Did you know that we finally resolved the polytomy of Neoaves?
>>16147099Explain to me what this means like I'm a retard (because I am).
Why do flamingos look so cool but smell so bad bros. It's not fair.
Remind me why female peacocks prefer form over function again.
>>16147175It's the phylogeny of Neornithes (modern birds or crown group birds). It's from Stiller et al. (2024)https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-07323-1We have Paleognathae and Neognathae at the base of Neornithes (Aves). Then Neognathae si divided in Galloanserae and Neoaves. Neoaves was a polytomy, so since 2008 people was trying to resolve this clade. We had a lot of controversial and contradictory cladograms since 2014. For example, Jarvis et al. 2014 and Prum et al. 2015. 10 years later this seems to be resolved with the exception of the hoatzin.
>>16147179I only know that hoatzin smell really bad because they eat leafs.
Wich ornithological journals do you prefer anons?For me The Big 3 are:1. Ibis2. Ornithology (former The Auk)3. Ornithological Applications (former The Condor)
>>16147179>08/21/20 New boards added: /vrpg/, /vmg/, /vst/ and /vm/>05/04/17 New trial board added: /bant/ - International/Random>10/04/16 New board for 4chan Pass users: /vip/ - Very Important Posts>[Hide] [Show All]Flamingos are now at the base of Neoaves, then Columbaves and then Elementaves (this one is a novel clade) and Telluraves.
>>16147182If the male is capable of surviving with the handicap of being a walking fast food sign with a giant tail weighing him down then he must have some pretty good genes
>>16147182It's called the handicap principle. Same reason why frivolous spending is a status signal in humans
>>16147194 Why are penguins so far? I would expect them to be fairly basal, like ostriches chickens, and such.
>>16147182>>16147628>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fisherian_runaway
>>16147182Maybe they only happen to have colors that are easily visible and attractive to people?
>>16148191Can we test that hypothesis by painting male peacocks in different colors and see if there are significant differences in female interest? Let's crowdfund biologists to do this.
>>16147628I never believed this. galliformes nest on the ground and so the male is bait, meant to draw away predators from the female. whichever is the better at this and still staying alive will be more successful at propagating his genes. there is no female choice involved.
>>16148233That wouldn't test that hypothesis.
>>16148119There are fossil penguins from the Paleocene and are deeply nested in Neoaves. They are basal with albatrosses in Aequornithes (water birds).