The cuckoo is evolving, giving rise to new, never-before-seen species

One happens Co-evolution of the cuckooIt is an interesting phenomenon to understand why there are millions of different species on Earth. Let’s try to explain what all this consists of.

Cuckoo evolution

We’re talking about Co-evolution When you identify species that interact strongly with each other Mutual evolutionary changes. This could lead to the birth of a new species. The scientific world is well aware of the existence of this phenomenon in nature. At the same time, however, The evidence seems to be fairly slim.

for this reason The co-evolution of the cuckoo is of enormous importance. The work done in this regard is due to a team of researchers from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), the Australian National University (ANU) and the University of Melbourne.

The idea behind the document was to be able to test this theory through a study Corsa evolutionary running between Cuckoos and host birdsWhich lay eggs in their nests. The name given to the study is: “Host coevolution supports speciation in parasitic cuckoos,” published in Sciences. What this reveals is that coevolution is the driving force in generating biodiversity on our planet. If there are millions of different species, it is precisely for this reason.

I study

Naomi Langmore, of ANU, is the lead author of the study. He explained how the cuckoo makes an ideal research subject. This is because they have a very heavy burden on their hosts. the reason? After hatching, the cuckoo chick pushes the host’s eggs out of the nest. The host loses its young and also spends several weeks raising the cuckoo. This has a major impact on their chances of reproduction.

This is what prompted the guests Develop the ability to recognize cuckoo chicksand expel them from their nests: “Only chicks that closely resemble the host’s chicks have any chance of escaping control. Therefore, over many generations, Cuckoo chicks have evolved With a purpose Imitation of host chicks. That is why each species of bronze cuckoo perfectly matches the appearance of its host’s chicks. This prompts the host parents to accept them.”

Interactions of this kind are fundamental Development of new species. By exploiting different hosts, the cuckoo begins to diverge overall, taking on completely separate lineages. This is done by imitating your host’s favorite chick. Thus there are differences in the plumage and calls of the different subspecies of the bronze cuckoo. This unites cuckoos that specialize in imitating the same host. They recognize each other and mate, effectively allowing new species to reproduce.

Here are the words of another author of the study, CSIRO evolutionary biologist Clare Holley. He explained how the historical collections were a real turning point in this research: “An important discovery in evolutionary biology. This is because it shows that co-evolution between interacting species increases biodiversity, leading to the occurrence of species. The ability to conduct this research has been years in the making.” The key step was to extract DNA from eggshells in historical collections. Everything was sequenced for genetic studies. We then combined two decades of behavioral fieldwork with DNA analysis of egg and bird samples held in museums and collections.