Predation and the Western Limits of Megapode Distribution (Megapodiidae; Aves)

Dekker, R.W.R.J.

doi:10.2307/2845223

Cited by 21 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…; Harris et al . ), but some of them are also known to combine and/or switch between either heat source due to their labile nesting behaviour (Dekker ; Harris et al . ).…”

Section: Nesting Strategymentioning

confidence: 99%

A new Upper Cretaceous titanosaur nesting site from La Rioja (NW Argentina), with implications for titanosaur nesting strategies

et al. 2016

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Cretaceous titanosaur nesting sites are currently known only from Europe, Asia and South America. In the latter, only the Auca Mahuevo and Sanagasta nesting sites have been confidently assigned to this clade of sauropod dinosaurs. Here we report the discovery of the first eggs and egg clutches found at Tama, a new Upper Cretaceous fossiliferous locality in the Los Llanos Formation, Sierra de Los Llanos (La Rioja, NW Argentina). At least five egg clutches, several partially preserved, isolated eggs and many eggshell fragments were discovered in a single outcrop of a sandstone horizon which represents a cumulative palaeosol profile. Although the mechanical and digital preparation of eggs did not reveal any embryonic remains in ovo, the morphology of the eggs and eggshells closely matches that of titanosaur eggs and eggshells found worldwide. The morphology and spatial grouping of the titanosaur eggs from Tama, along with geological observations support a burrow-nesting strategy for these dinosaurs. Although the Sanagasta and Tama eggs were found in the same stratigraphical unit and share several morphological characters, they clearly differ in shell thickness and egg size. This, coupled with the interpretation of different sedimentary contexts for these nesting sites, strongly suggests that at least two different titanosaur species nested in La Rioja during the Late Cretaceous, using different nesting strategies. The occurrence of this new titanosaur nesting site in a semiarid palaeoenvironment represents an interesting case study for the reproductive biology of the titanosaur dinosaurs, particularly their labile nesting behaviour.

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“…; Harris et al . ), but some of them are also known to combine and/or switch between either heat source due to their labile nesting behaviour (Dekker ; Harris et al . ).…”

Section: Nesting Strategymentioning

confidence: 99%

A new Upper Cretaceous titanosaur nesting site from La Rioja (NW Argentina), with implications for titanosaur nesting strategies

et al. 2016

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“…For example, the Malau megapode (Megapodius pritchardii Gray, 1864) digs pits more than 2 m deep to utilize underground geothermal heat (Frith, 1956;del Hoyo, Elliott & Sargatal, 1994;Göth & Vogel, 1997). In addition, because burrow nests in geothermal ecosystems are less susceptible than mounds to predation, burrow-nesting megapodes can abandon their nests after burying their clutch (Dekker, 1989;del Hoyo, Elliott & Sargatal, 1994), a strategy consistent with the titanosaur behavior inferred from the fossil record (Sander et al, 2008(Sander et al, , 2011Werner & Griebeler, 2011;Ruxton, Birchard & Deeming, 2014), where nesting sites were often located and synchronous with geothermal activities. Paradoxically, megapode nest-burrows are dug preferably in soft soils, in volcanic sands, environments that inhibit preservation of such Manuscript to be reviewed structures in the fossil record because they easily collapse (Frith, 1956;Dekker & Brom, 1960;Roper, 1983;Bowen, 2010).…”

Section: Titanosaur Nesting Strategiesmentioning

confidence: 87%

Peer Review #2 of "What do giant titanosaur dinosaurs and modern Australasian megapodes have in common? (v0.2)"

Upchurch¹

2015

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Titanosauria is a globally distributed clade of sometimes extremely large Mesozoic herbivorous sauropod dinosaurs. On the basis of current evidence these giant dinosaurs seem to have reproduced in specific and localized nesting sites. However, no investigations have been performed to understand the possible ecological and geological biases that acted for the selection of these nesting sites worldwide. In this study, observations were performed on the best-known Cretaceous nesting sites around the world. Our observations strongly suggest their eggs were incubated with environmental sources of heat, in burial conditions. Taking into account the clutch composition and geometry, the nature and properties of the sediments, the eggshells' structures and conductance, it would appear that titanosaurs adopted nesting behaviors comparable to the modern Australasian megapodes, using burrow-nesting in diverse media and moundbuilding strategies.

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“…It has been suggested that the absence or paucity of mammals (especially carnivores) has played an important role in shaping the distribution of clades in Wallacea (especially some radiations of birds) [20]. However, the idea that many trans-Wallacean colonists might also show detectable shifts in patterns of evolution in response to the same factor [6] has not yet been widely tested.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Crossing the line: increasing body size in a trans-Wallacean lizard radiation ( Cyrtodactylus , Gekkota)

2014

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The region between the Asian and Australian continental plates (Wallacea) demarcates the transition between two differentiated regional biotas. Despite this striking pattern, some terrestrial lineages have successfully traversed the marine barriers of Wallacea and subsequently diversified in newly colonized regions. The hypothesis that these dispersals between biogeographic realms are correlated with detectable shifts in evolutionary trajectory has however rarely been tested. Here, we analyse the evolution of body size in a widespread and exceptionally diverse group of gekkotan lizards (Cyrtodactylus), and show that a clade that has dispersed eastwards and radiated in the Australopapuan region appears to have significantly expanded its body size 'envelope' and repeatedly evolved gigantism. This pattern suggests that the biotic composition of the proto-Papuan Archipelago provided a permissive environment in which new colonists were released from evolutionary constraints operating to the west of Wallacea.

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Predation and the Western Limits of Megapode Distribution (Megapodiidae; Aves)

Cited by 21 publications

References 11 publications

A new Upper Cretaceous titanosaur nesting site from La Rioja (NW Argentina), with implications for titanosaur nesting strategies

A new Upper Cretaceous titanosaur nesting site from La Rioja (NW Argentina), with implications for titanosaur nesting strategies

Peer Review #2 of "What do giant titanosaur dinosaurs and modern Australasian megapodes have in common? (v0.2)"

Crossing the line: increasing body size in a trans-Wallacean lizard radiation ( Cyrtodactylus , Gekkota)

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