Find research datasets worth reusing

publicFeb 2024View details →

Data from: Exploring polymorphism in a palatable prey: Predation risk and frequency-dependence in relation to distinct levels of conspicuousness

Open the record for dataset details and reuse information.

publicApr 2022View details →

Uncovering the effects of Müllerian mimicry on the evolution of conspicuousness in colour patterns

Open the record for dataset details and reuse information.

publicMay 2025View details →

Data from: Costly conspicuousness reveals benefits of sexual dimorphism in brood parasitic diederik cuckoos

Open the record for dataset details and reuse information.

publicAug 2024View details →

Nanoscale ultrastructures increase the visual conspicuousness of signalling traits in obligate cleaner shrimps

Open the record for dataset details and reuse information.

publicJul 2025View details →

Data from: Enhanced conspicuousness of prey in warmer water mitigates the constraint of turbidity for predators

Open the record for dataset details and reuse information.

opencc-zeroDec 2020View details →

Conspicuous animal signals avoid the cost of predation by being intermittent or novel: confirmation in the wild using hundreds of robotic prey

Social animals are expected to face a trade-off between producing a signal that is detectible by mates and rivals, but not obvious to predators. This trade-off is fundamental for understanding the design of many animal sig- nals, and is often the lens through which the evolution of alternative communication strategies is viewed. We have a reasonable working knowl- edge of how conspecifics detect signals under different conditions, but how predators exploit conspicuous communication of prey is complex and hard to predict. We quantified predation on 1566 robotic lizard prey that per- formed a conspicuous visual display, possessed a conspicuous ornament or remained cryptic. Attacks by free-ranging predators were consistent across two contrasting ecosystems and showed robotic prey that performed a conspicuous display were equally likely to be attacked as those that remained cryptic. Furthermore, predators avoided attacking robotic prey with a fixed, highly visible ornament that was novel at both locations. These data show that it is prey familiarity—not conspicuousness—that determine predation risk. These findings replicated across different preda- tor–prey communities not only reveal how conspicuous signals might evolve in high predation environments, but could help resolve the paradox of aposematism and why some exotic species avoid predation when invad- ing new areas.

opencc-zeroNov 2023View details →

Data from: Conspicuous stripes on prey capture attention and reduce attacks by foraging jumping spiders

Many animals avoid predation using aposematic displays that pair toxic/dangerous defenses with conspicuous achromatic warning patterns, such as high-contrast stripes. To understand how these prey defenses work, we need to understand the decision-making of visual predators. Here we gave two species of jumping spiders (Phidippus regius and Habronattus trimaculatus) choice tests using live termites that had their back patterns manipulated using paper capes (solid white, solid black, striped). For P. regius, black and striped termites were quicker to capture attention. Yet despite this increased attention, striped termites were attacked at lower rates than either white or black. This suggests that the termite's contrast with the background elicits attention, but the internal striped body patterning reduces attacks. Results from tests with H. trimaculatus were qualitatively similar but did not meet the threshold for statistical significance. Additional exploratory analyses suggest that attention to and aversion to stripes is at least partially innate and provide further insight into how decision-making played out during trials. Because of their rich diversity (over 6500 species) that includes variation in natural history, toxin susceptibility, degree of color vision, and dietary specialization, jumping spiders are well-suited to test broad generalizations about how and why aposematic displays work.

opencc-zeroAug 2022View details →

The evolution of conspicuousness in frogs: when to signal toxicity?

Many organisms use conspicuous color patterns to advertise their toxicity or unpalatability, a strategy known as aposematism. Despite the recognized benefits of this antipredator tactic, not all chemically defended species exhibit warning coloration. Here, we use a comparative approach to investigate which factors predict the evolution of conspicuousness in frogs, a group in which conspicuous coloration and toxicity have evolved multiple times. We extracted color information from dorsal and ventral photos of 594 frog species for which chemical defense information was available. Our results show that chemically defended and diurnal species have higher internal chromatic contrast, both ventrally and dorsally, than chemically undefended and/or nocturnal species. Among species that are chemically defended, conspicuous coloration is more likely to occur if species are diurnal. Our results also suggest that the evolution of conspicuous color is more likely to occur in chemically defended prey with smaller body size. We discuss potential explanations for this association and suggest that prey profitability (related to body size) could be an important force driving the macroevolution of warning signals.

opencc-zeroAug 2022View details →

Unravelling the mystery of red flowers in the Mediterranean Basin: How to be conspicuous in a place dominated by hymenopteran pollinators

Red-flowered species have traditionally been related to ornithophily, and the 'bee avoidance' hypothesis, i.e. red flower coloration is a way to reduce visits from hymenopterans, has been proposed to explain this association. In the Mediterranean Basin, ornithophily is almost absent, and hymenopterans are the most common group of pollinators. The fact that hymenopterans are virtually red-blind raises the question of how red-flowered species are pollinated in this region. Are these flowers pollinated by other groups of red-sensitive insects such as lepidopterans and coleopterans, or do they have visual cues that make them attractive to hymenopterans? We examined the reflectance spectra of 51 red-flowered species from the Mediterranean Basin and modelled these spectra in the visual system of hymenopterans, dipterans, coleopterans, and lepidopterans to obtain colour and conspicuousness. According to their reflectance curves, species were classified as pure red and UV-red flowers, and the presence of more than one flower colour (patterned flowers) was studied. We evaluated the match between flower reflectance spectra and the maximum discrimination abilities of hymenopteran and lepidopteran visual system. All these metrics were analysed in a phylogenetically explicit framework, and a literature review of potential pollinators was performed. The vast majority of red-flowered species in the Mediterranean Basin are potentially pollinated by hymenopterans, and only three species are exclusively visited by coleopterans. We found that 90% of these species showed at least one colour signal strategy that helps to enhance conspicuousness to hymenopterans: to produce UV-red flower type spectra and/or patterned flowers. The UV-red colour showed a significant phylogenetic signal, but the presence of patterned flowers did not. Even though the red-flowered species of the Mediterranean Basin did not optimally match the colour vision of hymenopterans or lepidopterans, the presence of patterned and UV-red colours suggests an improvement in detection and discrimination by hymenopterans. The bee-avoidance hypothesis seems to be ruled out for the red-flowered species of the Mediterranean Basin. Our results suggest that red-flowered species are mostly pollinated by hymenopterans and show different flower colour signal strategies that can be interpreted as signs of adaptation to these pollinators.

opencc-zeroApr 2024View details →

Data from: Orchid trade at the source: Epiphytic species with conspicuous flowers in low-elevation forests are more locally collected in a Philippine key biodiversity area

Orchids are the most heavily traded plant group globally, putting pressure on wild populations in many source countries like the Philippines. Despite its rich orchid diversity, there remains a notable gap in understanding the factors driving orchid trade within the country. To address this knowledge gap and support orchid conservation efforts, we utilized a five-year orchid diversity dataset extensively collected through floristic field and village garden surveys in one of the largest key biodiversity areas in the southern Philippines. We employed a trait-based approach to investigate ecological drivers of local orchid collection within this source area. Our results show that around 36% of local orchid diversity have predicted collection risks of ≥50%. Notably, locally collected orchid species exhibited multiple, large, and conspicuously colored flowers that are found in low-elevation forests and higher up in forest stratum. Elevational distribution and flower size emerged as the strongest predictors, potentially influencing collection preferences. Our analysis of predicted collection risks underscores the vulnerability of both threatened and non-threatened orchid species to local collection pressures. Moreover, we highlight the practical utility of our trait-based approach in predicting risks and informing management strategies for local orchid conservation. This research marks a significant step towards identifying ecological drivers influencing orchid trade at its source, providing insights that can inform targeted conservation strategies across many key biodiversity areas for this highly diverse, charismatic, and threatened plant family.

opencc-zeroJun 2024View details →

Data from: Correlated evolution of conspicuous coloration and burrowing in crayfish

Conspicuous colors have fascinated biologists for centuries, leading to research on the evolution and functional significance of color traits. In many cases, research suggests that many conspicuous colors are adaptive and serve some function in sexual or aposematic signaling. In other cases, a lack of evidence for the adaptive value of conspicuous colors troubles biologists, such as within organisms that live underground and are rarely exposed to the surface. Here, we use phylogenetic comparative methods to investigate color evolution throughout freshwater crayfishes that vary in burrowing ability. Within the taxa we analyzed, conspicuous colors have evolved independently over 50 times; and these conspicuous colors are more common in semi-terrestrial crayfishes that construct extensive burrows. The intuitive, but not evolutionary-justified assumption when presented these results is to assume that these colors are adaptive. But contrary to this intuition, we discuss the hypothesis that coloration in crayfish is neutral. Supporting these ideas, small population sizes and reduced gene flow within semi-terrestrial burrowing crayfishes may lead to fixation in color-phenotype mutations. Overall, our work brings into question the traditional view of animal coloration as a perfectly adapted phenotype.

Figure 7 in A new species of Entomobrya (Collembola, Entomobryidae) from southwestern France exhibiting conspicuous sexual dimorphism

Figure 7. Entomobrya fourcesensis spec. nov. Macrochaetotaxy of Abdomen II.

Figure 6 in A new species of Entomobrya (Collembola, Entomobryidae) from southwestern France exhibiting conspicuous sexual dimorphism

Figure 6. Entomobrya fourcesensis spec. nov. Macrochaetotaxy of Thorax II.

Figure 8 in A new species of Entomobrya (Collembola, Entomobryidae) from southwestern France exhibiting conspicuous sexual dimorphism

Figure 8. Entomobrya fourcesensis spec. nov. Macrochaetotaxy of Abdomen III.

Figure 9 in A new species of Entomobrya (Collembola, Entomobryidae) from southwestern France exhibiting conspicuous sexual dimorphism

Figure 9. Entomobrya fourcesensis spec. nov. in three levels of pigmentation.

opencc-zeroMar 2023View details →

Conspicuous coloration of toxin-resistant predators implicates additional trophic interactions in a predator-prey arms race

Antagonistic coevolution between natural enemies can produce highly exaggerated traits, such as prey toxins and predator resistance. This reciprocal process of adaptation and counter-adaptation may also open doors to other evolutionary novelties not directly involved in the phenotypic interface of coevolution. We tested the hypothesis that predator-prey coevolution coincided with the evolution of conspicuous coloration on resistant predators that retain prey toxins. In western North America, common garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis) have evolved extreme resistance to tetrodotoxin (TTX) in the coevolutionary arms race with their deadly prey, Pacific newts (Taricha spp.). TTX-resistant snakes can retain large amounts of ingested TTX, which could serve as a deterrent against the snakes' own predators if TTX toxicity and resistance are coupled with a conspicuous warning signal. We evaluated whether arms race escalation co-varies with bright red coloration in snake populations across the geographic mosaic of coevolution. Snake color variation departs from the neutral expectations of population genetic structure and co-varies with escalating clines of newt TTX and snake resistance at two coevolutionary hotspots. In the Pacific Northwest, bright red coloration fits an expected pattern of an aposematic warning to avian predators: TTX-resistant snakes that consume highly toxic newts also have relatively large, reddish-orange dorsal blotches. Snake coloration also seems to have evolved with the arms race in California, but overall patterns are less intuitively consistent with aposematism. These results suggest that interactions with additional trophic levels can generate novel traits as a cascading consequence of arms race coevolution across the geographic mosaic.

opencc-zeroAug 2023View details →

Data for: Experimental infections with Euhaplorchis californiensis and a small cyathocotylid increase conspicuous behaviors in California killifish (Fundulus parvipinnis)

Some parasites manipulate their host's phenotype to enhance predation rates by the next host in the parasite's life cycle. Our understanding of this "parasite-increased trophic-transmission" is often stymied by study design challenges. A recurring difficulty has been obtaining uninfected hosts with a coevolutionary history with the parasites, and conducting experimental infections that mimic natural processes. In 1996, Lafferty and Morris provided what has become a classic example of parasite-increased trophic-transmission; they reported a positive association between the intensity of a brain-infecting trematode (Euhaplorchis californiensis) in naturally infected California killifish (Fundulus parvipinnis) and the frequency of "conspicuous behaviors", which was thought to explain the documented 10-30x increase in predation by the final host birds. Here, we address the primary gap in that study by using experimental infections to assess causality of E. californiensis infection for increased conspicuous behaviors in F. parvipinnis. We hatched and reared uninfected F. parvipinnis from a population co-occurring with E. californiensis, and infected them 1-2 times/week over half their life span with E. californiensis and a "small cyathocotylid" trematode (SMCY) that targets the host's muscle tissue. At 3 time-points throughout the hosts' lives, we quantified several conspicuous behaviors: contorting, darting, scratching, surfacing, and vertical positioning relative to the water's surface. Euhaplorchis californiensis and SMCY infection caused 1.8 and 2.5-fold overall increases in conspicuous behaviors, respectively. Each parasite was also associated with increases in specific conspicuous behaviors, particularly 1.9 and 1.4-fold more darting. These experimental findings help solidify E. californiensis-F. parvipinnis as a classic example of behavioral manipulation. Yet our findings for E. californiensis infection-induced behavioral change were less consistent and strong than those previously documented. We discuss potential explanations for this discrepancy, particularly the idea that behavioral manipulation may be most apparent when fish are actively attacked by predators. Our findings concerning the other studied trematode species, SMCY, highlight that trophically transmitted parasites infecting various host tissues are known to be associated with conspicuous behaviors, reinforcing calls for research examining how communities of trophically transmitted parasites influence host behavior.