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PHYLOGENETIC STUDIES OF COADAPTATION: PREFERRED TEMPERATURES VERSUS OPTIMAL PERFORMANCE TEMPERATURES OF LIZARDS
Author(s) -
Huey Raymond B.,
Bennett Albert F.
Publication year - 1987
Publication title -
evolution
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.84
H-Index - 199
eISSN - 1558-5646
pISSN - 0014-3820
DOI - 10.1111/j.1558-5646.1987.tb05879.x
Subject(s) - biology , phylogenetic tree , range (aeronautics) , ecology , critical thermal maximum , evolutionary biology , acclimatization , genetics , gene , materials science , composite material
The view that behavior and physiological performance are tightly coadapted is a central principle of physiological ecology. Here, we test this principle using a comparative study of evolutionary patterns in thermal preferences and the thermal dependence of sprinting in some Australian skinks (Lygosominae). Thermal preferences ( T p ) differ strikingly among genera (range 24° to 35°C), but critical thermal maxima (CTMax) (range 38° to 45°C) and optimal temperatures for sprinting ( T o , 32° to 35°C) vary less. Diurnal genera have relatively high T p , T o , and CTMax. In contrast, nocturnal genera have low T p but have moderate to high T o and CTMax. Both nonphylogenetic and phylogenetic (minimum‐evolution) approaches suggest that coadaptation is tight only for genera with high T p . Phylogenetic analyses suggest that low T p and, thus, partial coadaptation are evolutionarily derived, indicating that low thermal preferences can evolve, even if this results in reduced performance. In one instance, thermal preferences and the thermal dependence of sprinting may have evolved in opposite directions, a phenomenon we call “antagonistic coadaptation.” We speculate on factors driving partial coadaptation and antagonistic coadaptation in these skinks.