Molecular phyloecology suggests a trophic shift concurrent with the evolution of the first birds

• Published in: Communications biology Vol. 4; no. 1; pp. 547 - 13
• Main Author: Wu, Yonghua
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 13.05.2021; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 631/158/2464; 631/181/735; Animal behavior; Animals; Biological Evolution; Biology; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Birds; Carnivory - physiology; Crop; Diet; Digestive system; Dinosaurs - anatomy & histology; Ecology - methods; Ecosystem; Evolution; Evolution, Molecular; Flight; Gizzard; Gliding; Herbivory; Herbivory - physiology; Life Sciences; Locomotion; Phylogeny; Predation; Predators; Predatory Behavior; Pressure

Birds are characterized by evolutionary specializations of both locomotion (e.g., flapping flight) and digestive system (toothless, crop, and gizzard), while the potential selection pressures responsible for these evolutionary specializations remain unclear. Here we used a recently developed molecul...