TY - JOUR
T1 - Coevolution of relative brain size and life expectancy in parrots
AU - Smeele, Simeon Q.
AU - Conde, Dalia A.
AU - Baudisch, Annette
AU - Bruslund, Simon
AU - Iwaniuk, Andrew
AU - Staerk, Johanna
AU - Wright, Timothy F.
AU - Young, Anna M.
AU - McElreath, Mary Brooke
AU - Aplin, Lucy
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
©
PY - 2022
Y1 - 2022
N2 - Previous studies have demonstrated a correlation between longevity and brain size in a variety of taxa. Little research has been devoted to understanding this link in parrots; yet parrots are well-known for both their exceptionally long lives and cognitive complexity. We employed a large-scale comparative analysis that investigated the influence of brain size and life-history variables on longevity in parrots. Specifically, we addressed two hypotheses for evolutionary drivers of longevity: the cognitive buffer hypothesis, which proposes that increased cognitive abilities enable longer lifespans, and the expensive brain hypothesis, which holds that increases in lifespan are caused by prolonged developmental time of, and increased parental investment in, large-brained offspring. We estimated life expectancy from detailed zoo records for 133 818 individuals across 244 parrot species. Using a principled Bayesian approach that addresses data uncertainty and imputation of missing values, we found a consistent correlation between relative brain size and life expectancy in parrots. This correlation was best explained by a direct effect of relative brain size. Notably, we found no effects of developmental time, clutch size or age at first reproduction. Our results suggest that selection for enhanced cognitive abilities in parrots has in turn promoted longer lifespans.
AB - Previous studies have demonstrated a correlation between longevity and brain size in a variety of taxa. Little research has been devoted to understanding this link in parrots; yet parrots are well-known for both their exceptionally long lives and cognitive complexity. We employed a large-scale comparative analysis that investigated the influence of brain size and life-history variables on longevity in parrots. Specifically, we addressed two hypotheses for evolutionary drivers of longevity: the cognitive buffer hypothesis, which proposes that increased cognitive abilities enable longer lifespans, and the expensive brain hypothesis, which holds that increases in lifespan are caused by prolonged developmental time of, and increased parental investment in, large-brained offspring. We estimated life expectancy from detailed zoo records for 133 818 individuals across 244 parrot species. Using a principled Bayesian approach that addresses data uncertainty and imputation of missing values, we found a consistent correlation between relative brain size and life expectancy in parrots. This correlation was best explained by a direct effect of relative brain size. Notably, we found no effects of developmental time, clutch size or age at first reproduction. Our results suggest that selection for enhanced cognitive abilities in parrots has in turn promoted longer lifespans.
KW - Bayesian structural equation model
KW - Psittaciformes
KW - cognitive buffer hypothesis
KW - cognitive evolution
KW - expensive brain hypothesis
KW - longevity
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85126907818&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1098/rspb.2021.2397
DO - 10.1098/rspb.2021.2397
M3 - Article
SN - 0962-8452
VL - 289
JO - Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
JF - Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
IS - 1971
M1 - 20212397
ER -