A nearly 20-year study on Darwin’s finches by McGill University has revealed that specific beak traits linked to different food types increase the birds’ lifespan, supporting the theory of adaptive radiation. The findings suggest that these finches are still evolving to better adapt to their environments.of Darwin’s finches on the Galápagos Islands, a team headed by McGill University has validated a long-held theory that the diversity of species arises from adaptation to various resources.
Evolutionary biologists have traditionally believed that the transformation of a single species into several distinct species, known as “adaptive radiation,” occurs as each species adapts to a unique environment.
As a result, “the diversity of life is a product of the radiation of species to specialize on different environments; in the case of Darwin’s finches, those environments are different food types” adds Professor Andrew Hendry, who has been a part of the project for more than 20 years. Perhaps surprisingly, the researchers also found that the different species of finches studied have not reached the top of their fitness ‘mountain,’ suggesting that each species is not perfectly adapted to their food. Whether such “perfection” will ultimately evolve remains to be seen.
Reference: “The fitness landscape of a community of Darwin’s finches” by Marc-Olivier Beausoleil, Paola Lorena Carrión, Jeffrey Podos, Carlos Camacho, Julio Rabadán-González, Roxanne Richard, Kristen Lalla, Joost A M Raeymaekers, Sarah A Knutie, Luis F De León, Jaime A Chaves, Dale H Clayton, Jennifer A H Koop, Diana M T Sharpe, Kiyoko M Gotanda, Sarah K Huber, Rowan D H Barrett and Andrew P Hendry, 02 December 2023,SciTechDaily: Home of the best science and technology news...
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