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Does coevolution promote species richness in parasitic cuckoos?
Oliver Krüger1, Michael D Sorenson, Nicholas B Davies
1Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK. ok212@cam.ac.uk
Proceedings. Biological Sciences
|August 21, 2009
Summary
Brood parasitism in cuckoos drives higher speciation and extinction rates, leading to increased species and subspecies diversity. This coevolutionary arms race with hosts fuels diversification in parasitic cuckoo lineages.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary Biology
- Speciation and Diversification
Background:
- Understanding the drivers of species diversification is a key question in evolutionary biology.
- Coevolution is a proposed mechanism for speciation but lacks robust comparative testing.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the link between parasite-host coevolution and species richness in cuckoos.
- To test if brood parasitism influences speciation and extinction rates.
Main Methods:
- A comparative phylogenetic approach using a complete phylogeny of living cuckoos.
- Cladogenesis tests to analyze speciation and extinction rates.
- Analysis of subspecies diversification rates and correlation with parasitic strategy virulence and host range.
Main Results:
- Brood parasitism is associated with significantly higher speciation and extinction rates in cuckoos.
- Parasitic cuckoos exhibit over twice the subspecies diversification rate compared to parental cuckoos.
- More virulent parasitic strategies and a greater number of hosts correlate with higher subspecies diversity.
Conclusions:
- Coevolutionary arms races with hosts appear to be a significant factor promoting diversification in parasitic cuckoos.
- The study suggests that host-parasite interactions can drive both speciation and extinction, shaping lineage diversity.
- Diversification rates in cuckoos are influenced by the intensity and specificity of brood parasitism.
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