Litter size variation in didelphid marsupials: evidence of phylogenetic constraints and adaptation

Battistella, Thaís; Cerezer, Felipe O.; Bubadué, Jamile; Melo, Geruza Leal; Graipel, Maurício Eduardo; Cáceres, Nilton C.

doi:10.1093/biolinnean/bly157

Cited by 16 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 62 publications

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“…The Didelphis marsupialis or black‐eared opossum group is composed of D. marsupialis Linnaeus, 1758, from Central America and Amazonian region, and Didelphis aurita Wied‐Neuwied, 1826, from the Atlantic Rainforest in Southeastern Brazil, while the Didelphis albiventris or white‐eared opossum group includes D. albiventris Lund, 1840, found in open areas and deciduous forests in eastern, central and southern South America, Didelphis imperfecta Mondolfi & Pérez‐Hernandez, 1984, from the Guianas, and Didelphis pernigra Allen, 1900, from the Andean region. The phylogenetic relationships among species of this monophyletic genus are not yet fully resolved, particularly those in the white‐eared opossum group (Amador & Giannini, 2016; Battistella et al., 2019; Dias & Perini, 2018; Jansa et al., 2014; Lemos et al, 1999; Voss & Jansa, 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mitogenomics of Didelphis (Mammalia; Didelphimorphia; Didelphidae) and insights into character evolution in the genus

Dias

Júnior

Pinto

et al. 2020

J. Zool. Syst. Evol. Res.

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Opossums of the genus Didelphis comprise six species representing the largest American marsupials. Although the monophyly of the species of the genus, as well as that of the genus itself, is well supported in most phylogenetic studies, the relationships among those species are not yet understood. In this study, we present the complete mitochondrial genomes assembled from next‐generation sequencing data for all six Didelphis species and for an outgroup, Lutreolina crassicaudata. Based on this data set, we inferred a highly supported and completely resolved phylogeny of the genus, showing that in the white‐eared opossum group, Didelphis albiventris is the sister taxon to a clade consisting of Didelphis pernigra and Didelphis imperfecta. This resolved phylogeny was used to investigate the evolution of continuous skull traits used in previous taxonomic studies of the genus. Although the first principal component (PC1) based on those traits presents phylogenetic signal, most of the individual traits exhibit no significant information. In general, inference of ancestral states suggested that mean size of individual traits increased in larger species and decreased in smaller species. A congruent pattern was observed for the PC1, which reflected the overall skull size, corroborating previous studies that suggest that variation observed in individual skull characters may be related to skull size. However, traitgrams indicate that variation in overall size in the genus might be related to adaptive evolution.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mitogenomics of Didelphis (Mammalia; Didelphimorphia; Didelphidae) and insights into character evolution in the genus

Dias

Júnior

Pinto

et al. 2020

J. Zool. Syst. Evol. Res.

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“…Litter size is known to correlate with a number of other traits besides mammae number, including adult body mass (17), gestation length (18), dietary category (19), and environmental features (e.g., latitude (17), habitat type (20), geographic region (21), and climatic seasonality. (22)).…”

Section: Relative Predictive Strength Of Mammaementioning

confidence: 99%

“…More often, the energetics of lactation and body mass scaling are highlighted as determining litter size variation (e.g., refs. (17,25).…”

Section: Relative Predictive Strength Of Mammaementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Second, the studies that proposed the one-half and identity rules had limited taxonomic sampling to address mammalwide patterns (90 placental species (8), and 266 rodent species (7)), and they did not apply phylogenetic comparative methods, which are critical for evolutionary interpretations of character correlation (16). Finally, several other ecological and physiological traits are known to correlate with litter size in mammals (17)(18)(19)(20)(21)(22), raising questions about the explanatory power of the one-half and identity rules. Here we survey mammalian species diversity broadly and apply phylogenetic tests to ask (i) whether and how mammae number coevolves with litter size across Mammalia and (ii) how mammae number compares to other known predictors of litter size.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The coevolution of mammae number and litter size

Stewart

Yoo

Upham

2020

Preprint

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Mammals are unique in provisioning their offspring with milk, lactiferous nourishment produced in glandular organs called mammae. Mammae number is hypothesized to coevolve with litter size, acting as a constraint on offspring survival. However, predicted canonical relations between mammae number and litter size (i.e., the ‘one-half’ and ‘identity’ rules) are untested across Mammalia. Here we analyze data for 2,301 species and show how these characters coevolve. In Mammalia, mammae number approximates the maximum reported litter size of a species, and mammae number explains more variation in litter size than other species-level traits (mass, gestation length, diet, and seasonality of contemporary geographic distribution). Clades show differences in these patterns, indicating that certain life history strategies might break the ‘rules’ of mammary evolution. Mammae number is an underappreciated constraint on fecundity that has influenced the radiation of mammals.

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“…Although singular breeding and polytocy appear to have been the ancestral condition in many phylogenetic groups of mammals ( Leutenegger 1979 ; Lukas and Clutton-Brock 2013 ; Werneburg et al 2016 ), many of the mammalian taxa where plural breeding is common are monotocous—including the primates, ungulates, and cetaceans ( Eisenberg 1983 ; Clutton-Brock 2016 ). Transitions to monotocy from polytocy appear to be rare and to have occurred at a relatively early stage in many mammalian lineages ( Leutenegger 1979 ; Bordes et al 2011 ; Werneburg et al 2016 ; Battistella et al 2019 ), whereas transitions in sociality appear to be more recent ( Blomberg et al 2003 ; Kamilar and Cooper 2013 ), suggesting that transitions to monotocy in these mammalian lineages might have removed constraints on the evolution of plural breeding.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Monotocy and the evolution of plural breeding in mammals

Lukas

Clutton‐Brock

2020

Behavioral Ecology

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In many mammals, breeding females are intolerant of each other and seldom associate closely but, in some, they aggregate in groups that vary in size, stability, and kinship structure. Aggregation frequently increases competition for food, and interspecific differences in female sociality among mammals are commonly attributed to contrasts in ecological parameters, including variation in activity timing, the distribution of resources, as well as the risk of predation. However, there is increasing indication that differences in female sociality are also associated with phylogenetic relationships and with contrasts in life-history parameters. We show here that evolutionary transitions from systems where breeding females usually occupy separate ranges (“singular breeding”) to systems where breeding females usually aggregate (“plural breeding”) have occurred more frequently in monotocous lineages where females produce single young than in polytocous ones where they produce litters. A likely explanation of this association is that competition between breeding females for resources is reduced where they produce single young and is more intense where they produce litters. Our findings reinforce evidence that variation in life-history parameters plays an important role in shaping the evolution of social behavior.

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Litter size variation in didelphid marsupials: evidence of phylogenetic constraints and adaptation

Cited by 16 publications

References 62 publications

Mitogenomics of Didelphis (Mammalia; Didelphimorphia; Didelphidae) and insights into character evolution in the genus

Mitogenomics of Didelphis (Mammalia; Didelphimorphia; Didelphidae) and insights into character evolution in the genus

The coevolution of mammae number and litter size

Monotocy and the evolution of plural breeding in mammals

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