Abstract
Nest building is a widespread behavior among birds that reflects their adaptation to the environment and evolutionary history. However, it remains unclear how nests evolve and how their evolution relates to the bird phylogeny. Here, by examining the evolution of three nest characters—structure, site, and attachment—across all bird families, we reveal that nest characters did not change synchronically across the avian phylogeny but had disparate evolutionary trajectories. Nest structure shows stronger phylogenetic signal than nest site, while nest attachment has little variation. Nevertheless, the three characters evolved interdependently. For example, the ability of birds to explore new nest sites might depend on the emergence of novel nest structure and/or attachment. Our results also reveal labile nest characters in passerines compared with other birds. This study provides important insights into avian nest evolution and suggests potential associations between nest diversification and the adaptive radiations that generated modern bird lineages.
Highlights
Nest building is a widespread behavior among birds that reflects their adaptation to the environment and evolutionary history
Among the seven types of nest structures, cup nests were most common across modern bird families, followed by secondary cavities, domed and platform nests (Fig. 1a)
The divergent evolutionary patterns among nest site, structure and attachment found in this study suggest that bird nests contain a set of distinct characters, which may have been subject to different selective forces
Summary
Nest building is a widespread behavior among birds that reflects their adaptation to the environment and evolutionary history It remains unclear how nests evolve and how their evolution relates to the bird phylogeny. By examining the evolution of three nest characters—structure, site, and attachment—across all bird families, we reveal that nest characters did not change synchronically across the avian phylogeny but had disparate evolutionary trajectories. Using conventional and evolutionary model-based Mantel tests (see Methods), we revealed different levels of phylogenetic signal in the three characters. In spite of their disparate evolutionary patterns, our results showed that the three nest characters evolved interdependently. Different evolutionary patterns of nests found in passerine families, which represent approximately one half of all bird families, further suggested that a better understanding of avian nest evolution requires a comprehensive investigation across the entire avian phylogeny
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
