The evolution and function of pattern diversity in snakes
The evolution and function of pattern diversity in snakes
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DOI：
10.1093/beheco/art058
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发表时间：
2013-09-01
影响因子：
2.4
通讯作者：
Cuthill, Innes C.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Allen, William L.;Baddeley, Roland;Cuthill, Innes C.
蛇亚目的物种为理解视觉信号设计中涉及的过程提供了一个强大的模型。尽管蛇的视力通常很差，但它们通常既是捕食者，也是视觉导向物种的猎物。我们使用系统发育比较的方法研究了生态和行为因素如何驱动蛇图案的进化。使用模式发展的反应-扩散模型对171种澳大利亚和北美蛇的外观进行了分类，该模型的参数允许对着色的各个方面进行参数量化。主要发现包括纯色与积极的狩猎策略、纵向条纹与快速逃逸速度、斑点图案与埋伏猎物、缓慢移动和刺激性泄殖腔防御之间的关联，以及与掩体非常接近的斑点图案。没有观察到鲜艳的颜色、攻击性行为和毒液效力之间的预期联系。讨论了平面和纵向条纹图案在移动过程中支持伪装的机制。横向条纹图案在移动过程中被感知为均匀颜色的闪烁-融合假设在理论上是可能的，但不太可能。蛇的图案进化通常在系统发育上是保守的，但通过在广泛的蛇谱系中进行密集采样，我们证明了相似的图案表型已经重复进化，以响应相似的生态需求。
Species in the suborder Serpentes present a powerful model for understanding processes involved in visual signal design. Although vision is generally poor in snakes, they are often both predators and prey of visually oriented species. We examined how ecological and behavioral factors have driven the evolution of snake patterning using a phylogenetic comparative approach. The appearances of 171 species of Australian and North American snakes were classified using a reaction-diffusion model of pattern development, the parameters of which allow parametric quantification of various aspects of coloration. The main findings include associations between plain color and an active hunting strategy, longitudinal stripes and rapid escape speed, blotched patterns with ambush hunting, slow movement and pungent cloacal defense, and spotted patterns with close proximity to cover. Expected associations between bright colors, aggressive behavior, and venom potency were not observed. The mechanisms through which plain and longitudinally striped patterns might support camouflage during movement are discussed. The flicker-fusion hypothesis for transverse striped patterns being perceived as uniform color during movement is evaluated as theoretically possible but unlikely. Snake pattern evolution is generally phylogenetically conservative, but by sampling densely in a wide variety of snake lineages, we have demonstrated that similar pattern phenotypes have evolved repeatedly in response to similar ecological demands.