Phylogenetic reconstruction of parental–care systems in the ancestors of birds

Tullberg, Birgitta S.; Ah-King, Malin; Temrin, Hans

doi:10.1098/rstb.2001.0932

Cited by 61 publications

(55 citation statements)

References 35 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…By comparison, males contribute to parental care in fewer than 5% of mammalian species and even more rarely among extant non-avian reptiles (1). The origin of this paternal contribution as well as the overall parental care system in ancestral birds remains controversial (2,3). Maternal care predominates in crocodilians (the closest living sister taxon to birds), and the two major clades of extant birds use differing parental care systems.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Avian Paternal Care Had Dinosaur Origin

Varricchio

Moore

Erickson

et al. 2008

Science

130

111

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The repeated discovery of adult dinosaurs in close association with egg clutches leads to speculation over the type and extent of care exhibited by these extinct animals for their eggs and young. To assess parental care in Cretaceous troodontid and oviraptorid dinosaurs, we examined clutch volume and the bone histology of brooding adults. In comparison to four archosaur care regressions, the relatively large clutch volumes of Troodon, Oviraptor, and Citipati scale most closely with a bird-paternal care model. Clutch-associated adults lack the maternal and reproductively associated histologic features common to extant archosaurs. Large clutch volumes and a suite of reproductive features shared only with birds favor paternal care, possibly within a polygamous mating system. Paternal care in both troodontids and oviraptorids indicates that this care system evolved before the emergence of birds and represents birds' ancestral condition. In extant birds and over most adult sizes, paternal and biparental care correspond to the largest and smallest relative clutch volumes, respectively.A vian reproduction differs from that of other vertebrates in the extensive contribution of males to the care of eggs and young. Males participate in parental care in more than 90% of extant bird species (1). By comparison, males contribute to parental care in fewer than 5% of mammalian species and even more rarely among extant non-avian reptiles (1). The origin of this paternal contribution as well as the overall parental care system in ancestral birds remains controversial (2, 3). Maternal care predominates in crocodilians (the closest living sister taxon to birds), and the two major clades of extant birds use differing parental care systems. Neognathes (i.e., galliforms through passerines) typically exhibit biparental care, with females and males variably sharing incubation and care of the young (1-3). In contrast, males of nearly all Paleognathes (ratites, tinamous) incubate and care for the young alone (4). Cretaceous troodontid and oviraptorid dinosaurs share a close ancestry with birds and display some of their reproductive attributes, including multilayered eggshells, asymmetric eggs, and monoautochronic ovulation (5). Additionally, adult Troodon formosus, Oviraptor philoceratops, and Citipati osmolskae have been discovered on top of egg clutches, with some specimens retaining avian-like brooding postures (5, 6). We assessed the parental care system of these dinosaurs with the use of clutch volume-adult body mass models and bone histology data from brooding adults (7).Complete egg clutches for Troodon and the oviraptorids contain 22 to 30 large eggs (7). Total clutch volumes far exceed those of extant crocodilians, more closely matching those of polygamous ratites with similar adult size (Fig. 1). We generated regression models describing the adult (table S2). For birds, paternal care is associated with relatively larger clutch volumes than either biparental or maternal care over most body sizes; biparental care is associated wi...

show abstract

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Avian Paternal Care Had Dinosaur Origin

Varricchio

Moore

Erickson

et al. 2008

Science

130

111

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Nest attendance in Massospondylus, and all nonavian dinosaurs, may also be inferred from phylogenetic bracketing, as most extant archosaurs attend their nests (31,32). However, Massospondylus provides important reproductive data for sauropodomorphs before the evolution of gigantism.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Oldest known dinosaurian nesting site and reproductive biology of the Early Jurassic sauropodomorphMassospondylus

Reisz

Evans

Roberts

et al. 2012

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The extensive Early Jurassic continental strata of southern Africa have yielded an exceptional record of dinosaurs that includes scores of partial to complete skeletons of the sauropodomorph Massospondylus , ranging from embryos to large adults. In 1976 an incomplete egg clutch including in ovo embryos of this dinosaur, the oldest known example in the fossil record, was collected from a road-cut talus, but its exact provenance was uncertain. An excavation program at the site started in 2006 has yielded multiple in situ egg clutches, documenting the oldest known dinosaurian nesting site, predating other similar sites by more than 100 million years. The presence of numerous clutches of eggs, some of which contain embryonic remains, in at least four distinct horizons within a small area, provides the earliest known evidence of complex reproductive behavior including site fidelity and colonial nesting in a terrestrial vertebrate. Thus, fossil and sedimentological evidence from this nesting site provides empirical data on reproductive strategies in early dinosaurs. A temporally calibrated optimization of dinosaurian reproductive biology not only demonstrates the primary significance of the Massospondylus nesting site, but also provides additional insights into the initial stages of the evolutionary history of dinosaurs, including evidence that deposition of eggs in a tightly organized single layer in a nest evolved independently from brooding.

show abstract

“…Van Rhign 1984;Elzanowski 1985;Van Rhign 1990;Wesolowski 1994;Ligon 1999;Vehrencamp 2000;Wesolowski 2004) or maternal (e.g. Burley and Johnson 2002;Tullberg et al 2002). This section investigates these hypotheses and evaluates what relevance each has in consideration to ichnological evidence.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…McKitrick (1992) constructed a phylogenetic analysis of 60 extant avian taxa using both parental care behaviour (15 characters) in tandem with anatomical data (69 characters), which inferred biparental care as ancestral for birds and that biparental incubation Historical Biology 189 has its origins in an ancestral condition in which neither sex incubated. In a more recent analysis, Tullberg et al (2002) attempted to reconstruct ancestral parental care systems in a phylogeny that included all the primary extant amniote lineages. Transitions between the character states of no parental care, female-only care, biparental care and male-only care were inferred using two distinct resolutions for the most basal avian branches of the phylogenetic tree.…”

Section: Hypothesis One: Biparental Care As Ancestralmentioning

confidence: 99%

The socio-sexual behaviour of extant archosaurs: implications for understanding dinosaur behaviour

Isles¹

2009

Historical Biology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Phylogenetic reconstruction of parental–care systems in the ancestors of birds

Cited by 61 publications

References 35 publications

Avian Paternal Care Had Dinosaur Origin

Avian Paternal Care Had Dinosaur Origin

Oldest known dinosaurian nesting site and reproductive biology of the Early Jurassic sauropodomorphMassospondylus

The socio-sexual behaviour of extant archosaurs: implications for understanding dinosaur behaviour

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About