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Updated: Jan 30, 2026

A Fish-feeding Laboratory Bioassay to Assess the Antipredatory Activity of Secondary Metabolites from the Tissues of Marine Organisms
Published on: January 11, 2015
Diversification and functional evolution of reef fish feeding guilds
Laura Gajdzik1, Rosalia Aguilar-Medrano2, Bruno Frédérich1
1Laboratoire de Morphologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, FOCUS, Université de Liège, 4000, Liège, Belgique.
Abstract:
A core eco-evolutionary aim is to better understand the factors driving the diversification of functions in ecosystems. Using phylogenetic, trophic, and functional information, we tested whether trophic habits (i.e. feeding guilds) affect lineage and functional diversification in two major radiations of reef fishes. Our results from wrasses (Labridae) and damselfishes (Pomacentridae) do not fully support the 'dead-end' hypothesis that specialisation leads to reduce speciation rates because the tempo of lineage diversification did not substantially vary among guilds in both fish families. Our findings also demonstrate a tight relationship between trophic habits and functional roles held by fish in reef ecosystems, which is not associated with a variation in the tempo of functional diversification among guilds. By illustrating the pivotal importance of the generalist feeding strategy during the evolutionary history of reef fishes, our study emphasises the role of this feeding guild as a reservoir for future diversity.
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