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1. Putting the leaf-nosed bats in context: a geometric morphometric analysis of three of the largest families of bats

   https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyy101  

   Hedrick, Brandon P ; Dumont, Elizabeth R ( September 2018 , Journal of Mammalogy)

   null (Ed.)
2. Parallel evolution in an island archipelago revealed by genomic sequencing of Hipposideros leaf-nosed bats

   https://doi.org/10.1093/evolut/qpae039  

   Lavery, Tyrone H. ; DeRaad, Devon A. ; Holland, Piokera S. ; Olson, Karen V. ; DeCicco, Lucas H. ; Seddon, Jennifer M. ; Leung, Luke K. P. ; Moyle, Robert G. ; Calcagno, ed., Vincent ; Zelditch, ed., Miriam ( March 2024 , Evolution)

   Body size is a key morphological attribute, often used to delimit species boundaries among closely related taxa. But body size can evolve in parallel, reaching similar final states despite independent evolutionary and geographic origins, leading to faulty assumptions of evolutionary history. Here, we document parallel evolution in body size in the widely distributed leaf-nosed bat genus Hipposideros, which has misled both taxonomic and evolutionary inference. We sequenced reduced representation genomic loci and measured external morphological characters from three closely related species from the Solomon Islands archipelago, delimited by body size. Species tree reconstruction confirms the paraphyly of two morphologically designated species. The nonsister relationship between large-bodied H. dinops lineages found on different islands indicates that large-bodied ecomorphs have evolved independently at least twice in the history of this radiation. A lack of evidence for gene flow between sympatric, closely related taxa suggests the rapid evolution of strong reproductive isolating barriers between morphologically distinct populations. Our results position Solomon Islands Hipposideros as a novel vertebrate system for studying the repeatability of parallel evolution under natural conditions. We conclude by offering testable hypotheses for how geography and ecology could be mediating the repeated evolution of large-bodied Hipposideros lineages in the Solomon Islands.

    

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3. Singing strategies are linked to perch use on foraging territories in heart‐nosed bats

   https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8519  

   Smarsh, Grace C. ; Long, Ashley M. ; Smotherman, Michael ( February 2022 , Ecology and Evolution)

   Acoustic communication allows animals to coordinate and optimize resource utilization in space.Cardioderma cor, the heart‐nosed bat, is one of the few species of bats known to sing during nighttime foraging. Previous research found that heart‐nosed bats react aggressively to song playback, supporting the territorial defense hypothesis of singing in this species. We further investigated the territorial defense hypothesis from an ecological standpoint, which predicts that singing should be associated with exclusive areas containing a resource, by tracking 14 individuals nightly during the dry seasons in Tanzania. We quantified the singing behavior of individuals at all perches used throughout the night. Using home range analysis tools, we quantified overall use, night ranges and singing ranges, as well as areas used in early and later time periods at night. Males sang back and forth from small ( = 3.48 ± 2.71 ha), largely exclusive areas that overlapped with overall night ranges used for gleaning prey. Individuals varied in singing effort; however, all sang significantly more as night progressed. Subsequently, areas used earlier at night and overall use areas were both larger than singing areas. Individuals varied in singing strategies. Some males sang for long periods in particular trees and had smaller core areas, while others moved frequently among singing trees. The most prolific singers used more perches overall. Our results support the hypothesis that acoustic communication repertoires evolved in support of stable foraging territory advertisement and defense in some bats.

    

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4. Directionality of nose-emitted echolocation calls from bats without a nose leaf ( Plecotus auritus )

   https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.171926  

   Jakobsen, Lasse ; Hallam, John ; Moss, Cynthia F. ; Hedenström, Anders ( February 2018 , The Journal of Experimental Biology)
5. Cranial joint histology in the mallard duck ( Anas platyrhynchos ): new insights on avian cranial kinesis

   https://doi.org/10.1111/joa.12562  

   Bailleul, Alida M. ; Witmer, Lawrence M. ; Holliday, Casey M. ( December 2016 , Journal of Anatomy)

   The evolution of avian cranial kinesis is a phenomenon in part responsible for the remarkable diversity of avian feeding adaptations observable today. Although osteological, developmental and behavioral features of the feeding system are frequently studied, comparatively little is known about cranial joint skeletal tissue composition and morphology from a microscopic perspective. These data are key to understanding the developmental, biomechanical and evolutionary underpinnings of kinesis. Therefore, here we investigated joint microstructure in juvenile and adult mallard ducks (Anas platyrhynchos; Anseriformes). Ducks belong to a diverse clade of galloanseriform birds, have derived adaptations for herbivory and kinesis, and are model organisms in developmental biology. Thus, new insights into their cranial functional morphology will refine our understanding of avian cranial evolution. A total of five specimens (two ducklings and three adults) were histologically sampled, and two additional specimens (a duckling and an adult) were subjected to micro‐computed tomographic scanning. Five intracranial joints were sampled: the jaw joint (quadrate‐articular); otic joint (quadrate‐squamosal); palatobasal joint (parasphenoid‐pterygoid); the mandibular symphysis (dentary‐dentary); and the craniofacial hinge (a complex flexion zone involving four different pairs of skeletal elements). In both the ducklings and adults, the jaw, otic and palatobasal joints are all synovial, with a synovial cavity and articular cartilage on each surface (i.e. bichondral joints) ensheathed in a fibrous capsule. The craniofacial hinge begins as an ensemble of patent sutures in the duckling, but in the adult it becomes more complex: laterally it is synovial; whereas medially, it is synostosed by a bridge of chondroid bone. We hypothesize that it is chondroid bone that provides some of the flexible properties of this joint. The heavily innervated mandibular symphysis is already fused in the ducklings and remains as such in the adult. The results of this study will serve as reference for documenting avian cranial kinesis from a microanatomical perspective. The formation of: (i) secondary articular cartilage on the membrane bones of extant birds; and (ii) their unique ability to form movable synovial joints within two or more membrane bones (i.e. within their dermatocranium) might have played a role in the origin and evolution of modern avian cranial kinesis during dinosaur evolution.

    

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