Territoriality and reproductive interference between species

为什么一些关系密切的物种和平共处，而另一些物种却在争夺空间？物种之间侵略性的领土相互作用非常普遍，比当前理论所预期的要多得多，这可能决定了物种是否能够共存。有证据表明，许多物种的活动范围正在迅速变化，这突显了了解这种代价高昂的相互作用的原因的重要性。一个通常被忽视的潜在关键因素是生殖干扰。当一个物种的雄性或雌性认识到另一个物种的雄性或雌性是潜在的伴侣时，就会发生生殖干扰。这个错误对两个物种的适合度都有负面影响。生殖干扰实际上是配偶竞争的一种形式，因此在某些情况下可能是物种之间领土侵略的根本原因。通过发展新的理论，并通过对蜻蜓和鸟类的新的实证研究来检验它，这个项目将促进我们对物种之间的攻击为何如此普遍的理解。本研究旨在阐明决定种间领土地位是进化稳定的还是暂时的因素。研究人员已经开发了一个基于个体的建模框架，用于研究密切相关物种之间的二次接触的后果，将扩展到评估(1)雄性捍卫交配领地的物种和(2)雄性捍卫多用途领地的物种之间的生殖干扰的后果。红宝石豆娘是测试这些新模型中第一个的理想研究系统。本属植物的种间领地性与生殖干扰相关，但生殖干扰的变化是否能解释种间攻击的变化还有待进一步研究。野外工作将进行参数化模型，并在10个物种对上测试其预测。第二个模型，对于捍卫多用途领土的物种，将基于社会一夫一妻制雀鸟的生物学，并使用文献中的数据进行参数化，以评估当前的资源竞争水平是否足以在没有生殖干扰的情况下维持种间领土。最后，将对北美雀形目鸟类进行比较研究，以阐明种间领地性的生态、表型和系统发育相关关系。这项工作包括为哥斯达黎加和墨西哥的学生提供大量的国际实地考察经验，部分资金来自全球风险基金。

Why do some closely related species coexist peacefully while others fight over space? Aggressive territorial interactions between species are very common, much more so than expected based on current theory, and may determine whether species are able to coexist. The importance of understanding the causes of such costly interactions is highlighted by evidence that the ranges of many species are changing rapidly. One potentially crucial factor that has generally been overlooked is reproductive interference. Reproductive interference occurs when a male or a female of a species recognizes a male or female of a different species as a potential mate. This mistake has negative impacts on the fitness of both species. Reproductive interference is effectively a form of mate competition and thus may be the root cause of territorial aggression between species in some cases. By developing new theory and testing it with new empirical research on dragonflies and birds, this project will advance our understanding of why aggression between species is so prevalent.This research aims to clarify the factors that determine whether interspecific territoriality is evolutionarily stable or transitory. An individual-based modeling framework that the researchers have developed for studying the consequences of secondary contact between closely related species will be extended to evaluate the consequences of reproductive interference between (1) species in which males defend mating territories, and (2) species in which males defend multi-purpose territories. Rubyspot (Hetaerina spp.) damselflies are the ideal study system for testing the first of these new models. It has already been established that interspecific territoriality covaries with reproductive interference in this genus, but further research is needed to determine whether the variation in reproductive interference explains the variation in interspecific aggression. Fieldwork will be carried out to parameterize the model and to test its predictions on 10 species pairs. The second model, for species that defend multi-purpose territories, will be based on the biology of socially monogamous passerine birds, and parameterized using data from the literature, to evaluate whether current levels of resource competition are sufficient to maintain interspecific territoriality in the absence of reproductive interference. Finally, a major comparative study of North American passerine birds will be carried out to elucidate the ecological, phenotypic and phylogenetic correlates of interspecific territoriality. This work includes substantial international fieldwork experiences for students in Costa Rica and Mexico and is partially funded through the Global Venture Fund.