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Foraging on the wing: How can ecologically similar birds live together?

New study uses modern molecular and evolutionary techniques to reassess a foundational, 67-year-old study in warblers.

Much of MacArthur's original work is vindicated! (or reiterated).

A new study used modern methods to reassess a foundational study in biology that explained how ecologically similar species of wood warblers coexist. The research team examined foraging behavior, physical characteristics, diet and evolutionary history of 13 warbler species and found that how these songbirds coexist is more nuanced than originally proposed. A spat between birds at your backyard birdfeeder highlights the sometimes fierce competition for resources that animals face in the natural world, but some ecologically similar species appear to coexist peacefully. A classic study in songbirds by Robert MacArthur, one of the founders of modern ecology, suggested that similar wood warblers -- insect-eating, colorful forest songbirds -- can live in the same trees because they actually occupy slightly different locations in the tree and presumably eat different insects. Now, a new study is using modern techniques to revisit MacArthur's observations, which are still used as an example in today's biology textbooks...

Read more: Foraging on the wing: How can ecologically similar birds live together? | ScienceDaily

Associated work: 294-2015-wheeler-bik-warblers

Read an older paper here: