Document Type
Article
Publication Date
10-2018
Keywords
Ecological opportunity, morphological distinctiveness, rate heterogeneity, trait evolution
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13131
Abstract
Heterogeneity in rates of trait evolution is widespread, but it remains unclear which processes drive fast and slow character divergence across global radiations. Here, we test multiple hypotheses for explaining rate variation in an ecomorphological trait (beak shape) across a globally distributed group (birds). We find low support that variation in evolutionary rates of species is correlated with life history, environmental mutagenic factors, range size, number of competitors, or living on islands. Indeed, after controlling for the negative effect of species' age, 80% of variation in species‐specific evolutionary rates remains unexplained. At the clade level, high evolutionary rates are associated with unusual phenotypes or high species richness. Taken together, these results imply that macroevolutionary rates of ecomorphological traits are governed by both ecological opportunity in distinct adaptive zones and niche differentiation among closely related species.
Rights Information
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Was this content written or created while at USF?
Yes
Citation / Publisher Attribution
Ecology Letters, v. 21, issue 10, p. 1505-1514
Scholar Commons Citation
Chira, A. M.; Cooney, C. R.; Bright, Jen A.; Capp, E. J. R.; Hughes, E. C.; Moody, C. J. A.; Nouri, L. O.; Varley, Z. K.; and Thomas, G. H., "Correlates of Rate Heterogeneity in Avian Ecomorphological Traits" (2018). School of Geosciences Faculty and Staff Publications. 1185.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/geo_facpub/1185
