Bats Show First Evidence of Parallel Evolution in Mammal Species in Real-Time [Study]

Bats surprised researchers because they noticed something bizarre in them. Bats worldwide grow bigger in exactly the same size, which they call an example of parallel evolution.

Bats Show Signs of Parallel Evolution in Mammal

In a new study from the University of Melbourne, a researcher noticed changes in the bats' sizes. They grow in bigger sizes the same way, even in separate locations.

It was reportedly a sign of parallel evolution and was the first time observed in real-time in mammal species. Parallel evolution has only been observed in action a few times before this.

The researchers noticed that bats living in the same forested settings on the Solomon Islands amid the Pacific Ocean come in various sizes; some are pretty small in stature, and others are huge. While the smaller bats were believed to belong to a separate species (Hipposideros diadema), two populations of more giant bats were considered members of the same species, known as furious leaf-nosed bats or Hipposideros dinops.

"Although they are very different sizes, the bats' DNA is very similar. They use very different sonar frequencies, they probably eat different food, and even when they live in the same cave together, they don't interbreed," said Tyrone Lavery, a researcher at the University of Melbourne and co-author of the study. "That is why no one has ever really questioned whether they were different species."

It appears that the more giant bats are a different species from the smaller ones, having diverged in tandem over their evolutionary history. According to Lavery, their data points to the swift and repetitive evolution of larger-bodied bats from smaller bats, each occurring separately on distinct islands.

Using the bats' DNA, they built family trees and discovered that, contrary to what they first believed, there was only one species of huge bat in the Solomon Islands. This indicates that more giant bats have diverged from smaller species on several islands. These large bats are being selected for something compelling enough to occur repeatedly on several islands.

They speculate that these more giant bats may be evolving to exploit food sources that the smaller bats aren't consuming. They could undoubtedly interbreed, but for some reason, they don't.

All of the islands' larger bats use a lower sonar frequency, suggesting that they are better adapted to hunting larger prey, like huge insects or even frogs.

Larger bodies may have evolved throughout time due to behavioral and physical changes required to pursue larger prey. This could indicate that the smaller and larger bats no longer see each other as mates and lead different lives.

Although evolution is often thought of as a relatively gradual process, it can occur quickly under the correct circumstances when two groups split apart and cease interbreeding. Lavery added that from there, they can start to evolve on different pathways.

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What Is Parallel Evolution?

Parallel evolution is the process by which populations that are geographically apart have evolved to exhibit morphological similarities. The resemblance between Australian marsupial and placental mammals worldwide is a noteworthy example.

They have developed surprisingly similar forms throughout their evolution, so identical that placental counterparts are frequently used as names for marsupials.

Another example of parallel evolution is the development of comparable body forms and adaptations in aquatic species, such as dolphins and ichthyosaurs, despite their highly dissimilar evolutionary histories as a mammal and the other as a reptile.