title: The evolutionary convergence of avian lifestyles and their constrained coevolution with species' ecological niche.
abstract: The fit between life histories and ecological niche is a paradigm of phenotypic evolution, also widely used to explain patterns of species co-occurrence. By analysing the lifestyles of a sympatric avian assemblage, we show that species' solutions to environmental problems are not unbound. We identify a life-history continuum structured on the cost of reproduction along a temperature gradient, as well as habitat-driven parental behaviour. However, environmental fit and trait convergence are limited by niche filling and by within-species variability of niche traits, which is greater than variability of life histories. Phylogeny, allometry and trade-offs are other important constraints: lifetime reproductive investment is tightly bound to body size, and the optimal allocation to reproduction for a given size is not established by niche characteristics but by trade-offs with survival. Life histories thus keep pace with habitat and climate, but under the limitations imposed by metabolism, trade-offs among traits and species' realized niche.
authors.affiliation: Research Unit of Biodiversity (UO, CSIC, PA), Universidad de Oviedo, 33600 Mieres, Spain Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, Universitá di Torino, 10123 Torino, Italy paola.laiolo@csic.es.
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Laiolo
authors.affiliation: Terrestrial Ecology Group, Departamento de Ecología, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 28049 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Javier
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Seoane
authors.affiliation: Research Unit of Biodiversity (UO, CSIC, PA), Universidad de Oviedo, 33600 Mieres, Spain.
authors.forename: Juan Carlos
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Illera
authors.affiliation: Research Unit of Biodiversity (UO, CSIC, PA), Universidad de Oviedo, 33600 Mieres, Spain.
authors.forename: Giulia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bastianelli
authors.affiliation: Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN-CSIC), 28000 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Luis María
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Carrascal
authors.affiliation: Research Unit of Biodiversity (UO, CSIC, PA), Universidad de Oviedo, 33600 Mieres, Spain.
authors.forename: José Ramón
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Obeso
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D001717:Birds / Q000502:physiology*; D049628:Body Size / Q000502:physiology; D017753:Ecosystem; D008018:Life Cycle Stages; D010641:Phenotype; D010802:Phylogeny; D011891:Rain; D012098:Reproduction; D013030:Spain; D013696:Temperature
keywords: life-history trade-offs; phylogenetic comparative method; realized niche; reproductive allocation