Evidence of avian-mediated long distance dispersal in American tardigrades
Terrestrial tardigrades, commonly known as “water bears”, are part of a phylum of microscopic, aquatic invertebrates famous for cryptobiosis and space travel, but little is known about their modes of dispersal on Earth. Wind is assumed, but not truly demonstrated, to be the major method of global di...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:91a1a5431cbc4557b9425dd8c423ef81 2024-01-07T09:47:24+01:00 Evidence of avian-mediated long distance dispersal in American tardigrades Matthew J. Mogle Scott A. Kimball William R. Miller Richard D. McKown 2018-07-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.5035 https://doaj.org/article/91a1a5431cbc4557b9425dd8c423ef81 EN eng PeerJ Inc. https://peerj.com/articles/5035.pdf https://peerj.com/articles/5035/ https://doaj.org/toc/2167-8359 doi:10.7717/peerj.5035 2167-8359 https://doaj.org/article/91a1a5431cbc4557b9425dd8c423ef81 PeerJ, Vol 6, p e5035 (2018) Bird nest Migration Transport Ectozoochory Dispersal Plumage Medicine R Biology (General) QH301-705.5 article 2018 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.5035 2023-12-10T01:53:33Z Terrestrial tardigrades, commonly known as “water bears”, are part of a phylum of microscopic, aquatic invertebrates famous for cryptobiosis and space travel, but little is known about their modes of dispersal on Earth. Wind is assumed, but not truly demonstrated, to be the major method of global dispersal. Yet, some water bear distribution patterns cannot be explained by patterns of prevailing winds. Mammals and birds have been proposed as potential animal vectors. Importantly, most nearctic-neotropical migrant birds move north and south, with many crossing the equator, whereas prevailing winds move west to east or east to west but do not cross the equator. When multiplied by billions of birds over tens of millions of years, if the ectozoochory of tardigrades by birds is true then both regional and intercontinental patterns can be better explained. To test for the potential role of birds in tardigrade dispersal, the nests of 10 species for birds were examined. Seventy percent of nests were positive for tardigrades, demonstrating that some birds are in a position for transference. The carcasses of eight birds (six species) found dead from window strikes and a Sandhill Crane (Grus canadensis) found dead during routine surveys were also examined. Of the birds examined, 66% yielded tardigrades from two classes, three orders, and five species, including juveniles, adults, and eggs, suggesting that many bird species are potential vectors for many species of tardigrades. Our data support the hypothesis of avian-mediated long distance dispersal of tardigrades and provide evidence that further investigation is warranted. Article in Journal/Newspaper Tardigrade water bear Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Water Bears ENVELOPE(-54.431,-54.431,49.600,49.600) PeerJ 6 e5035 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Bird nest Migration Transport Ectozoochory Dispersal Plumage Medicine R Biology (General) QH301-705.5 |
spellingShingle |
Bird nest Migration Transport Ectozoochory Dispersal Plumage Medicine R Biology (General) QH301-705.5 Matthew J. Mogle Scott A. Kimball William R. Miller Richard D. McKown Evidence of avian-mediated long distance dispersal in American tardigrades |
topic_facet |
Bird nest Migration Transport Ectozoochory Dispersal Plumage Medicine R Biology (General) QH301-705.5 |
description |
Terrestrial tardigrades, commonly known as “water bears”, are part of a phylum of microscopic, aquatic invertebrates famous for cryptobiosis and space travel, but little is known about their modes of dispersal on Earth. Wind is assumed, but not truly demonstrated, to be the major method of global dispersal. Yet, some water bear distribution patterns cannot be explained by patterns of prevailing winds. Mammals and birds have been proposed as potential animal vectors. Importantly, most nearctic-neotropical migrant birds move north and south, with many crossing the equator, whereas prevailing winds move west to east or east to west but do not cross the equator. When multiplied by billions of birds over tens of millions of years, if the ectozoochory of tardigrades by birds is true then both regional and intercontinental patterns can be better explained. To test for the potential role of birds in tardigrade dispersal, the nests of 10 species for birds were examined. Seventy percent of nests were positive for tardigrades, demonstrating that some birds are in a position for transference. The carcasses of eight birds (six species) found dead from window strikes and a Sandhill Crane (Grus canadensis) found dead during routine surveys were also examined. Of the birds examined, 66% yielded tardigrades from two classes, three orders, and five species, including juveniles, adults, and eggs, suggesting that many bird species are potential vectors for many species of tardigrades. Our data support the hypothesis of avian-mediated long distance dispersal of tardigrades and provide evidence that further investigation is warranted. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Matthew J. Mogle Scott A. Kimball William R. Miller Richard D. McKown |
author_facet |
Matthew J. Mogle Scott A. Kimball William R. Miller Richard D. McKown |
author_sort |
Matthew J. Mogle |
title |
Evidence of avian-mediated long distance dispersal in American tardigrades |
title_short |
Evidence of avian-mediated long distance dispersal in American tardigrades |
title_full |
Evidence of avian-mediated long distance dispersal in American tardigrades |
title_fullStr |
Evidence of avian-mediated long distance dispersal in American tardigrades |
title_full_unstemmed |
Evidence of avian-mediated long distance dispersal in American tardigrades |
title_sort |
evidence of avian-mediated long distance dispersal in american tardigrades |
publisher |
PeerJ Inc. |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.5035 https://doaj.org/article/91a1a5431cbc4557b9425dd8c423ef81 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-54.431,-54.431,49.600,49.600) |
geographic |
Water Bears |
geographic_facet |
Water Bears |
genre |
Tardigrade water bear |
genre_facet |
Tardigrade water bear |
op_source |
PeerJ, Vol 6, p e5035 (2018) |
op_relation |
https://peerj.com/articles/5035.pdf https://peerj.com/articles/5035/ https://doaj.org/toc/2167-8359 doi:10.7717/peerj.5035 2167-8359 https://doaj.org/article/91a1a5431cbc4557b9425dd8c423ef81 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.5035 |
container_title |
PeerJ |
container_volume |
6 |
container_start_page |
e5035 |
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