Data from: How do seemingly non-vagile clades accomplish trans-marine dispersal? Trait and dispersal evolution in the landfowl (Aves: Galliformes)

Dispersal ability is a key factor in determining insular distributions and
island community composition, yet non-vagile terrestrial organisms widely
occur on oceanic islands. The landfowl (pheasants, partridges, grouse,
turkeys, quails and relatives) are generally poor dispersers, but the Old
World quail (Coturnix) are a notable exception. These birds evolved small
body sizes and high-aspect-ratio wing shapes, and hence are capable of
trans-continental migrations and trans-oceanic colonization. Two monotypic
partridge genera, Margaroperdix of Madagascar and Anurophasis of alpine
New Guinea, may represent additional examples of trans-marine dispersal in
landfowl, but their body size and wing shape are typical of poorly
dispersive continental species. Here, we estimate historical relationships
of quail and their relatives using phylogenomics, and infer body size and
wing shape evolution in relation to trans-marine dispersal events. Our
results show that Margaroperdix and Anurophasis are nested within the
Coturnix quail, and are each ‘island giants’ that independently evolved
from dispersive, Coturnix-like ancestral populations that colonized and
were subsequently isolated on Madagascar and New Guinea. This evolutionary
cycle of gain and loss of dispersal ability, coupled with extinction of
dispersive taxa, can result in the false appearance that non-vagile taxa
somehow underwent rare oceanic dispersal.