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Carballo-Morales JD, Saldaña-Vázquez RA, Villalobos F, Herrera-Alsina L. Thermal niche breadth and their relationship with sturnira bat species diversification. J Therm Biol 2023; 117:103697. [PMID: 37683357 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtherbio.2023.103697] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2022] [Revised: 07/29/2023] [Accepted: 08/25/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023]
Abstract
The interaction between climatic conditions and the ability of organisms to maintain homeostasis regulates the distribution of species on the planet. However, its influence on macroevolutionary dynamics is not well understood. It has been suggested that diversification rates will be different in lineages with narrow thermal niches (specialists) to diversification rates in generalist lineages, but the evidence for this is elusive. Here, we tested this hypothesis by using the most diverse (in species richness and geographic range variation) tropical bat genus within the Phyllostomidae family. We estimated the realized thermal niche breadth of Sturnira species from their geographic range and categorized them as generalists, cold specialists, or warm specialists. We compared dynamic evolutionary models that differ in 1) niche breadth evolution, 2) parental niche breadth inheritance, and 3) whether niche breadth evolution is associated with shifts in diversification rates. Our best-performing model indicates that most Sturnira species arose as specialists in warm climates and that over time, their niche breadth broadens, and just a subset of those species becomes specialists in cold environments. We found that the evolution of realized thermal niche breadth causes fluctuations in per-lineage rates of diversification, where warm specialists boast the highest speciation rates. However, we found no evidence of these changes in niche neither triggering nor being a result of speciation events themselves; this suggests that diversification events in Sturnira could instead depend on allopatric speciation processes such as the development of geographic barriers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge D Carballo-Morales
- Laboratorio de Sistemática, Genética y Evolución, Escuela de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Nacional, Heredia, CP 3000, Costa Rica; Department of Biological Sciences, Towson University, Towson, MD, 21252, USA.
| | - Romeo A Saldaña-Vázquez
- Instituto de Investigaciones en Medio Ambiente Xabier Gorostiaga, S.J. Universidad Iberoamericana Puebla, Blvd. Del Niño Poblano No. 2901, Col. Reserva Territorial Atlixcáyotl, San Andrés Cholula, Puebla, C.P.72820, Mexico.
| | - Federico Villalobos
- Laboratorio de Sistemática, Genética y Evolución, Escuela de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Nacional, Heredia, CP 3000, Costa Rica.
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2
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Mynard P, Algar A, Lancaster L, Bocedi G, Fahri F, Gubry-Rangin C, Lupiyaningdyah P, Nangoy M, Osborne O, Papadopulos A, Sudiana IM, Juliandi B, Travis J, Herrera-Alsina L. Impact of Phylogenetic Tree Completeness and Misspecification of Sampling Fractions on Trait Dependent Diversification Models. Syst Biol 2023; 72:106-119. [PMID: 36645380 DOI: 10.1093/sysbio/syad001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2021] [Revised: 12/02/2022] [Accepted: 01/15/2023] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding the origins of diversity and the factors that drive some clades to be more diverse than others are important issues in evolutionary biology. Sophisticated SSE (state-dependent speciation and extinction) models provide insights into the association between diversification rates and the evolution of a trait. The empirical data used in SSE models and other methods is normally imperfect, yet little is known about how this can affect these models. Here, we evaluate the impact of common phylogenetic issues on inferences drawn from SSE models. Using simulated phylogenetic trees and trait information, we fitted SSE models to determine the effects of sampling fraction (phylogenetic tree completeness) and sampling fraction misspecification on model selection and parameter estimation (speciation, extinction, and transition rates) under two sampling regimes (random and taxonomically biased). As expected, we found that both model selection and parameter estimate accuracies are reduced at lower sampling fractions (i.e., low tree completeness). Furthermore, when sampling of the tree is imbalanced across subclades and tree completeness is ≤ 60%, rates of false positives increase and parameter estimates are less accurate, compared to when sampling is random. Thus, when applying SSE methods to empirical datasets, there are increased risks of false inferences of trait dependent diversification when some sub-clades are heavily under-sampled. Mis-specifying the sampling fraction severely affected the accuracy of parameter estimates: parameter values were over-estimated when the sampling fraction was specified as lower than its true value, and under-estimated when the sampling fraction was specified as higher than its true value. Our results suggest that it is better to cautiously under-estimate sampling efforts, as false positives increased when the sampling fraction was over-estimated. We encourage SSE studies where the sampling fraction can be reasonably estimated and provide recommended best practices for SSE modelling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Poppy Mynard
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
| | - Adam Algar
- Department of Biology, Lakehead University, Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada
| | - Lesley Lancaster
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
| | - Greta Bocedi
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
| | - Fahri Fahri
- Department of Biology, Tadulako University, Palu, Indonesia
| | | | - Pungki Lupiyaningdyah
- Museum Zoologicum Bogoriense, Research Center for Biology, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Cibinong, 16911, Indonesia
| | - Meis Nangoy
- Faculty of Animal Husbandry, Sam Ratulangi University, Kampus Bahu Street, Manado, 95115 Indonesia
| | - Owen Osborne
- School of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Environment Centre Wales, Deiniol Road, Bangor, LL57 2UW, UK
| | - Alexander Papadopulos
- School of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Environment Centre Wales, Deiniol Road, Bangor, LL57 2UW, UK
| | - I Made Sudiana
- Microbial Ecology Research Group, Research Center for Biology, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Cibinong 19611, Indonesia
| | - Berry Juliandi
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, IPB University, Bogor, 16680, Indonesia
| | - Justin Travis
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
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Struebig MJ, Aninta SG, Beger M, Bani A, Barus H, Brace S, Davies ZG, Brauwer M, Diele K, Djakiman C, Djamaluddin R, Drinkwater R, Dumbrell A, Evans D, Fusi M, Herrera-Alsina L, Iskandar DT, Jompa J, Juliandi B, Lancaster LT, Limmon G, Lo MGY, Lupiyaningdyah P, McCannon M, Meijaard E, Mitchell SL, Mumbunan S, O'Connell D, Osborne OG, Papadopulos AST, Rahajoe JS, Rossiter SJ, Rustiami H, Salzmann U, Sudiana IM, Sukara E, Tasirin JS, Tjoa A, Travis JMJ, Trethowan L, Trianto A, Utteridge T, Voigt M, Winarni N, Zakaria Z, Edwards DP, Frantz L, Supriatna J. Safeguarding Imperiled Biodiversity and Evolutionary Processes in the Wallacea Center of Endemism. Bioscience 2022; 72:1118-1130. [PMID: 36325105 PMCID: PMC9618277 DOI: 10.1093/biosci/biac085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Wallacea-the meeting point between the Asian and Australian fauna-is one of the world's largest centers of endemism. Twenty-three million years of complex geological history have given rise to a living laboratory for the study of evolution and biodiversity, highly vulnerable to anthropogenic pressures. In the present article, we review the historic and contemporary processes shaping Wallacea's biodiversity and explore ways to conserve its unique ecosystems. Although remoteness has spared many Wallacean islands from the severe overexploitation that characterizes many tropical regions, industrial-scale expansion of agriculture, mining, aquaculture and fisheries is damaging terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, denuding endemics from communities, and threatening a long-term legacy of impoverished human populations. An impending biodiversity catastrophe demands collaborative actions to improve community-based management, minimize environmental impacts, monitor threatened species, and reduce wildlife trade. Securing a positive future for Wallacea's imperiled ecosystems requires a fundamental shift away from managing marine and terrestrial realms independently.
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Herrera-Alsina L, Mynard P, Sudiana IM, Juliandi B, Travis JMJ, Gubry-Rangin C. Reconstruction of State-Dependent Diversification: Integrating Phenotypic Traits into Molecular Phylogenies. Methods Mol Biol 2022; 2569:305-326. [PMID: 36083455 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-2691-7_15] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
The relative contribution of speciation and extinction into current diversity is certainly unknown, but mathematical frameworks that use genetic information have been developed to provide estimates of these processes. To that end, it is necessary to reconstruct molecular phylogenetic trees which summarize ancestor-descendant relationships as well as the timing of evolutionary events (i.e., rates). Nevertheless, diversification models show poor fit when assuming that single rate of speciation/extinction is constant over time and across lineages: species exhibit such a great variation in features that it is unlikely they give birth and die at the same pace. The state-dependent diversification framework (SSE) reconciles the species phenotypic variation with heterogeneous rates of diversification observed in a clade. This family of models allows testing contrasting hypotheses on mode of speciation, trait evolution, and its influence on speciation/extinction regimes. Although microbial species richness outnumbers diversity in plants and animals, diversification models are underused in microbiology. Here, we introduce microbiologists to models that estimate diversification rates and provide a detailed description of SSE models. Besides theoretical principles underlying the method, we also show how SSE analysis should be set up in R. We use pH evolution in Thaumarchaeota to explain its evolutionary dynamic in the light of SSE model. We hope this chapter spurs the study of trait evolution and evolutionary outcomes in microorganisms.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Poppy Mynard
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
| | - I Made Sudiana
- Research Center for Biology, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Cibinong, Indonesia
| | - Berry Juliandi
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, IPB University, Bogor, Indonesia
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5
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van Els P, Herrera-Alsina L, Pigot AL, Etienne RS. Evolutionary dynamics of the elevational diversity gradient in passerine birds. Nat Ecol Evol 2021; 5:1259-1265. [PMID: 34294897 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-021-01515-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2020] [Accepted: 06/16/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Low-elevation regions harbour the majority of the world's species diversity compared to high-elevation areas. This global gradient suggests that lowland species have had more time to diversify, or that net diversification rates have been higher in the lowlands. However, highlands seem to be cradles of diversity as they contain many young endemics, suggesting that their rates of speciation are exceptionally fast. Here we use a phylogenetic diversification model that accounts for the dispersal of species between different elevations to examine the evolutionary dynamics of the elevational diversity gradient in passerine birds, a group that has radiated globally to occupy almost all elevations and latitudes. We find strong support for a model in which passerines diversify at the same rate in the highlands and the lowlands but in which the per-capita rate of dispersal from high to low elevations is more than twice as fast as that in the reverse direction. This suggests that while there is no consistent trend in diversification across elevations, part of the diversity generated by highland regions migrates into the lowlands, thus setting up the observed gradient in passerine diversity. We find that this process drives tropical regions but for temperate areas, the analysis could be hampered by their lower richness. Despite their lower diversity, highland regions are disproportionally important for maintaining diversity in the adjacent lowlands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul van Els
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.,Sovon Dutch Centre for Field Ornithology, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Leonel Herrera-Alsina
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands. .,School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK.
| | - Alex L Pigot
- Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London, UK
| | - Rampal S Etienne
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
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6
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Aduse-Poku K, van Bergen E, Sáfián S, Collins SC, Etienne RS, Herrera-Alsina L, Brakefield PM, Brattström O, Lohman DJ, Wahlberg N. Miocene Climate and Habitat Change Drove Diversification in Bicyclus, Africa's Largest Radiation of Satyrine Butterflies. Syst Biol 2021; 71:570-588. [PMID: 34363477 PMCID: PMC9016770 DOI: 10.1093/sysbio/syab066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2020] [Revised: 08/02/2021] [Accepted: 08/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Compared to other regions, the drivers of diversification in Africa are poorly understood. We studied a radiation of insects with over 100 species occurring in a wide range of habitats across the Afrotropics to investigate the fundamental evolutionary processes and geological events that generate and maintain patterns of species richness on the continent. By investigating the evolutionary history of Bicyclus butterflies within a phylogenetic framework, we inferred the group's origin at the Oligo-Miocene boundary from ancestors in the Congolian rainforests of central Africa. Abrupt climatic fluctuations during the Miocene (ca. 19-17 Ma) likely fragmented ancestral populations, resulting in at least eight early-divergent lineages. Only one of these lineages appears to have diversified during the drastic climate and biome changes of the early Miocene, radiating into the largest group of extant species. The other seven lineages diversified in forest ecosystems during the late Miocene and Pleistocene when climatic conditions were more favourable-warmer and wetter. Our results suggest changing Neogene climate, uplift of eastern African orogens, and biotic interactions might have had different effects on the various subclades of Bicyclus, producing one of the most spectacular butterfly radiations in Africa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kwaku Aduse-Poku
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge, UK.,Biology Department, University of Richmond, Richmond, 138 UR Drive, USA.,Department of Life and Earth Sciences, Perimeter College, Georgia State University, USA
| | - Erik van Bergen
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge, UK.,Department of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Szabolcs Sáfián
- Institute of Silviculture and Forest Protection, University of Sopron, Sopron, Hungary
| | - Steve C Collins
- African Butterfly Research Institute, P.O. Box 14308, 0800 Westlands, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Rampal S Etienne
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands
| | | | - Paul M Brakefield
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge, UK
| | - Oskar Brattström
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge, UK.,African Butterfly Research Institute, P.O. Box 14308, 0800 Westlands, Nairobi, Kenya.,University of Glasgow, School of Life Sciences, Glasgow, Scotland, UK.,University of Glasgow, Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, Glasgow, Scotland, UK
| | - David J Lohman
- Biology Department, City College of New York, City University of New York, USA.,Ph.D. Program in Biology, Graduate Center, City University of New York, NY, USA.,Entomology Section, National Museum of Natural History, Manila, 1000, Philippines
| | - Niklas Wahlberg
- Department of Biology, Lund University, Sölvegatan35, SE-223, 62 Lund, Sweden
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7
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Onstein RE, Baker WJ, Couvreur TLP, Faurby S, Herrera-Alsina L, Svenning JC, Kissling WD. To adapt or go extinct? The fate of megafaunal palm fruits under past global change. Proc Biol Sci 2019; 285:rspb.2018.0882. [PMID: 29899077 PMCID: PMC6015859 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.0882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2018] [Accepted: 05/17/2018] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Past global change may have forced animal-dispersed plants with megafaunal fruits to adapt or go extinct, but these processes have remained unexplored at broad spatio-temporal scales. Here, we combine phylogenetic, distributional and fruit size data for more than 2500 palm (Arecaceae) species in a time-slice diversification analysis to quantify how extinction and adaptation have changed over deep time. Our results indicate that extinction rates of palms with megafaunal fruits have increased in the New World since the onset of the Quaternary (2.6 million years ago). In contrast, Old World palms show a Quaternary increase in transition rates towards evolving small fruits from megafaunal fruits. We suggest that Quaternary climate oscillations and concurrent habitat fragmentation and defaunation of megafaunal frugivores in the New World have reduced seed dispersal distances and geographical ranges of palms with megafaunal fruits, resulting in their extinction. The increasing adaptation to smaller fruits in the Old World could reflect selection for seed dispersal by ocean-crossing frugivores (e.g. medium-sized birds and bats) to colonize Indo-Pacific islands against a background of Quaternary sea-level fluctuations. Our macro-evolutionary results suggest that megafaunal fruits are increasingly being lost from tropical ecosystems, either due to extinctions or by adapting to smaller fruit sizes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renske E Onstein
- Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED), University of Amsterdam, PO Box 94248, 1090 GE Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | | | - Søren Faurby
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Box 461, 405 30, Göteborg, Sweden.,Gothenburg Global Biodiversity Centre, Box 461, 405 30 Göteborg, Sweden
| | - Leonel Herrera-Alsina
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Jens-Christian Svenning
- Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE), Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark.,Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - W Daniel Kissling
- Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED), University of Amsterdam, PO Box 94248, 1090 GE Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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8
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Herrera-Alsina L, van Els P, Etienne RS. Detecting the Dependence of Diversification on Multiple Traits from Phylogenetic Trees and Trait Data. Syst Biol 2018; 68:317-328. [DOI: 10.1093/sysbio/syy057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2017] [Accepted: 09/08/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Leonel Herrera-Alsina
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, PO Box 11103, Groningen 9700 CC, The Netherlands
| | - Paul van Els
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, PO Box 11103, Groningen 9700 CC, The Netherlands
| | - Rampal S Etienne
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, PO Box 11103, Groningen 9700 CC, The Netherlands
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9
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Herrera-Alsina L, Pigot AL, Hildenbrandt H, Etienne RS. The influence of ecological and geographic limits on the evolution of species distributions and diversity. Evolution 2018; 72:1978-1991. [PMID: 30055007 PMCID: PMC6220796 DOI: 10.1111/evo.13563] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2017] [Revised: 07/17/2018] [Accepted: 07/18/2018] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
The role of ecological limits in regulating the distribution and diversification of species remains controversial. Although such limits must ultimately arise from constraints on local species coexistence, this spatial context is missing from most macroevolutionary models. Here, we develop a stochastic, spatially explicit model of species diversification to explore the phylogenetic and biogeographic patterns expected when local diversity is bounded. We show how local ecological limits, by regulating opportunities for range expansion and thus rates of speciation and extinction, lead to temporal slowdowns in diversification and predictable differences in equilibrium diversity between regions. However, our models also show that even when regions have identical diversity limits, the dynamics of diversification and total number of species supported at equilibrium can vary dramatically depending on the relative size of geographic and local ecological niche space. Our model predicts that small regions with higher local ecological limits support a higher standing diversity and more balanced phylogenetic trees than large geographic areas with more stringent constraints on local coexistence. Our findings highlight how considering the spatial context of diversification can provide new insights into the role of ecological limits in driving variation in biodiversity across space, time, and clades.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonel Herrera-Alsina
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, 9700 CC, The Netherlands
| | - Alex L Pigot
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, 9700 CC, The Netherlands.,Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London, WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom
| | - Hanno Hildenbrandt
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, 9700 CC, The Netherlands
| | - Rampal S Etienne
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, 9700 CC, The Netherlands
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10
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Malpica A, Covarrubias S, Villegas-Patraca R, Herrera-Alsina L. Ecomorphological structure of avian communities changes upon arrival of wintering species. Basic Appl Ecol 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.baae.2017.08.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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11
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Saldaña-Vázquez RA, Ruiz-Sanchez E, Herrera-Alsina L, Schondube JE. Digestive capacity predicts diet diversity in Neotropical frugivorous bats. J Anim Ecol 2015; 84:1396-404. [PMID: 25919065 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12383] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2014] [Accepted: 04/21/2015] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
1. Predicting the diet diversity of animals is important to basic and applied ecology. Knowledge of diet diversity in animals helps us understand niche partitioning, functional diversity and ecosystem services such as pollination, pest control and seed dispersal. 2. There is a negative relationship between the length of the digestive tract and diet diversity in animals; however, the role of digestive physiology in determining diet diversity has been ignored. This is especially important in vertebrates with powered flight because, unlike non-flying vertebrates, they have limitations that may constrain gut size. 3. Here, we evaluate the relationship between digestive capacity and diet diversity in Carollinae and Stenodermatinae frugivorous bats. These bats disperse the seeds of plants that are key to Neotropical forest regeneration. 4. Our results show that digestive capacity is a good predictor of diet diversity in Carollinae and Stenodermatinae frugivorous bats (R(2) = 0·77). 5. Surprisingly, the most phylogenetically closely related species were not similar in their digestive capacity or diet diversity. The lack of a phylogenetic signal for the traits evaluated implies differences in digestive physiology and diet in closely related species. 6. Our results highlight the predictive usefulness of digestive physiology for understanding the feeding ecology of animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Romeo A Saldaña-Vázquez
- Red de Ecología Funcional, Instituto de Ecología A.C., Apdo. Postal 63, Xalapa, Ver., CP 91000, México.,Laboratorio de Ecología Funcional, Instituto de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas y Sustentabilidad, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Apdo. Postal 27-3 (Santa María de Guido), Morelia, Michoacán, 58089, México
| | - Eduardo Ruiz-Sanchez
- Red de Biodiversidad y Sistemática, Instituto de Ecología, A. C., Centro Regional de Bajío, Av. Lázaro Cárdenas 253, 61600, Pátzcuaro, Michoacán, México
| | - Leonel Herrera-Alsina
- Laboratorio de Macroecología, Instituto de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas y Sustentabilidad, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Apdo. Postal 27-3 (Santa María de Guido), Morelia, Michoacán, 58089, México
| | - Jorge E Schondube
- Laboratorio de Ecología Funcional, Instituto de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas y Sustentabilidad, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Apdo. Postal 27-3 (Santa María de Guido), Morelia, Michoacán, 58089, México
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12
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Villegas-Patraca R, Herrera-Alsina L. Migration of Franklin's Gull (Leucophaeus pipixcan) and its variable annual risk from wind power facilities across the Tehuantepec Isthmus. J Nat Conserv 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jnc.2015.03.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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13
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Villegas-Patraca R, Cabrera-Cruz SA, Herrera-Alsina L. Soaring migratory birds avoid wind farm in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, southern Mexico. PLoS One 2014; 9:e92462. [PMID: 24647442 PMCID: PMC3967695 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0092462] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2013] [Accepted: 02/21/2014] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The number of wind farms operating in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, southern Mexico, has rapidly increased in recent years; yet, this region serves as a major migration route for various soaring birds, including Turkey Vultures (Cathartes aura) and Swainson's Hawks (Buteo swainsoni). We analyzed the flight trajectories of soaring migrant birds passing the La Venta II wind farm during the two migratory seasons of 2011, to determine whether an avoidance pattern existed or not. We recorded three polar coordinates for the flight path of migrating soaring birds that were detected using marine radar, plotted the flight trajectories and estimated the number of trajectories that intersected the polygon defined by the wind turbines of La Venta II. Finally, we estimated the actual number of intersections per kilometer and compared this value with the null distributions obtained by running 10,000 simulations of our datasets. The observed number of intersections per kilometer fell within or beyond the lower end of the null distributions in the five models proposed for the fall season and in three of the four models proposed for the spring season. Flight trajectories had a non-random distribution around La Venta II, suggesting a strong avoidance pattern during fall and a possible avoidance pattern during spring. We suggest that a nearby ridgeline plays an important role in this pattern, an issue that may be incorporated into strategies to minimize the potential negative impacts of future wind farms on soaring birds. Studies evaluating these issues in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec have not been previously published; hence this work contributes important baseline information about the movement patterns of soaring birds and its relationship to wind farms in the region.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sergio A. Cabrera-Cruz
- Red de Ambiente y Sustentabilidad, Instituto de Ecología A.C., Xalapa, Veracruz, México
- * E-mail:
| | - Leonel Herrera-Alsina
- Centro de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Morelia, Michoacán, México
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Herrera-Alsina L, Villegas-Patraca R. Biologic interactions determining geographic range size: a one species response to phylogenetic community structure. Ecol Evol 2014; 4:968-76. [PMID: 24772275 PMCID: PMC3997314 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.959] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2013] [Revised: 12/10/2013] [Accepted: 12/24/2013] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Range size variation in closely related species suggests different responses to biotic and abiotic heterogeneity across large geographic regions. Species turnover generates a wide spectrum of species assemblages, resulting in different competition intensities among taxa, creating restrictions as important as environmental constraints. We chose to adopt the widely used phylogenetic relatedness (NRI) measurement to define a metric that depicts competition strength (via phylogenetic similarity), which one focal species confronts in its environment. This new approach (NRIfocal) measures the potential of the community structure effect over performance of a single species. We chose two ecologically similar Peucaea sparrows, which co-occur and have highly dissimilar range size to test whether the population response to competition intensity is different between species. We analyzed the correlation between both Peucaea species population sizes and NRIfocal using data from point counts. Results indicated that the widespread species population size was not associated with NRIfocal, whereas the population of restricted-sized species exhibited a negative relationship with competition intensity. Consequently, a species' sensitivity to competition might be a limiting factor to range expansion, which provides new insights into geographic range analysis and community ecology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonel Herrera-Alsina
- Posgrado en Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México Apartado Postal 27-3, CP 58089, Morelia, Michoacán, México ; Centro de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México Apartado Postal 27-3, CP 58089, Morelia, Michoacán, México
| | - Rafael Villegas-Patraca
- Instituto de Ecología, A. C. Carretera antigua a Coatepec 351, El Haya, Xalapa, 91070, Veracruz, Mexico
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