The macroevolutionary consequences of trait correlations

特质相关性的宏观进化后果

• 批准号: NE/T000139/1
• 负责人: Gavin Thomas
• 金额: $ 60.7万
• 依托单位: University of Sheffield
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2020
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2020 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=NE%2FT000139%2F1
• 关键词: macroevolutionary; consequences; trait; correlations

The diversity of Life on Earth is immense. Over millions of years, evolution has generated a staggering variety of species. When we look more closely, however, we begin to notice some surprising patterns. Some groups have far more species than others, for example there are over 350,000 species of beetle but only a few species of elephant. Other groups exhibit diverse shapes and sizes, for example the Hawaiian honeycreepers, whereas others are fairly uniform, for example mice and rats. These patterns suggest that there are constraints, or limitations, on the numbers of species and their variety of form and function, i.e. biological diversity is not evenly distributed across the tree of life. Why this is so remains unresolved and is a fundamental question in evolutionary biology.Here we focus on a previously unexplored explanation for this uneven distribution of diversity: correlations among species traits. Species traits can be almost any aspect of physical appearance (such as body size or eye colour), behaviour, or life history (size vs. number of offspring). These traits are not always independent of one another, for example investing in more offspring often results in smaller offspring. In such cases we say that the traits involved are correlated. Where traits are correlated, evolution in one trait may promote or prevent evolution in another. Differences in the strength of trait correlations in different groups of species might determine variation between and among groups of related species. Where correlations among traits are strong these may prevent evolution of very different shapes and sizes. Therefore the diversity of form and function might be low, and the number of closely-related species should be few. Over millions of years these trait correlations might become weaker or even disappear, allowing species to evolve in new ways or multiply in number. These ideas suggest that trait correlations are important in our understanding of the diversity of life. Our proposal aims to understand how trait correlations can affect the processes that determine patterns of diversity (both in species number and in form and function) across the tree of life. We focus on traits related to food type and acquisition in birds. The size and shape of bird beaks can reflect dietary requirements and foraging methods. When traits are correlated, some combinations may never occur together, for example, it may not be possible to evolve beaks that are simultaneously long and curved like a curlew, and wide and deep like a duck. To test how trait correlations can affect the processes that determine patterns of diversity across the tree of life we need to measure many individuals from many different species. It would be a near-impossible challenge to do this in the field. Instead we use specimens from museums. Around the world museums house billions of specimens, often from historical collections over 100 years old. The Natural History Museum, London has around 80 million specimens. These collections are a rich source of information on nearly all species of birds (over 10,000 species). We will generate data from these collections, including 3D scans of bird beaks. We will then use these data, along with state-of-the-art analysis methods, to evaluate trait correlations among and within species, and among higher taxonomic groupings such as families and orders. By using museum specimens and a novel view of the importance of trait correlations, our research will provide new insights into how and why life diversifies. Not only will this research address a fundamental debate in evolutionary biology, but it will also create valuable bird datasets for future researchers, and highlight the importance of natural history collections for cutting edge research.

地球上生命的多样性是巨大的。数百万年来，进化产生了种类繁多的物种。然而，当我们更仔细地观察时，我们开始注意到一些令人惊讶的模式。有些类群的物种比其他类群多得多，例如甲虫有超过 350,000 种，但大象只有几种。其他类群表现出不同的形状和大小，例如夏威夷蜜旋鸟，而其他类群则相当统一，例如小鼠和大鼠。这些模式表明，物种数量及其形式和功能的多样性存在约束或限制，即生物多样性在生命之树上的分布并不均匀。为什么会出现这种情况仍然悬而未决，这是进化生物学中的一个基本问题。在这里，我们重点关注以前未探索过的对这种多样性分布不均匀的解释：物种性状之间的相关性。物种特征几乎可以是外貌（例如身体大小或眼睛颜色）、行为或生活史（体型与后代数量）的任何方面。这些特征并不总是彼此独立的，例如，投资更多的后代通常会导致更小的后代。在这种情况下，我们说所涉及的特征是相关的。当性状相关时，一种性状的进化可能会促进或阻止另一种性状的进化。不同物种群体中性状相关强度的差异可能决定相关物种群体之间的差异。当性状之间的相关性很强时，这些可能会阻止非常不同的形状和大小的进化。因此，形态和功能的多样性可能较低，并且密切相关的物种数量应该很少。经过数百万年，这些性状相关性可能会变弱甚至消失，从而使物种以新的方式进化或数量倍增。这些想法表明，特质相关性对于我们理解生命的多样性非常重要。我们的提议旨在了解性状相关性如何影响决定生命树多样性模式（物种数量以及形式和功能）的过程。我们关注与鸟类食物类型和获取相关的特征。鸟喙的大小和形状可以反映饮食要求和觅食方法。当性状相关时，某些组合可能永远不会同时出现，例如，可能无法进化出像鹬一样又长又弯曲，又像鸭子一样又宽又深的喙。为了测试性状相关性如何影响决定生命树多样性模式的过程，我们需要测量来自许多不同物种的许多个体。在现场做到这一点几乎是不可能的挑战。相反，我们使用博物馆的标本。世界各地的博物馆收藏了数十亿件标本，通常来自 100 多年历史的历史收藏。伦敦自然历史博物馆拥有约 8000 万件标本。这些馆藏是几乎所有鸟类（超过 10,000 种）的丰富信息来源。我们将从这些集合中生成数据，包括鸟喙的 3D 扫描。然后，我们将使用这些数据以及最先进的分析方法来评估物种之间和物种内部以及更高的分类群（例如科和目）之间的性状相关性。通过使用博物馆标本和对特质相关性重要性的新颖观点，我们的研究将为生命如何以及为何多样化提供新的见解。这项研究不仅将解决进化生物学中的基本争论，而且还将为未来的研究人员创建有价值的鸟类数据集，并强调自然历史收藏对于前沿研究的重要性。

项目成果

The evolution of the traplining pollinator role in hummingbirds: specialization is not an evolutionary dead end.

蜂鸟中陷阱传粉者角色的进化：专业化并不是进化的死胡同。

• DOI: http://dx.10.1098/rspb.2021.2484
• 发表时间: 2022
• 期刊: Proceedings. Biological sciences
• 作者: Rombaut LMK

Allometric conservatism in the evolution of bird beaks.

鸟喙进化中的异速保守。

• DOI: http://dx.10.1002/evl3.267
• 发表时间: 2022
• 期刊: Evolution letters
• 影响因子: 5
• 作者: Rombaut LMK

Innovation and elaboration on the avian tree of life.

对鸟类生命树的创新和阐述。

• DOI: http://dx.10.1126/sciadv.adg1641
• 发表时间: 2023
• 期刊: Science advances
• 影响因子: 13.6
• 作者: Guillerme T

The complex effects of mass extinctions on morphological disparity.

大规模灭绝对形态差异的复杂影响。

• DOI: http://dx.10.1111/evo.14078
• 发表时间: 2020
• 期刊: Evolution; international journal of organic evolution
• 作者: Puttick MN

Innovation and elaboration on the avian tree of life

鸟类生命树的创新与阐述

• DOI: http://dx.10.1101/2022.08.12.503188
• 发表时间: 2023-10-27
• 作者: Guillerme, Thomas;Bright, Jen A.;Cooney, Christopher R.;Hughes, Emma C.;Varley, Zoe K.;Cooper, Natalie;Beckerman, Andrew P.;Thomas, Gavin H.
• 通讯作者: Thomas, Gavin H.