| Literature DB >> 32551085 |
Federico Morelli1,2, Yanina Benedetti1, Anders Pape Møller3.
Abstract
Brood parasitism is a breeding strategy adopted by many species of cuckoos across the world. This breeding strategy influences the evolution of life histories of brood parasite species.In this study, we tested whether the degree on diet specialization is related to the breeding strategy in cuckoo species, by comparing brood parasite and nonparasite species. We measured the gradient of diet specialization of cuckoos, by calculating the Gini coefficient, an index of inequality, on the multiple traits describing the diet of species. The Gini coefficient is a measure of statistical dispersion on a scale between 0 and 1, reflecting a gradient from low to high specialization, respectively. First, we tested the strength of the phylogenetic signal of diet specialization index among cuckoo species worldwide. Then, we ran phylogenetic generalized least square (PGLS) models to compare diet specialization, distribution range, and body mass of parasitic and nonparasitic cuckoo species, considering the phylogenetic signal of data.After adjusting for the phylogenetic signal of the data and considering both, species distribution range and species body mass, brood parasitic cuckoos were characterized by higher diet specialization than nonbrood parasitic species. Brood parasitic species were also characterized by a larger breeding distribution range than nonparasitic species.The findings of this study provide an additional understanding of the cuckoos' ecology, relating diet and breeding strategies, information that could be important in conservation ecology.Entities:
Keywords: brood parasitism; cuckoos; diet specialization; functional traits; generalist; phylogenetic signal
Year: 2020 PMID: 32551085 PMCID: PMC7297776 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6263
Source DB: PubMed Journal: Ecol Evol ISSN: 2045-7758 Impact factor: 2.912
Diet type of cuckoo species distributed worldwide used for estimation of the diet specialization index. All variables are expressed as a percentage from 0 to 100 describing the preference in the overall diet of the cuckoo species. The data are based on the semi‐quantitative information about relative importance of different categories of the diet (Wilman et al., 2014)
| Variable | Diet category | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Invertebrates | Percentage of the item in the overall diet (%) |
| 2 | Vertebrates (endotherm) | Percentage of the item in the overall diet (%) |
| 3 | Vertebrates (ectotherm) | Percentage of the item in the overall diet (%) |
| 4 | Vertebrates (fish) | Percentage of the item in the overall diet (%) |
| 5 | Vertebrates (unknown) | Percentage of the item in the overall diet (%) |
| 6 | Scavenger | Percentage of the item in the overall diet (%) |
| 7 | Frugivore | Percentage of the item in the overall diet (%) |
| 8 | Nectarivore | Percentage of the item in the overall diet (%) |
| 9 | Granivore | Percentage of the item in the overall diet (%) |
| 10 | Folivore | Percentage of the item in the overall diet (%) |
FIGURE 1Dendrogram representing diet specialization in a colored gradient from generalist (dark blue) to specialist species (red). Tips represent the avian phylogeny of the 118 cuckoo species that are the focus of this study
Results of Phylogenetic Generalized Least Squares (PGLS) model accounting for variation in diet specialization regressed on breeding distribution range, parasitism and body mass of cuckoo species across the world. The table shows estimates, standard error (SE), t statistic, and P values
| Predictors | Estimate |
|
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intercept | 0.593 | 0.301 | 1.965 | .052 |
| Parasitism (brood parasite) | 0.184 | 0.065 | 2.816 | .006 |
| Distribution range | 2e−6 | 1e−6 | −3.155 | .002 |
| Body mass | −9e−5 | 3e−5 | −0.328 | .743 |
FIGURE 2Diet specialization (a), distribution range (b) and body mass (c) of parasitic and nonparasitic species of Cuculidae. The box plots show medians, average values (black circle), quartiles, 5‐ and 95‐percentiles, and extreme values
Results of Phylogenetic Generalized Least Squares (PGLS) model accounting for variation in (A) breeding distribution range and (B) body mass between brood parasitic and nonparasitic cuckoo species across the world. The table shows estimates, standard error (SE), t statistic, and P values
| Predictors | Estimate |
|
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (A) | ||||
| Intercept | 0.248 | 0.209 | 1.185 | .238 |
| Distribution range | 2e−6 | 1e−6 | 2.774 | .006 |
| (B) | ||||
| Intercept | 0.269 | 0.219 | 1.228 | .222 |
| Body mass | 6e−5 | 2e−5 | 0.272 | .786 |