Project description
A closer look at vertebrate flight evolution
Over 500 million years ago, jawless marine organisms marked the inception of vertebrate life, eventually conquering land around 320 million years ago. By acquiring adaptations to terrestrial challenges like breathing air and withstanding higher gravity forces, these pioneers faced the daunting task of evolving flight. In this context, the MSCA-funded FLAPS project will study the origin and evolution of vertebrate flight in bats, birds, and pterosaurs. More precisely the project deals with two main questions: did vertebrate flight evolve from gliding or flapping ancestors? Were the first flying archosaurs precocial or altricial? FLAPS endeavours to settle the debate, employing innovative methods including inferences of resting and maximal metabolic rates using palaeohistology and CT scans.
Objective
The first vertebrate animals were jawless marine organisms which appeared in the fossil record over 500 million years ago. These lineages diversified and eventually crept ashore leading to further evolutionary divergence and become the charismatic living groups. The evolution of limbs in one lineage of vertebrates set the stage for these vertebrates to colonize landmasses around 320 million years ago. The water-terrestrial transition included some chalenges, such as air breathing, sustain the body weight dealing with gravity force and avoid the dehydration. On land, vertebrates radiated evolutionarily into many of the vacant niches. Well-adapted on terrestrial enviroment was the time to the aerial conquest. The extant flying vertebrates are the birds and bats, but pterosaurs were the first vertebrates to rule Mesozoic skies. These three groups evolved convergently to power their wings and increase the metabolic capacity during the flight. The origin of vertebrate flight is still unclear there is a dicothomy debate discussing whether it evolved from glidind or flapping ancestors. There are discordancies between the experts, some studies indicated pterosaurs as ground-based at hatchling and others suggested a powered flight in early life for these flying reptiles. Herein, this project will create a new method to explore the origin of the flight in vertebrates investigating the metabolic challenges of the pionner group to accomplish this ability: the archosaurs.
Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2022-PF-01
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
75794 PARIS
France
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.