Species richness among birds: body size, life history, sexual selection or ecology?

摘要: Why do some avian families contain so many more species than other families? We use comparisons between sister taxa to test predictions arising from six explanations this puzzle: that differences are due chance, body size, life history, sexual selection, intrinsic ecological factors or extrinsic abiotic factors, respectively. In agreement with previous analyses, we find no support for the idea in richness simply chance. However, contrary most work, also hypotheses high is correlated small size and fast history. Rather, diversity strongly associated pronounced plumage dichromatism, generalist feeding habits good dispersal capabilities as well large fragmented geographical ranges. addition, all of these relationships robust removal two speciose lineages, Ciconiiformes Passeriformes. The supposed both history are, however, phylogenetic non-independence. Together work showing lineages extinction risk variation results indicate rates speciation not necessarily determined by same factors. Hence, inevitably low rates. Extinction-prone may, fact, have a rate speciation. such proportion 'vulnerable' would be natural, ongoing phenomenon.