Horizontal transmission maintains host specificity and codiversification of symbionts in a brood parasitic host.

ABSTRACT: In host-symbiont systems, interspecific transmissions create opportunities for host switches, potentially leading to cophylogenetic incongruence. In contrast, conspecific transmissions often result in high host specificity and congruent cophylogenies. In most bird-feather mite systems, conspecific transmission is considered dominant, while interspecific transmission is supposedly rare. However, while mites typically maintain high host specificity, incongruent cophylogenies are common. To explain this conundrum, we quantify the magnitude of conspecific vs. interspecific transmission in the brood parasitic shiny cowbird (Molothrus bonariensis). M. bonariensis lacks parental care, allowing the assessment of the role of horizontal transmission alone in maintaining host specificity. We found th

SUBMITTER: Pedroso LGA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10654585 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature