HEИндивидуална стипендия2023–2025

ISLADAPT · Morphological evolution in island birds: underlying molecular and ecological mechanisms

„Хоризонт Европа“ — Действия „Мария Склодовска-Кюри“

Период: 2023-09-01 → 2025-08-31
Финансиране от ЕС: 172 619 €
Участници: 1
Схема: HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF

Линиите свързват координатора с партньорите.

Накратко на български

Еволюцията на формата и размера на телата при островните птици се анализира чрез влиянието на климата, хищниците и храната. Това помага да се разберат механизмите, които променят външния вид на животните, когато те колонизират нова среда.

Този кратък обзор е генериран от изкуствен интелект

Кратко обяснение, генерирано от езиков модел по текста на CORDIS. Оригиналът е по-долу.

Резултати накратко

Morphological evolution in island birds: underlying molecular and ecological mechanisms

What causes the dramatic variation observed in animal body sizes and shapes? Understanding body size variation within and across species has been a central quest in evolutionary biology, but many of the mechanisms underlying body size evolution remain elusive. Islands are simplified ecosystems with a reduced number of habitats, species diversity and number of predators, and generally milder climates, making them ideal natural laboratories for dissecting the intricate mechanisms underlying body size evolution. Oceanic islands are colonised by mainland species that subsequently evolve under a new environment, leading to remarkable cases of morphological evolution. ISLADAPT project aimed to investigate the mechanisms involved in morphological evolution of birds on islands. Specifically it aimed 1) to provide a robust worldwide study of the role of competition, predation and climate in morphological evolution and thereby conducting a detailed investigation of the mechanisms underlying body size evolution in both sexes in responses to insularity, 2) explore the role of feeding niche for morphological evolution and 3) to investigate whether morphological evolution is related to species diversification in birds.

Текст от CORDIS, на английски · Данни: CORDIS, © Европейски съюз

Цел на проекта

Understanding body size variation across and within species has been a main quest in evolutionary biology, but many of the mechanisms underlying body size evolution remain elusive. This is largely because of the complex interplay of different factors such as climate, diet and interactions with competitors and predators. Island are simplified ecosystems with a reduced number of habitats, species diversity and number of predators, and generally milder climate, making them ideal natural laboratories for dissecting the intricate mechanisms underlying body size evolution. ISLADAPT aims to unravel mechanisms of morphological evolution and species diversification in birds, using both macro and microecological-evolutionary approaches based on state-of-the-art methodologies such as metabarcoding and Bayesian analysis. First, this project will use data from museums and literature for endemic island species and their closest relatives from mainland worldwide (WP1) to unravel the underlying mechanisms, such as changes in the ecological niche, geographical features and phylogeny, that explain the systematic morphological changes on islands (WP2). Second, ISLADAPT will use field-based data to test the hypothesis that morphological changes on islands are linked to changes in the feeding niche breadth. To do this, faeces and biometric data will be analysed from 20 bird species from Gulf Guinean Island and the nearby mainland, and diet composition will be identified with metabarcoding techniques (WP3). Third, ISLADPT will examine the relationship between bird morphological evolution and lineage diversification on islands by using biometric data from museums and phylogenetic information for three archipelagos: New Caledonia, the Gulf of Guinea and Salomon Islands (WP4). ISLADAPT will therefore address central, open questions in island biology and reveal the underlying mechanisms, thereby providing a major contribution to our understanding of island adaptation.

Оригинален текст от CORDIS (на английски).

Участници

ASSOCIACAO BIOPOLIS · VAIRAO, VILA DO CONDEКоординаторПортугалия