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Brains vs Brawn: Relative brain size is sexually dimorphic amongst weapon-bearing ruminants
AbstractHere, we investigate the relationship between relative brain size and sexual weapons in ruminants. In most cases, sexual weaponry is heavily...
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Genomic signatures of convergent shifts to plunge-diving behavior in birds
Understanding the genetic basis of convergence at broad phylogenetic scales remains a key challenge in biology. Kingfishers (Aves: Alcedinidae) are a...
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Is the Shape of Turtle Claws Driven by Locomotor Modes?
Claws are the most common attachment mechanism in vertebrates. The comparative anatomy and morphology of claws has been studied mainly in reptiles...
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The Perception of Availability Explains the Use Value of Plants: Investigating the Ecological Apparency Hypothesis
The ecological apparency hypothesis tests how humans select plants. It is important to distinguish whether an “apparent” plant is the ecologically...
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Does the expensive brain hypothesis apply to amphibians and reptiles?
Vertebrate brains show extensive variation in relative size. The expensive brain hypothesis argues that one important source of this variation is...
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Phylogenetic history influences convergence for a specialized ecology: comparative skull morphology of African burrowing skinks (Squamata; Scincidae)
BackgroundSkulls serve many functions and as a result, are subject to many different evolutionary pressures. In squamates, many fossorial species...
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Evolutionary analysis of swimming speed in early vertebrates challenges the ‘New Head Hypothesis’
The ecological context of early vertebrate evolution is envisaged as a long-term trend towards increasingly active food acquisition and enhanced...
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Biogeographic history, egg colouration, and habitat selection in Turdus thrushes (Aves: Turdidae)
Despite broad interest and recent experimentation, there is no single ecological model accounting for the adaptive significance of the diversity of...
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Diet and habitat as determinants of intestine length in fishes
Fish biologists have long assumed a link between intestinal length and diet, and relative gut length or Zihler’s index are often used to classify...
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Occipital condyle width (OCW) is a highly accurate predictor of body mass in therian mammals
BackgroundBody mass estimation is of paramount importance for paleobiological studies, as body size influences numerous other biological parameters....
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Ecomorphology of six goatfish species (Mullidae) from Toliara Reef, Madagascar
Despite the role that goatfishes play in reef ecosystems, knowledge of their ecomorphological diversity remains scarce. Here, we explore the...
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Early human selection of crops’ wild progenitors explains the acquisitive physiology of modern cultivars
Crops have resource-acquisitive leaf traits, which are usually attributed to the process of domestication. However, early choices of wild plants...
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Correlated evolution between body size and echolocation in bats (order Chiroptera)
BackgroundBody size and echolocation call frequencies are related in bats. However, it is unclear if this allometry applies to the entire clade....
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High elevation bird communities in the Swiss Alps exhibit reduced fecundity and lifespan independently of phylogenetic effects
The merging of community ecology and phylogenetic biology allows us to link broader evolutionary processes to local ecological processes, thereby...
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Body size and its correlates in fruit-feeding butterflies in a seasonal environment
IntroductionBody-size covaries with many species’ traits, with implications for population and ecosystem-level patterns. Body size and seasonality of...
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Oak leaf morphology may be more strongly shaped by climate than by phylogeny
Key messageDespite been grown under the same climate, oak species are able to correlate with looser, but still identifiable, leaf morphological...
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Covariation between protandry and sexual size dimorphism is age specific in songbirds
In many migratory songbirds, males arrive earlier at stopover sites and at the breeding grounds (‘protandry’) and older birds precede younger ones,...
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Age, growth, and energy storage of the subterranean fish Triplophysa rosa (Cypriniformes: Nemacheilidae) from Chongqing, China
BackgroundThis study explores the age, growth, and energy storage of Triplophysa rosa , a troglobitic cavefish. A total of 102 wild T. rosa specimens...
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Does ecology and life history predict parental cooperation in birds? A comparative analysis
AbstractIn animals, species differ remarkably in parental care strategies. For instance, male-only care is prevalent in teleost fishes, while...
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The Evolution of Brain Size in Ectothermic Tetrapods: Large Brain Mass Trades-Off with Lifespan in Reptiles
The evolution of brain size is constrained by the trade-off between the energetic costs allocated towards its maintenance and the cognitive...
