Evolutionary analysis of vision genes identifies potential drivers of visual differences between giraffe and okapi

Ishengoma, Edson; Agaba, Morris; Cavener, Douglas R.

doi:10.7287/peerj.preprints.2444

Cited by 4 publications

(9 citation statements)

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“…One study investigated the genetic mechanisms underlying giraffe's excellent visual abilities. Giraffes were found to have genes CRYAA and OPN1LW divergent from other ruminants (Ishengoma et al ., ). Specifically, sequence analysis of OPN1LW showed that one of the sites that affects spectral sensitivity of the red pigment is uniquely divergent between giraffes and other ruminants (Ishengoma et al ., ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…In Kruger National Park, South Africa, for instance, zebras were found to have a lower vigilance (by two‐thirds) when in the presence of giraffes than when in the presence of wildebeest ( Connochaetes taurinus ; Schmitt et al ., ). Recent genetic investigations implicate disparity in giraffe pelage patterns across subspecies as one of the factors causing isolation among giraffe subspecies due to pelage‐based mate choices (Brown et al ., ; Ishengoma et al ., ). These findings merit further investigation of the role of visualization in the intra‐ or interspecific social interactions of giraffes.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…eye morphology; Howland, Merola & Basarab, ; Burton, ; Schiviz et al ., ; Mitchell et al ., ; Veilleux & Kirk, ) or genetic analyses (e.g. Ishengoma, Agaba & Cavener, ). Consequently, fundamental information relating to the ways in which giraffes communicate remains elusive.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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How do giraffes locate one another? A review of visual, auditory, and olfactory communication among giraffes

Kasozi

Montgomery

2018

Journal of Zoology

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Understanding how giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis) communicate is a topic that has intrigued biologists, ecologists, and society for many years. Despite this interest, communication remains one of the most understudied aspects of giraffe ecology. We reviewed published papers that referenced giraffe communication across olfactory, visual, and auditory dimensions. We found 21 studies, published between 1958 and 2018, that referenced the ways in which giraffes communicate. Ten of these studies described giraffe vocal signals and possibilities for vocal communication among giraffes. Giraffes have been reported to produce infrasonic, hisses, and low humming vocalizations. We found five studies that evaluated giraffe olfaction with implications for communication. Eleven studies suggested that giraffes have high visual capabilities with high dependence on sight for communication. From this evidence, we appreciate that giraffes use multimodal signals to convey vital information to each other. Nevertheless, we found that the inferences made about giraffe communication among these studies are primarily derived from opportunistic observations. Thus, our review highlights that communication remains a highly understudied component of giraffe behavior and ecology. We recommend that further studies seek to identify the ways in which visual, auditory, and olfactory signals facilitate communication among giraffes.analyses (e.g. Ishengoma, Agaba & Cavener, 2017). Consequently, fundamental information relating to the ways in which giraffes communicate remains elusive. For example, it is presently unclear exactly how giraffes find one another and the factors that modulate the fission-fusion aspects of their social behavior.Communication is vital to animal ecology in that it fosters inter-and intra-species interactions, helps to maintain social cohesion, facilitates fundamental behaviors such as mate choice, predator avoidance, and foraging, all of which affect survival and reproduction (Endler, 1993;Rendall, Owren & Ryan, 2009;Kaplan, 2014). Thus, a robust understanding of giraffe ecology is incomplete without an appreciation of the means, role, and context by which individuals among this species communicate. A review of the information on giraffe communication is therefore warranted. Here, we conducted a literature review to examine published studies referencing giraffe communication across olfactory, visual, and auditory dimensions. We describe what is known of these dimensions at present and codify potential avenues for future giraffe communication research.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

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How do giraffes locate one another? A review of visual, auditory, and olfactory communication among giraffes

Kasozi

Montgomery

2018

Journal of Zoology

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“…[4,19,21]. Adaptive evolution of the vision genes facilitated by positive selection was widely reported in many other animals which rely on vision in dim-light environments, such as mole rats [25], Chinese forest musk deer [10], okapi [26], bats [11], and owls [27], although the positively selected genes varied cross species. Similar to these findings, 16 vision genes were found to undergo positive selection in N. nycticorax, suggesting that positive selection has played an important role in the adaptive evolution of the vision genes and thereby contributed to the morphological or functional modifications of the eyes favoring night vision.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Genomic insight into the nocturnal adaptation of the black-crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax)

Luo

Fang

et al. 2022

BMC Genomics

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Background The black-crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) is an ardeid bird successfully adapted to the nocturnal environment. Previous studies had indicated that the eyes of the night herons have evolved several specialized morphological traits favoring nocturnal vision. However, the molecular mechanisms of the nocturnal vision adaptation of night herons remained inattentions. In this study, the whole genome of N. nycticorax was sequenced and comparative analyses were performed on the vision-related and olfactory receptor (OR) genes to understand the molecular mechanisms of the visual and olfactory adaptation of night herons. Results The results indicated that a number of vision genes were under positive or relaxed selection in N. nycticorax, whereas a number of other vision genes were under relaxed or intensified selection in the boat-billed heron (Cochlearius cochlearius), which suggested that the two species adapt to nocturnality with different genetic mechanisms. The different selections acting on vision genes are probably associated with the enlargement of eye size and the enhancement of visual sensitivity in night herons. The analyses on olfactory receptor (OR) genes indicated that the total number of OR genes in the genomes of N. nycticorax and C. cochlearius were about half those in the little egret (Egretta garzetta), whereas the diversity of their OR genes was not remarkably different. Additionally, the number of expressed OR genes in the transcriptomes of N. nycticorax was also fewer than that in E. garzetta. These results suggest a reduced olfactory capability in night herons compared with E. garzetta. Conclusions Our results provided evidence that several vision genes of the night herons were subjected to different natural selections, which can contribute to a better understanding of the genetic mechanisms of visual adaptions of the night heron. In addition, the finding of the reduced number of total and expressed OR genes in night herons may reflect a trade-off between olfaction and vision.

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“…Only then the animals detected the researcher and started the emission of hisses. The researcher could see the giraffe heads through the branches against the bright sky, whereas the giraffes, despite their acute vision [ 51 ], could hardly see the researcher when looking from bright sunlight towards the dense foliage. Probably, the hissing was triggered by the sudden detection of human smell just underneath their food source, as the olfactory abilities of giraffes are good [ 52 ].…”

Section: Main Textmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hiss and snort call types of wild-living giraffes Giraffa camelopardalis: acoustic structure and context

Volodina¹,

Volodin

Chelysheva³

et al. 2018

BMC Res Notes

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ObjectivesVocalization as part of vigilance behaviour is widespread across animal taxa, including ruminants. Calls of wild-living giraffes have never been recorded and spectrographically investigated. This study reports the acoustic structure of vigilance-related hiss and snort calls of wild-living giraffes Giraffa camelopardalis.ResultsThe hiss and snort calls were emitted during five recording sessions produced by nine individual giraffes (8 adults and 1 subadult) in their natural environment in Namibia (3 individuals) and Kenya (6 individuals). These calls attended vigilance behaviour toward humans in hides or in vehicles and cheetahs as natural predators of giraffe young. This study provides spectrographic analyses of 22 hiss and 20 snort calls. The giraffe hisses were broadband vocalizations of an average duration of 0.72 s (from 0.24 to 1.04 s) and a peak frequency of 0.69 kHz. The giraffe snorts were broadband pulsed calls of an average duration of 0.28 s (from 0.13 to 0.55 s), a peak frequency at 0.20 kHz and comprised a prominent low-frequency pulsation of 23.7 pulses/s. The acoustic structure of giraffe hisses is reminiscent of vigilance-related hisses of musk deer Moschus moschiferus. Giraffe snorts differ from snorts of other ruminants by their prominent pulsed pattern.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s13104-017-3103-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Evolutionary analysis of vision genes identifies potential drivers of visual differences between giraffe and okapi

Cited by 4 publications

References 0 publications

How do giraffes locate one another? A review of visual, auditory, and olfactory communication among giraffes

How do giraffes locate one another? A review of visual, auditory, and olfactory communication among giraffes

Genomic insight into the nocturnal adaptation of the black-crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax)

Hiss and snort call types of wild-living giraffes Giraffa camelopardalis: acoustic structure and context

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