Exploring the macroevolutionary signature of asymmetric inheritance at speciation
Author(s)
Gaboriau, Theo
Tobias, Joseph A
Silvestro, Daniele
Salamin, Nicolas
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Popular comparative phylogenetic models such as Brownian Motion, Ornstein-Ulhenbeck, and their extensions assume that, at speciation, a trait value is inherited identically by 2 descendant species. This assumption contrasts with models of speciation at a micro-evolutionary scale where descendants’ phenotypic distributions are sub-samples of the ancestral distribution. Different speciation mechanisms can lead to a displacement of the ancestral phenotypic mean among descendants and an asymmetric inheritance of the ancestral phenotypic variance. In contrast, even macro-evolutionary models that account for intraspecific variance assume symmetrically conserved inheritance of ancestral phenotypic distribution at speciation. Here, we develop an Asymmetric Brownian Motion model (ABM) that relaxes the assumption of symmetric and conserved inheritance of the ancestral distribution at the time of speciation. The ABM jointly models the evolution of both intra- and inter-specific phenotypic variation. It also infers the mode of phenotypic inheritance at speciation, which can range from a symmetric and conserved inheritance, where descendants inherit the ancestral distribution, to an asymmetric and displaced inheritance, where descendants inherit divergent phenotypic means and variances. To demonstrate this model, we analyze the evolution of beak morphology in Darwin finches, finding evidence of displacement at speciation. The ABM model helps to bridge micro- and macro-evolutionary models of trait evolution by providing a more robust framework for testing the effects of ecological speciation, character displacement, and niche partitioning on trait evolution at the macro-evolutionary scale.
Editor(s)
Harmon, Luke
Date Issued
2025-03-01
Date Acceptance
2024-07-18
Citation
Systematic Biology, 2025, 74 (2), pp.267-281
ISSN
1063-5157
Publisher
Oxford University Press
Start Page
267
End Page
281
Journal / Book Title
Systematic Biology
Volume
74
Issue
2
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press, on behalf of the Society of Systematic Biologists. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution‑NonCommercial License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by‑nc/4.0/), which permits non‑commercial re‑use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. For commercial re‑use, please contact reprints@oup.com for reprints and translation rights for reprints. All other permissions can be obtained through our RightsLink service via the Permissions link on the article page on our site—for further information please contact journals.permissions@oup.com.
License URL
Identifier
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39046782
PII: 7719298
Subjects
BODY-SIZE
Character displacement
COMPETITION
Evolutionary Biology
Life Sciences & Biomedicine
MODELS
NEUTRAL THEORY
NICHE WIDTH
phenotypic evolution
phylogenetic comparative methods
PUNCTUATED EQUILIBRIUM
RATES
Science & Technology
SEXUAL SELECTION
speciation
STABILIZING SELECTION
TRAIT EVOLUTION
Publication Status
Published
Coverage Spatial
England
Date Publish Online
2024-07-24