A5017741365- Animal Behavior and Reproduction
- Plant and animal studies
- Amphibian and Reptile Biology
- Insect and Arachnid Ecology and Behavior
- Insect and Pesticide Research
- Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
- Species Distribution and Climate Change
- Turtle Biology and Conservation
- Evolution and Paleontology Studies
- Genetic diversity and population structure
- Neurobiology and Insect Physiology Research
- Animal and Plant Science Education
- Insect-Plant Interactions and Control
- Coccidia and coccidiosis research
- Animal Vocal Communication and Behavior
- Physiological and biochemical adaptations
- Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
- Bird parasitology and diseases
- Genetics, Aging, and Longevity in Model Organisms
- Avian ecology and behavior
- Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Zoonotic diseases and public health
- Primate Behavior and Ecology
- Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology
- Lepidoptera: Biology and Taxonomy
Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales
2015-2025
Lund University
2023-2025
Universitat de València
2017-2025
Parc Científic de la Universitat de València
2017-2024
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
2024
University of Lincoln
2017-2018
Estación Biológica de Doñana
2018
Australian National University
2018
Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas
2015-2017
National Research Council
2014
Abstract The signals that animals use to communicate often differ considerably among species. Part of this variation in signal design may derive from differential natural selection on efficacy; the ability travel efficiently through environment and attract receiver's attention. For visual acoustic modalities, effect physical efficacy is a well‐studied selective force. Still, very little known its impact chemical signals. Here, we took broad, phylogenetic comparative approach test for...
Abstract Sexual conflict is a fundamental driver of male/female adaptations, an engine biodiversity and crucial determinant population viability. frequently leads to behavioural adaptations that allow males displace their rivals, but in doing so harm those same females they are competing access, which can decrease viability facilitate extinction. We far from understanding what factors modulate the intensity sexual particularly role ecology mediating underlying adaptations. In this study, we...
Body size correlates with most structural and functional components of an organism’s phenotype – brain being a prime example allometric scaling animal size. Therefore, comparative studies evolution in vertebrates rely on controlling for the effects body variation by calculating weight/body weight ratios. Differences size-body relationship between taxa are usually interpreted as differences selection acting or its components, while pressures size, which among prevalent nature, rarely...
Abstract Morphological traits of animals have evolved to solve ecological requirements, the optimization locomotion in each environment being one most frequent selective forces shaping morphology. Amphisbaenians are strictly fossorial reptiles that various snout shapes for burrowing head‐first underground, yet evolutionary and origins these different morphologies little known. Here, we used a geometric morphometric approach investigate head shape intrapopulational variation round‐snouted...
Chemical communication plays a central role in social, sexual and ecological interactions among animals. However, the macroevolutionary diversification of traits responsible for chemical signaling remains fundamentally unknown. Most research investigating evolutionary glands production signals has focused on arthropods, while its study vertebrates neglected. Using global-scale dataset covering > 80% (7,904 species) living diversity lizards snakes (squamates), we investigate rates,...
One of the most pressing questions we face as biologists is to understand how climate change will affect evolutionary dynamics natural populations and these in turn population recovery. Increasing evidence shows that sexual selection favors viability local adaptation. However, can also foster conflict drive evolution male harm females. Male extraordinarily widespread has potential suppress female fitness compromise growth, yet currently ignore its net effects across taxa or influence on...
Animal signals can differ considerably in complexity and composition, even among closely related species. Work on vocal visual has revealed how sexual selection elaborate relevant mate choice or rival assessment, but few studies have investigated this process chemical signals. In study, we correlated signalling diversity richness with degree of dimorphism a data set 60 species the lizard family Lacertidae. The femoral glands male lacertid lizards exude waxy secretions, which lipophilic...
Abstract Aim The evolution of key innovations promotes adaptive radiations by opening access to new ecological opportunity. acquisition viviparity (live‐bearing reproduction) has emerged as one such innovation explaining reptile proliferations into extreme climates. By evolving viviparity, females provide embryos with internally stable environments complete development. classical hypothesis suggests that natural selection for arises from low temperatures in cold climates, which promote...
Arid climates are characterized by a summer drought period to which animals seem adapted. However, in some years, the can extend for unusually longer periods. Examining effects of these current extreme weather events on biodiversity help understand climate change, as models predict an increase severity. Here, we examined "unusual" extended soil invertebrate prey availability and diet composition (based fecal contents) selection fossorial amphisbaenian, checkerboard worm lizard Trogonophis...
Strong sexual selection frequently leads to conflict and ensuing male harm, whereby males increase their reproductive success at the expense of harming females. Male harm is a widespread evolutionary phenomenon with strong bearing on population viability. Thus, understanding how it unfolds in wild current priority. Here, we sampled Drosophila melanogaster studied across normal range temperatures under which reproduces optimally nature by comparing female lifetime underlying mechanisms...
Abstract Identifying the factors that underlie signal divergences remains challenging in studies of animal communication. Regarding chemical signalling, different compounds can be found some species but absent others. We hypothesized if costs are associated with expression too high, their presence may restricted. However, these expressed and functional when those relaxed. Vitamin E (α-tocopherol), a dietary compound metabolic relevancy, acts as an honest sexual many lizards no others such...
Abstract Limbless animals that burrow head‐first are often considered to be evolutionarily constrained in the development of a large head, due limitations imposed while penetrating soil. Whilst with small head experience less resistance when digging, they believed have weak bite, hence restricting their potential dietary spectrum soft prey. Yet, recent findings established molluscivory fossorial worm lizard Trogonophis wiegmanni (Amphisbaenia), suggesting high bite capacity for this...
Abstract Important part of the multivariate selection shaping social and interspecific interactions among within animal species emerges from communication. Therefore, understanding diversification signals for communication is a central endeavor in evolutionary biology. Over last decade, rapid development phylogenetic approaches has promoted stream studies investigating evolution signals. However, comparative research primarily focused on visual acoustic signals, while chemical remains...
Abstract Background The movement and spatial ecology of an animal depends on its morphological functional adaptations to environment. In fossorial animals, the underground life help face peculiar ecological challenges, very different from those epigeal species, but may constrain their ability. Methods We made a long-term capture-recapture study strictly amphisbaenian reptile Trogonophis wiegmanni analyze patterns. also used passive integrated transponder (PIT) telemetry detect follow...
Reptiles are the animals with most described coccidian species among all vertebrates. However, co‐evolutionary relationships in this host–parasite system have been scarcely studied. Paperna & Landsberg ( South African Journal of Zoology , 24, 1989, 345) proposed independent evolutionary origin Eimeria ‐like isolated from reptiles based on morphological and developmental characteristics their oocysts. Accordingly, they suggested reclassification these parasites two new genera,...
Abstract Anthropogenic climate change ranks among the major global-scale threats to modern biodiversity. Extinction risks are known increase via interactions between rapid climatic alterations and environmentally-sensitive species traits that fail adapt those changes. Accumulating evidence reveals influence of ecophysiological, ecological phenological factors as drivers underlying demographic collapses lead population extinctions. However, extent which life-history responses remains largely...
From inbreeding avoidance to kin‐selected cooperation, social behaviours are frequently reliant on kin recognition. However, recognition mechanisms costly evolve and currently not very well understood. Recent evidence suggests that, by altering their host's odour, gut other host‐associated microorganisms may provide a promising avenue for understanding In Drosophila melanogaster , can mediate mate choice, sexual conflict larval competition/cooperation, underscoring its important functional...