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(Reference retrieved automatically from Web of Science through information on FAPESP grant and its corresponding number as mentioned in the publication by the authors.)

Bony Patchwork: Mosaic Patterns of Evolution in the Skull of Electric Fishes (Apteronotidae: Gymnotiformes)

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Author(s):
Evans, Kory M. [1] ; Vidal-Garcia, Marta [2] ; Tagliacollo, Victor A. [3] ; Taylor, Samuel J. [4] ; Fenolio, Dante B. [4]
Total Authors: 5
Affiliation:
[1] Univ Minnesota, Coll Food Agr & Nat Resource Sci, 1987 Upper Buford Circle, St Paul, MN 55108 - USA
[2] Australian Natl Univ, Dept Ecol & Evolut, Res Sch Biol, GPO Box 4, Canberra, ACT 0200 - Australia
[3] Univ Sao Paulo, Museu Zool, Ave Nazare 481, BR-04263000 Ipiranga, SP - Brazil
[4] Ctr Conservat & Res, 3903 N St Marys St, San Antonio, TX 78212 - USA
Total Affiliations: 4
Document type: Journal article
Source: INTEGRATIVE AND COMPARATIVE BIOLOGY; v. 59, n. 2, p. 420-431, AUG 2019.
Web of Science Citations: 2
Abstract

Mosaic evolution refers to the pattern whereby different organismal traits exhibit differential rates of evolution typically due to reduced levels of trait covariation through deep time (i.e., modularity). These differences in rates can be attributed to variation in responses to selective pressures between individual traits. Differential responses to selective pressures also have the potential to facilitate functional specialization, allowing certain traits to track environmental stimuli more closely than others. The teleost skull is a multifunctional structure comprising a complex network of bones and thus an excellent system for which to study mosaic evolution. Here we construct an ultrametric phylogeny for a clade of Neotropical electric fishes (Apteronotidae: Gymnotiformes) and use three-dimensional geometric morphometrics to investigate patterns of mosaic evolution in the skull and jaws. We find strong support for a developmental, three-module hypothesis that consists of the face, braincase, and mandible, and we find that the mandible has evolved four times faster than its neighboring modules. We hypothesize that the functional specialization of the mandible in this group of fishes has allowed it to outpace the face and braincase and evolve in a more decoupled manner. We also hypothesize that this pattern of mosaicism may be widespread across other clades of teleost fishes. (AU)

FAPESP's process: 18/20806-3 - Biogeography in the Neotropics: historical distributions of Characiformes (Actinopterygii, Ostariophysi)
Grantee:Victor Alberto Tagliacollo
Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral