Movement ecology of Columbiformes maintaining long-distance dispersal ability in island habitats

抄録

Columbiforms (pigeons and doves) are distributed worldwide, including on remote oceanic islands. Thus, they have been regarded as model species of island evolution and species interactions. Reducing dispersal ability is a well-known evolutionary direction among island organisms, which is more complex for island Columbiforms. Here, I reviewed their evolution of maintaining the dispersal ability, movement patterns among islands, and the ecological function of their movement. Although a general trend of reduction in flight muscle is shown, some studies claim that the island Columbiforms maintain or even develop their dispersive phenotypes after colonizing islands, enabling them to move among islands. This is likely related to niche expansion and adaptation to island habitats with unstable resource availability. Interisland movement was reported in at least nine genera with two movement patterns: 1) daily movement between neighboring islands and 2) seasonal or nomadic movement among remote islands. The former is related to their daily foraging trips between nesting or roosting islands and foraging islands, and the latter may be due to unpredictable resource availability within an archipelago. Such movement contributes to long-distance seed dispersal among islands, including neighboring islands and even across an entire archipelago, which may affect plant distribution and gene flow in island ecosystems. This review provides a perspective on island ornithology and provides a foundation for further studies.