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Niche filling predicts evolutionary trajectories in insular bird communities

Title data

Dufour, Paul ; Sayol, Ferran ; Steinbauer, Manuel ; Cooke, Rob ; Faurby, Søren:
Niche filling predicts evolutionary trajectories in insular bird communities.
In: Functional Ecology. Vol. 38 (2024) Issue 12 . - pp. 2636-2647.
ISSN 1365-2435
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2435.14675

Abstract in another language

1. Different theories have been proposed to explain the phenotypic changes observed in island lineages, but it remains unclear if predictable evolutionary trajectories can be identified within island communities.
2. Using a 3D functional space approach, we tested whether insular endemic species tend to evolve towards apparent holes in niche space (expecting niche filling) or tend to become generalists, that is, moving towards the centre of the functional space (expecting niche expansion).
3. We tested these two hypotheses in 378 insular endemic species from 24 islands of 8 archipelagos, including 177 prehistoric anthropogenically extinct species. Analyses were conducted with and without accounting for species size difference.
4. We found that 57% of island endemic species evolved towards more unoccupied regions of the global morphospace (i.e. more distinct body sizes compared to the ones of their ancestors), suggesting a tendency for niche filling. When adjusted traits for body size, we found that half of the endemic species (50%) showed more distinct trait values than their ancestors.
5. Results also revealed that certain dietary niches (terrestrial herbivores and nectarivores) evolved distinct body sizes more frequently. Differences noted between islands and archipelagos suggest that biogeographic factors may influence evolutionary trajectory and interactions between these two hypotheses.
6. Our study confirms that extinct species occupied specific niches that have been left vacant, suggesting that these evolutionary ‘oddities’ could be more sensitive to extinction. Overall, it calls for a global assessment of the avian functional diversity lost from recent extinctions.

Further data

Item Type: Article in a journal
Refereed: Yes
Institutions of the University: Faculties > Faculty of Biology, Chemistry and Earth Sciences
Faculties > Faculty of Cultural Studies > Department of Sport Science > Chair Sport Ecology
Faculties > Faculty of Cultural Studies > Department of Sport Science > Chair Sport Ecology > Chair Sport Ecology - Univ.-Prof. Dr. Manuel Jonas Steinbauer
Profile Fields > Advanced Fields > Ecology and the Environmental Sciences
Research Institutions > Central research institutes > Bayreuth Center of Ecology and Environmental Research- BayCEER
Research Institutions > Central research institutes > Bayreuth Center of Sport Science (BaySpo)
Result of work at the UBT: Yes
DDC Subjects: 500 Science > 500 Natural sciences
500 Science > 550 Earth sciences, geology
500 Science > 560 Fossils, prehistoric life
500 Science > 570 Life sciences, biology
500 Science > 590 Animals (Zoology)
900 History and geography > 910 Geography, travel
Date Deposited: 05 Dec 2024 07:44
Last Modified: 05 Dec 2024 07:44
URI: https://eref.uni-bayreuth.de/id/eprint/91328