Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA.
Department of Evolution & Ecology, University of California, Davis, CA, USA.
Commun Biol. 2024 Nov 4;7(1):1433. doi: 10.1038/s42003-024-07148-8.
Major trade-offs often manifest as axes of diversity in organismal functional systems. Overarching trade-offs may result in high trait integration and restrict the trajectory of diversification to be along a single axis. Here, we explore the diversification of the feeding mechanism in coral reef fishes to establish the role of trade-offs and complexity in a spectacular ecological radiation. We show that the primary axis of variation in the measured musculo-skeletal traits is aligned with a trade-off between mobility and force transmission, spanning species that capture prey with suction and those that bite attached prey. We found weak or no covariation between about half the traits, reflecting deviations from the trade-off axis. The dramatic trophic range found among reef fishes occurs along the primary trade-off axis, with numerous departures that use a mosaic of trait combinations to adapt the feeding mechanism to diverse challenges. We suggest that morphological evolution both along and independent of a major axis of variation is a widespread mechanism of diversification in complex systems where a global trade-off shapes major patterns of diversity. Significant additional diversity emerges as systems use weak integration and complexity to assemble functional units with many trait combinations that meet varying ecological demands.
主要权衡通常表现为生物体功能系统多样性的轴。总体权衡可能导致高特征整合，并限制多样化的轨迹沿着单一轴进行。在这里，我们探索了珊瑚礁鱼类摄食机制的多样化，以确定权衡和复杂性在壮观的生态辐射中的作用。我们表明，在测量的肌肉骨骼特征中，主要的变异轴与运动性和力传递之间的权衡相一致，跨越了用吸力捕捉猎物和咬附猎物的物种。我们发现大约一半的特征之间几乎没有或没有协变，反映了偏离权衡轴的情况。在珊瑚礁鱼类中发现的巨大的营养范围沿着主要的权衡轴发生，出现了许多偏离，这些偏离使用特征组合的镶嵌来使摄食机制适应不同的挑战。我们认为，在一个全球权衡塑造主要多样性模式的复杂系统中，沿着和独立于主要变化轴的形态进化是多样化的一种广泛机制。随着系统利用弱整合和复杂性来组装具有许多满足不同生态需求的特征组合的功能单元，显著的额外多样性出现了。
