Big brains stabilize populations and facilitate colonization of variable habitats in birds

Fristoe, Trevor S.; Iwaniuk, Andrew N.; Botero, Carlos A.

doi:10.1038/s41559-017-0316-2

Cited by 73 publications

(94 citation statements)

References 63 publications

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“…In fact, current evidence that a large brain provides resistance to extinction is conflicting. Bird species with a relatively larger brain experience lower population declines (Shultz et al 2005) and maintain more stable populations over time (Fristoe et al 2017), but there seems to be no relationship between relative brain size and extinction risk (Nicolakakis et al 2003). Recent research in mammals even suggests that larger brains could increase rather than decrease the risk of extinction (Gonzalez-Voyer et al 2016).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Birds represent an ideal system for investigating this question because they contain some of the species with the largest brains of all vertebrates, and the evolution of enlarged brains has independently occurred in different lineages (Lefebvre et al 2004). Avian species with larger brains, relative to their body size, have been found to experience lower mortality and live longer than species with smaller brains (Sol et al 2007;Minias and Podlaszczuk 2017), and are also more successful at coping with the challenges presented by new, altered, and varying environments (Sol et al 2005a;Sayol et al 2016b;Fristoe et al 2017). The "cognitive buffer" provided by enlarged brains is also supported by ample evidence.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…The "cognitive buffer" provided by enlarged brains is also supported by ample evidence. Avian species with larger brains, relative to their body size, have been found to experience lower mortality and live longer than species with smaller brains (Sol et al 2007;Minias and Podlaszczuk 2017), and are also more successful at coping with the challenges presented by new, altered, and varying environments (Sol et al 2005a;Sayol et al 2016b;Fristoe et al 2017).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Larger brains spur species diversification in birds

et al. 2019

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Evidence is accumulating that species traits can spur their evolutionary diversification by influencing niche shifts, range expansions, and extinction risk. Previous work has shown that larger brains (relative to body size) facilitate niche shifts and range expansions by enhancing behavioral plasticity but whether larger brains also promote evolutionary diversification is currently backed by insufficient evidence. We addressed this gap by combining a brain size dataset for >1900 avian species worldwide with estimates of diversification rates based on two conceptually different phylogenetic‐based approaches. We found consistent evidence that lineages with larger brains (relative to body size) have diversified faster than lineages with relatively smaller brains. The best supported trait‐dependent model suggests that brain size primarily affects diversification rates by increasing speciation rather than decreasing extinction rates. In addition, we found that the effect of relatively brain size on species‐level diversification rate is additive to the effect of other intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Altogether, our results highlight the importance of brain size as an important factor in evolution and reinforce the view that intrinsic features of species have the potential to influence the pace of evolution.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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Larger brains spur species diversification in birds

et al. 2019

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“…To address the fact that both lifespan and relative brain size are continuous variables with distributions that vary by order, we followed prior studies (Fristoe et al. ) and implemented a classification scheme in which we categorized species as “long‐lived” or “large‐brained” according to different thresholds, that is ≥ 30 th , ≥ 50 th , and ≥ 75 th percentiles of the lifespan and residual brain size distributions. We assessed the relationships between categorical brain size and life span for all cutoff combinations, incorporating the phylogeny that provided the highest species sample size.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Encephalization and longevity evolved in a correlated fashion in Euarchontoglires but not in other mammals

et al. 2018

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Across mammals, encephalization and longevity show a strong correlation. It is not clear, however, whether these traits evolved in a correlated fashion within mammalian orders, or when they do, whether one trait drives changes in the other. Here, we compared independent and correlated evolutionary models to identify instances of correlated evolution within six mammalian orders. In cases of correlated evolution, we subsequently examined transition patterns between small/large relative brain size and short/long lifespan. In four mammalian orders, these traits evolved independently. This may reflect constraints related to energy allocation, predation avoidance tactics, and reproductive strategies. Within both primates and rodents, and their parent clade Euarchontoglires, we found evidence for correlated evolution. In primates, transition patterns suggest relatively larger brains likely facilitated the evolution of long lifespans. Because larger brains prolong development and reduce fertility rates, they may be compensated for with longer lifespans. Furthermore, encephalization may enable cognitively-complex strategies that reduce extrinsic mortality. Rodents show an inverse pattern of correlated evolution, whereby long lifespans appear to have facilitated the evolution of relatively larger brains. This may be because longer lived organisms have more to gain from investment in encephalization. Together, our results provide evidence for the correlated evolution of encephalization and longevity, but only in some mammalian orders.

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“…(, ) provided evidence for larger brains in resident versus migratory species, and argued that year‐round persistence in a highly seasonal environment requires a larger brain that allows for greater flexibility in diet and behaviour necessary to survive in a resource‐depleted landscape. This idea has been debated, in part due to the difficulty of determining whether the smaller brains of migrants are truly representative of neurological deficiencies or are a consequence of the energetic demands of migration selecting for smaller crania (Winkler, Leisler & Bernroider, ; Pravosudov, Sanford & Hahn, ; Sayol et al ., ; Fristoe, Iwaniuk & Botero, ). Additionally, migratory species may also change their diets throughout the year (e.g.…”

Section: Adaptations To Fluctuating Environments Site Fidelity and mentioning

confidence: 98%

A long winter for the Red Queen: rethinking the evolution of seasonal migration

et al. 2018

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This paper advances an hypothesis that the primary adaptive driver of seasonal migration is maintenance of site fidelity to familiar breeding locations. We argue that seasonal migration is therefore principally an adaptation for geographic persistence when confronted with seasonality -analogous to hibernation, freeze tolerance, or other organismal adaptations to cyclically fluctuating environments. These ideas stand in contrast to traditional views that bird migration evolved as an adaptive dispersal strategy for exploiting new breeding areas and avoiding competitors. Our synthesis is supported by a large body of research on avian breeding biology that demonstrates the reproductive benefits of breeding-site fidelity. Conceptualizing migration as an adaptation for persistence places new emphasis on understanding the evolutionary trade-offs between migratory behaviour and other adaptations to fluctuating environments both within and across species. Seasonality-induced departures from breeding areas, coupled with the reproductive benefits of maintaining breeding-site fidelity, also provide a mechanism for explaining the evolution of migration that is agnostic to the geographic origin of migratory lineages (i.e. temperate or tropical). Thus, our framework reconciles much of the conflict in previous research on the historical biogeography of migratory species. Although migratory behaviour and geographic range change fluidly and rapidly in many populations, we argue that the loss of plasticity for migration via canalization is an overlooked aspect of the evolutionary dynamics of migration and helps explain the idiosyncratic distributions and migratory routes of long-distance migrants. Our synthesis, which revolves around the insight that migratory organisms travel long distances simply to stay in the same place, provides a necessary evolutionary context for understanding historical biogeographic patterns in migratory lineages as well as the ecological dynamics of migratory connectivity between breeding and non-breeding locations.

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Big brains stabilize populations and facilitate colonization of variable habitats in birds

Cited by 73 publications

References 63 publications

Larger brains spur species diversification in birds

Larger brains spur species diversification in birds

Encephalization and longevity evolved in a correlated fashion in Euarchontoglires but not in other mammals

A long winter for the Red Queen: rethinking the evolution of seasonal migration

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