differences in bone size between pelagic and benthic morphs for two bones (dentary and premaxilla). There was clear bone shape divergence along a benthic-pelagic axis in four bones (dentary, articular-angular, premaxilla and maxilla), as well as allometric shape differences between morphs in the dentary. Notably for the dentary, morph explained more shape variation than bone size. Comparatively, benthic morphs possess a compact and taller dentary, with shorter dentary palate, consistent with visible (but less prominent) differences in external morphology. As these morphs emerged in the last 10,000 years, these results indicate rapid functional evolution of specific feeding structures in arctic charr. This sets the stage for studies of the genetics and development of rapid and parallel craniofacial evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Laura-Marie von Elm
- Institute of Life- and Environmental Science, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland
| | | | - Samuel Tersigni
- Institute of Life- and Environmental Science, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland
| | | | - Arnar Pálsson
- Institute of Life- and Environmental Science, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland
| | - Sarah Elizabeth Steele
- Institute of Life- and Environmental Science, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland
- Canadian Museum of Nature, Ottawa, Canada
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2
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Ramírez-Álvarez R, Peterson TA, Contreras S, Górski K. Evolution of the ecological niche behind the largest disjunct freshwater fish distribution in the world. J Anim Ecol 2024. [PMID: 38529896 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.14080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2023] [Accepted: 02/19/2024] [Indexed: 03/27/2024]
Abstract
Ecological processes that are behind distributions of species that inhabit isolated localities, complex disjunct distributions, remain poorly understood. Traditionally, vicariance and dispersion have been proposed as explanatory mechanisms that drive such distributions. However, to date, our understanding of the ecological processes driving evolution of ecological niches associated with disjunct distributions remains rudimentary. Here, we propose a framework to deconstruct drivers of such distribution using World's most widespread freshwater fish Galaxias maculatus as a model and integrating marine and freshwater environments where its life cycle may occur. Specifically, we assessed ecological and historical factors (Gondwanan vicariance, marine dispersion) and potential dispersion (niche-tracking) that explain its distribution in the Southern Hemisphere. Estimated distribution was consistent with previously reported distribution and mainly driven by temperature and topography in freshwater environments and by primary productivity and nitrate in marine environments. Niche dynamics of G. maculatus provided evidence of synergy between vicariance and marine dispersion as explanatory mechanisms of its disjunct distribution, suggesting that its ecological niche was conserved since approximately 30 Ma ago. This integrated assessment of ecological niche in marine and freshwater environments serves as a generic framework that may be applied to understand processes underpinning complex distributions of diadromous species.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Townsend A Peterson
- Biodiversity Institute, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
| | - Sergio Contreras
- Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Católica de la Santísima Concepción, Concepción, Chile
- Centro de Investigación en Biodiversidad y Ambientes Sustentables (CIBAS), Universidad Católica de la Santísima Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Konrad Górski
- Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Católica de la Santísima Concepción, Concepción, Chile
- Instituto de Ciencias Marinas y Limnológicas, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdivia, Chile
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3
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Roesti M, Groh JS, Blain SA, Huss M, Rassias P, Bolnick DI, Stuart YE, Peichel CL, Schluter D. Species divergence under competition and shared predation. Ecol Lett 2023; 26:111-123. [PMID: 36450600 DOI: 10.1111/ele.14138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2022] [Revised: 09/28/2022] [Accepted: 10/03/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022]
Abstract
Species competing for resources also commonly share predators. While competition often drives divergence between species, the effects of shared predation are less understood. Theoretically, competing prey species could either diverge or evolve in the same direction under shared predation depending on the strength and symmetry of their interactions. We took an empirical approach to this question, comparing antipredator and trophic phenotypes between sympatric and allopatric populations of threespine stickleback and prickly sculpin fish that all live in the presence of a trout predator. We found divergence in antipredator traits between the species: in sympatry, antipredator adaptations were relatively increased in stickleback but decreased in sculpin. Shifts in feeding morphology, diet and habitat use were also divergent but driven primarily by stickleback evolution. Our results suggest that asymmetric ecological character displacement indirectly made stickleback more and sculpin less vulnerable to shared predation, driving divergence of antipredator traits between sympatric species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marius Roesti
- Division of Evolutionary Ecology, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.,Zoology Department and Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Jeffrey S Groh
- Zoology Department and Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.,Center for Population Biology and Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California, Davis, California, USA
| | - Stephanie A Blain
- Zoology Department and Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Magnus Huss
- Zoology Department and Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.,Department of Aquatic Resources, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Öregrund, Sweden
| | - Peter Rassias
- Zoology Department and Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Daniel I Bolnick
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, USA
| | - Yoel E Stuart
- Department of Biology, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Catherine L Peichel
- Division of Evolutionary Ecology, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Dolph Schluter
- Zoology Department and Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
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4
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Cicero C, Mason NA, Oong Z, Title PO, Morales ME, Feldheim KA, Koo MS, Bowie RCK. Deep ecomorphological and genetic divergence in Steller's Jays ( Cyanocitta stelleri, Aves: Corvidae). Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e9517. [PMCID: PMC9712489 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9517] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2022] [Revised: 09/27/2022] [Accepted: 10/04/2022] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
The relationship between ecology and morphology is a cornerstone of evolutionary biology, and quantifying variation across environments can shed light on processes that give rise to biodiversity. Three morphotypes of the Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri) occupy different ecoregions in western North America, which vary in climate and landcover. These morphotypes (Coastal, Interior, Rocky Mountain) differ in size, plumage coloration, and head pattern. We sampled 1080 Steller's Jays from 68 populations (plus 11 outgroups) to address three main questions using data on morphology, plumage, genetics (mtDNA, microsatellites), and ecological niches: (1) How do phenotypic and genetic traits vary within and among populations, morphotypes, and ecoregions? (2) How do population‐level differences in Steller's Jays compare with other sister species pairs of North American birds? (3) What can we infer about the population history of Steller's Jays in relation to past climates, paleoecology, and niche evolution? We found substantial morphological, genetic, and ecological differentiation among morphotypes. The greatest genetic divergence separated Coastal and Interior morphotypes from the Rocky Mountain morphotype, which was associated with warmer, drier, and more open habitats. Microsatellites revealed additional structure between Coastal and Interior groups. The deep mtDNA split between Coastal/Interior and Rocky Mountain lineages of Steller's Jay (ND2 ~ 7.8%) is older than most North American avian sister species and dates to approximately 4.3 mya. Interior and Rocky Mountain morphotypes contact across a narrow zone with steep clines in traits and reduced gene flow. The distribution of the three morphotypes coincides with divergent varieties of ponderosa pine and Douglas fir. Species distribution models support multiple glacial refugia for Steller's Jays. Our integrative dataset combined with extensive geographic sampling provides compelling evidence for recognizing at least two species of Steller's Jay.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carla Cicero
- Museum of Vertebrate ZoologyUniversity of CaliforniaBerkeleyCaliforniaUSA
| | - Nicholas A. Mason
- Museum of Vertebrate ZoologyUniversity of CaliforniaBerkeleyCaliforniaUSA,Museum of Natural Science and Department of Biological SciencesLouisiana State UniversityBaton RougeLouisianaUSA
| | - Zheng Oong
- Museum of Vertebrate ZoologyUniversity of CaliforniaBerkeleyCaliforniaUSA,Bell Museum of Natural History and Department of Ecology, Evolution and BehaviorUniversity of MinnesotaSaint PaulMinnesotaUSA
| | - Pascal O. Title
- Environmental Resilience InstituteIndiana UniversityBloomingtonIndianaUSA,Department of Ecology & EvolutionStony Brook UniversityStony BrookNew YorkUSA
| | - Melissa E. Morales
- Museum of Vertebrate ZoologyUniversity of CaliforniaBerkeleyCaliforniaUSA
| | - Kevin A. Feldheim
- Pritzker Laboratory for Molecular Systematics and Evolution, Negaunee Integrative Research CenterField Museum of Natural HistoryChicagoIllinoisUSA
| | - Michelle S. Koo
- Museum of Vertebrate ZoologyUniversity of CaliforniaBerkeleyCaliforniaUSA
| | - Rauri C. K. Bowie
- Museum of Vertebrate ZoologyUniversity of CaliforniaBerkeleyCaliforniaUSA,Department of Integrative BiologyUniversity of CaliforniaBerkeleyCaliforniaUSA
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5
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de Brito V, Betancur-R R, Burns MD, Buser TJ, Conway KW, Fontenelle JP, Kolmann MA, McCraney WT, Thacker CE, Bloom DD. Patterns of Phenotypic Evolution Associated with Marine/Freshwater Transitions in Fishes. Integr Comp Biol 2022; 62:406-423. [PMID: 35675320 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icac085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2022] [Revised: 06/01/2022] [Accepted: 06/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Evolutionary transitions between marine and freshwater ecosystems have occurred repeatedly throughout the phylogenetic history of fishes. The theory of ecological opportunity predicts that lineages that colonize species-poor regions will have greater potential for phenotypic diversification than lineages invading species-rich regions. Thus, transitions between marine and freshwaters may promote phenotypic diversification in trans-marine/freshwater fish clades. We used phylogenetic comparative methods to analyze body size data in nine major fish clades that have crossed the marine/freshwater boundary. We explored how habitat transitions, ecological opportunity, and community interactions influenced patterns of phenotypic diversity. Our analyses indicated that transitions between marine and freshwater habitats did not drive body size evolution, and there are few differences in body size between marine and freshwater lineages. We found that body size disparity in freshwater lineages is not correlated with the number of independent transitions to freshwaters. We found a positive correlation between body size disparity and overall species richness of a given area, and a negative correlation between body size disparity and diversity of closely related species. Our results indicate that the diversity of incumbent freshwater species does not restrict phenotypic diversification, but the diversity of closely related taxa can limit body size diversification. Ecological opportunity arising from colonization of novel habitats does not seem to have a major effect in the trajectory of body size evolution in trans-marine/freshwater clades. Moreover, competition with closely related taxa in freshwaters has a greater effect than competition with distantly related incumbent species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victor de Brito
- Department of Biological Sciences, Western Michigan University, 1903 W Michigan Ave, Kalamazoo, MI 49008-5410, USA
| | - Ricardo Betancur-R
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, 730 Van Vleet Oval, Room 314, Norman, OK 73019, USA
| | - Michael D Burns
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Cornell Museum of Vertebrates, Cornell University, 159 Sapsucker Woods Road, Ithaca, NY 14850-1923, USA
| | - Thaddaeus J Buser
- Department of BioSciences, Rice University, W100 George R. Brown Hall, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX 77005, USA
| | - Kevin W Conway
- Department of Ecology and Conservation Biology and Biodiversity Research and Teaching Collections, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - João Pedro Fontenelle
- Institute of Forestry and Conservation, University of Toronto, 33 Willcocks St., Toronto, ON M5S 3E8, Canada
| | - Matthew A Kolmann
- Museum of Paleontology, Biological Sciences Building, University of Michigan, 1105 North University Ave, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1085, USA
| | - W Tyler McCraney
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, 612 Charles E. Young Drive South, Los Angeles, CA 90095-7246, USA
| | - Christine E Thacker
- Research and Collections, Section of Ichthyology, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, 900 Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90007, USA.,Vertebrate Zoology, Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, 2559 Puesta del Sol, Santa Barbara, CA 93105, USA
| | - Devin D Bloom
- Department of Biological Sciences, Western Michigan University, 1903 W Michigan Ave, Kalamazoo, MI 49008-5410, USA.,Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, Western Michigan University, 1903 W Michigan Ave, Kalamazoo, MI 49008-5419, USA
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6
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Kolmann MA, Marques FPL, Weaver JC, Dean MN, Fontenelle JP, Lovejoy NR. Ecological and Phenotypic Diversification after A Continental Invasion in Neotropical Freshwater Stingrays. Integr Comp Biol 2022; 62:424-440. [PMID: 35482600 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icac019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2022] [Revised: 04/07/2022] [Accepted: 04/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Habitat transitions are key potential explanations for why some lineages have diversified and others have not - from Anolis lizards to Darwin's finches. The ecological ramifications of marine-to-freshwater transitions for fishes suggest evolutionary contingency: some lineages maintain their ancestral niches in novel habitats (niche conservatism), whereas others alter their ecological role. However, few studies have considered phenotypic, ecological, and lineage diversification concurrently to explore this issue. Here, we investigated the macroevolutionary history of the taxonomically and ecologically diverse Neotropical freshwater river rays (subfamily Potamotrygoninae), which invaded and diversified in the Amazon and other South American rivers during the late Oligocene to early Miocene. We generated a time-calibrated, multi-gene phylogeny for Potamotrygoninae and reconstructed evolutionary patterns of diet specialization. We measured functional morphological traits relevant for feeding and used comparative phylogenetic methods to examine how feeding morphology diversified over time. Potamotrygonine trophic and phenotypic diversity are evenly partitioned (non-overlapping) among internal clades for most of their history, until 20-16 mya, when more recent diversification suggests increasing overlap among phenotypes. Specialized piscivores (Heliotrygon and Paratrygon) evolved early in the history of freshwater stingrays, while later trophic specialization (molluscivory, insectivory, and crustacivory) evolved in the genus Potamotrygon. Potamotrygonins demonstrate ecological niche lability in diets and feeding apparatus; however, diversification has mostly been a gradual process through time. We suggest that competition is unlikely to have limited the potamotrygonine invasion and diversification in South America.
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Affiliation(s)
- M A Kolmann
- Department of Biology, University of Louisville, 139 Life Sciences Bldg. Louisville, KY, 40292USA.,Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - F P L Marques
- Departamento de Zoologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo, Cidade Universitária, 05508-090 São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - J C Weaver
- Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA02138
| | - M N Dean
- Department of Biomaterials, Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Potsdam, Germany.,Department of Infectious Diseases & Public Health, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong
| | - J P Fontenelle
- Institute of Forestry and Conservation, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - N R Lovejoy
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, Canada
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7
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St John CA, Buser TJ, Kee VE, Kirilchik S, Bogdanov B, Neely D, Sandel M, Aguilar A. Diversification along a benthic to pelagic gradient contributes to fish diversity in the world's largest lake (Lake Baikal, Russia). Mol Ecol 2021; 31:238-251. [PMID: 34614231 DOI: 10.1111/mec.16209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2020] [Revised: 09/03/2021] [Accepted: 09/28/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Insights into the generation of diversity in both plants and animals have relied heavily on studying speciation in adaptive radiations. Russia's Lake Baikal has facilitated a putative adaptive radiation of cottid fishes (sculpins), some of which are highly specialized to inhabit novel niches created by the lake's unique geology and ecology. Here, we test evolutionary relationships and novel morphological adaptation in a piece of this radiation: the Baikal cottid genus, Cottocomephorus, a morphologically derived benthopelagic genus of three described species. We used a combination of mitochondrial DNA and restriction site associated DNA sequencing from all Cottocomephorus species. Analysis of mitochondrial cytochrome b haplotypes was only able to two resolve two lineages: C. grewingkii and C. comephoroides/inermis. Phylogenetic inference, principal component analysis, and faststructure of genome-wide SNPs uncovered three lineages within Cottocomephorus: C. comephoroides, C. inermis and C. grewingkii. We found recent divergence and admixture between C. comephoroides and C. inermis and deep divergence between these two species and C. grewingkii. Contrasting other fish radiations, we found no evidence of ancient hybridization among Cottocomephorus species. Digital morphology revealed highly derived pelagic phenotypes that reflect divergence by specialization to the benthopelagic niche in Cottocomephorus. Among Cottocomephorus species, we found evidence of ongoing adaptation to the pelagic zone. This pattern highlights the importance of speciation along a benthic-pelagic gradient seen in Cottocomephorus and across other adaptive fish radiations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carl A St John
- Department of Biological Science, California State University Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Thaddaeus J Buser
- Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - Victoria E Kee
- Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - Sergei Kirilchik
- Limnological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Irkutsk, Russia
| | - Bakhtiar Bogdanov
- Limnological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Irkutsk, Russia
| | - David Neely
- Tennessee Aquarium Conservation Institute, Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA
| | - Michael Sandel
- Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Western Alabama, Livingston, Alabama, USA
| | - Andres Aguilar
- Department of Biological Science, California State University Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
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8
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Egan JP, Buser TJ, Burns MD, Simons AM, Hundt PJ. Patterns of Body Shape Diversity and Evolution in Intertidal and Subtidal Lineages of Combtooth Blennies (Blenniidae). Integr Org Biol 2021; 3:obab004. [PMID: 33937629 PMCID: PMC8077888 DOI: 10.1093/iob/obab004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Marine intertidal zones can be harsher and more dynamic than bordering subtidal zones, with extreme and temporally variable turbulence, water velocity, salinity, temperature, and dissolved oxygen levels. Contrasting environmental conditions and ecological opportunities in subtidal versus intertidal habitats may generate differing patterns of morphological diversity. In this study we used phylogenetic comparative methods, measurements of body length, and two-dimensional landmarks to characterize body shape and size diversity in combtooth blennies (Ovalentaria: Blenniidae) and test for differences in morphological diversity between intertidal, subtidal, and supralittoral zones. We found that subtidal combtooth blennies have significantly higher body shape disparity and occupy a region of morphospace three times larger than intertidal lineages. The intertidal morphospace was almost entirely contained within the subtidal morphospace, showing that intertidal combtooth blennies did not evolve unique body shapes. We found no significant differences in body size disparity between tidal zones, no correlations between body shape and tidal zone or body size and tidal zone, and no body shape convergence associated with tidal zone. Our findings suggest that a subset of combtooth blenny body shapes are suitable for life in both subtidal and intertidal habitats. Many species in regions of morphospace unique to subtidal combtooth blennies exhibit distinct microhabitat use, which suggests subtidal environments promoted morphological diversification via evolutionary microhabitat transitions. In contrast, limited intertidal body shape diversity may be due to strong selective pressures that constrained body shape evolution and environmental filtering that prevented colonization of intertidal zones by certain subtidal body shapes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua P Egan
- Department of Biological Sciences, Western Michigan University, 2375 West Michigan Ave, Kalamazoo, MI 49006, USA
| | - Thaddaeus J Buser
- Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Oregon State University, 104 Nash Hall, 2820 SW Campus Way, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA
| | - Michael D Burns
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Cornell University Museum of Vertebrates, 159 Sapsucker Woods Road, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA
| | - Andrew M Simons
- Bell Museum of Natural History, University of Minnesota, 100 Ecology, 1987 Upper Buford Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA.,Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology, University of Minnesota, 2003 Upper Buford Circle, Saint Paul, Minnesota 55108, USA
| | - Peter J Hundt
- Bell Museum of Natural History, University of Minnesota, 100 Ecology, 1987 Upper Buford Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA.,Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology, University of Minnesota, 2003 Upper Buford Circle, Saint Paul, Minnesota 55108, USA
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9
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Kolmann MA, Peixoto T, Pfeiffenberger JA, Summers AP, Donatelli CM. Swimming and defence: competing needs across ontogeny in armoured fishes (Agonidae). J R Soc Interface 2020; 17:20200301. [PMID: 32781934 PMCID: PMC7482565 DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2020.0301] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2020] [Accepted: 07/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Biological armours are potent model systems for understanding the complex series of competing demands on protective exoskeletons; after all, armoured organisms are the product of millions of years of refined engineering under the harshest conditions. Fishes are no strangers to armour, with various types of armour plating common to the 400-500 Myr of evolution in both jawed and jawless fishes. Here, we focus on the poachers (Agonidae), a family of armoured fishes native to temperate waters of the Pacific rim. We examined armour morphology, body stiffness and swimming performance in the northern spearnose poacher (Agonopsis vulsa) over ontogeny. As juveniles, these fishes make frequent nocturnal forays into the water column in search of food, while heavily armoured adults are bound to the benthos. Most armour dimensions and density increase with body length, as does body stiffness. Juvenile poachers have enlarged spines on their armour whereas adults invest more mineral in armour plate bases. Adults are stiffer and accelerate faster than juveniles with an anguilliform swimming mode. Subadults more closely approximate adults more than smaller juveniles, with regards to both swimming and armour mechanics. Poacher armour serves multiple functions over ontogeny, from facilitating locomotion, slowing sinking and providing defence.
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Affiliation(s)
- M. A. Kolmann
- Friday Harbor Laboratories, University of Washington College of the Environment, Friday Harbor, WA, USA
- Biological Sciences, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA
| | - T. Peixoto
- Friday Harbor Laboratories, University of Washington College of the Environment, Friday Harbor, WA, USA
- Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - J. A. Pfeiffenberger
- Department of Biology, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA
- Department of Biology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - A. P. Summers
- Friday Harbor Laboratories, University of Washington College of the Environment, Friday Harbor, WA, USA
| | - C. M. Donatelli
- Department of Biology, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
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10
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Kolmann MA, Burns MD, Ng JYK, Lovejoy NR, Bloom DD. Habitat transitions alter the adaptive landscape and shape phenotypic evolution in needlefishes (Belonidae). Ecol Evol 2020; 10:3769-3783. [PMID: 32313635 PMCID: PMC7160164 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6172] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2020] [Revised: 02/06/2020] [Accepted: 02/18/2020] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Habitat occupancy can have a profound influence on macroevolutionary dynamics, and a switch in major habitat type may alter the evolutionary trajectory of a lineage. In this study, we investigate how evolutionary transitions between marine and freshwater habitats affect macroevolutionary adaptive landscapes, using needlefishes (Belonidae) as a model system. We examined the evolution of body shape and size in marine and freshwater needlefishes and tested for phenotypic change in response to transitions between habitats. Using micro-computed tomographic (µCT) scanning and geometric morphometrics, we quantified body shape, size, and vertebral counts of 31 belonid species. We then examined the pattern and tempo of body shape and size evolution using phylogenetic comparative methods. Our results show that transitions from marine to freshwater habitats have altered the adaptive landscape for needlefishes and expanded morphospace relative to marine taxa. We provide further evidence that freshwater taxa attain reduced sizes either through dwarfism (as inferred from axial skeletal reduction) or through developmental truncation (as inferred from axial skeletal loss). We propose that transitions to freshwater habitats produce morphological novelty in response to novel prey resources and changes in locomotor demands. We find that repeated invasions of different habitats have prompted predictable changes in morphology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew A. Kolmann
- Department of Biological SciencesGeorge Washington UniversityWashingtonDCUSA
- Friday Harbor LaboratoriesUniversity of WashingtonFriday HarborWAUSA
| | - Michael D. Burns
- Cornell Lab of OrnithologyCornell University Museum of VertebratesIthacaNYUSA
- Department of Biological SciencesWestern Michigan UniversityKalamazooMIUSA
| | - Justin Y. K. Ng
- School of Aquatic and Fishery SciencesUniversity of WashingtonSeattleWAUSA
| | - Nathan R. Lovejoy
- Department of Biological ScienceUniversity of Toronto ScarboroughTorontoONCanada
| | - Devin D. Bloom
- Department of Biological Sciences & Institute of the Environment and SustainabilityWestern Michigan UniversityKalamazooMIUSA
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