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15 results

  • The global biogeography of avian haemosporidian parasites is characterized by local diversification and intercontinental dispersal

  • Vincenzo A. Ellis, Eloisa H. R. Sari, Dustin R. Rubenstein, Rebecca C. Dickerson, Staffan Bensch, Robert E. Ricklefs
  • Journal:
    Parasitology / Volume 146 / Issue 2 / February 2019
    Published online by Cambridge University Press:
    16 July 2018, pp. 213-219

  • The biogeographic histories of parasites and pathogens are infrequently compared with those of free-living species, including their hosts. Documenting the frequency with which parasites and pathogens disperse across geographic regions contributes to understanding not only their evolution, but also the likelihood that they may become emerging infectious diseases. Haemosporidian parasites of birds (parasite genera Plasmodium, Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon) are globally distributed, dipteran-vectored parasites. To date, over 2000 avian haemosporidian lineages have been designated by molecular barcoding methods. To achieve their current distributions, some lineages must have dispersed long distances, often over water. Here we quantify such events using the global avian haemosporidian database MalAvi and additional records primarily from the Americas. We scored lineages as belonging to one or more global biogeographic regions based on infection records. Most lineages were restricted to a single region but some were globally distributed. We also used part of the cytochrome b gene to create genus-level parasite phylogenies and scored well-supported nodes as having descendant lineages in regional sympatry or allopatry. Descendant sister lineages of Plasmodium, Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon were distributed in allopatry in 11, 16 and 15% of investigated nodes, respectively. Although a small but significant fraction of the molecular variance in cytochrome b of all three genera could be explained by biogeographic region, global parasite dispersal likely contributed to the majority of the unexplained variance. Our results suggest that avian haemosporidian parasites have faced few geographic barriers to dispersal over their evolutionary history.

Comparative Social Evolution
  • Edited by Dustin R. Rubenstein, Patrick Abbot
  • Published online:
    13 April 2017
    Print publication:
    24 March 2017
  • Darwin famously described special difficulties in explaining social evolution in insects. More than a century later, the evolution of sociality - defined broadly as cooperative group living - remains one of the most intriguing problems in biology. Providing a unique perspective on the study of social evolution, this volume synthesizes the features of animal social life across the principle taxonomic groups in which sociality has evolved. The chapters explore sociality in a range of species, from ants to primates, highlighting key natural and life history data and providing a comparative view across animal societies. In establishing a single framework for a common, trait-based approach towards social synthesis, this volume will enable graduate students and investigators new to the field to systematically compare taxonomic groups and reinvigorate comparative approaches to studying animal social evolution.

  • 16 - The evolution of foraging behavior in the Galápagos marine iguana: natural and sexual selection on body size drives ecological, morphological, and behavioral specialization

  • Edited by Stephen M. Reilly, Ohio University, Lance B. McBrayer, Georgia Southern University, Donald B. Miles, Ohio University
  • Book:
    Lizard Ecology
    Published online:
    04 August 2010
    Print publication:
    12 July 2007, pp 491-507

  • Summary

    Introduction

    Each year thousands of tourists visit the Galápagos Islands and become intrigued by the unique habits of the world's only sea-going lizard, the Galápagos marine iguana (Amblyrhynchus cristatus), as it swims offshore and dives under the waves to feed. One of the islands' first visitors, Charles Darwin, reported fascination with watching these creatures forage, and he

    opened the stomach of several, and in each case found it largely distended with minced sea-weed … [that] grows at the bottom of the sea, at some little distance from the coast.

    (Darwin, 1839)

    We now know that the Galápagos marine iguana is the only terrestrial vertebrate that forages almost exclusively on macrophytic marine algae. Although marine iguanas are active foragers, their short, intense bouts of foraging activity more closely resemble the activity pattern of sit-and-wait foragers. To understand why these endemic lizards have adapted such a unique foraging strategy and how it differs from the general pattern of foraging in lizards, we must examine the social and environmental selective pressures that are unique to this species and its environment.

    The Galápagos marine iguana is a model system to understand how natural and sexual selection drive morphological and behavioral adaptations. In this chapter we will show how the unique foraging strategy of the marine iguana is an adaptation resulting from the forces of both sexual selection, acting through their unique social system, and natural selection by a harsh and variable environment.