Dissertation Research: Evolutionary Ecomorphology of West Indian Anolis Lizards

乔纳森·洛索斯是加州大学伯克利分校的博士生，在哈里·格林博士的指导下工作，他正在进行一项关于解剖适应、生态和表现(跳跃能力、短跑速度、紧握能力等)的综合研究。加勒比群岛的Anolis蜥蜴以该群体的进化史为背景。对加勒比海的众多物种的解剖学研究表明，由于适应了相似的生态条件，远亲物种在解剖、行为和表演技能方面发生了相当大的平行和趋同的进化。Losos研究蜥蜴在自然栖息地的生态和行为；然后捕获这些动物，并在野外实验室测量一些性能变量；随后进行形态测量。后者包括质量、身体大小、肢体长度的测量，以及对在粘连中起作用的数字板层毛发的扫描电子显微镜评估。像这样的综合研究，利用自然环境中的不同物种，导致对物种如何进化以适应其环境的理解。这反过来又提供了关于如何保护地球生物多样性的基本信息。

Jonathan Losos, a doctoral student working under the supervision of Dr. Harry Greene at the University of California- Berkeley, is conducting an integrated study of anatomical adaptations, ecology and performance (jumping ability, sprint speed, clinging ability, etc.) of Anolis lizards of the Caribbean Islands set in context of the evolutionary history of the group. Anatomical studies of the numerous species of Caribbean Anoles suggests considerable parallel and convergent evolution has occurred in anatomy, behavior and performance skills among distantly related species as a result of adaptation to similar ecological conditions. Losos studies the ecology and behavior of lizards in natural habitats; the animals are then captured and a number of performance variables measured in a field laboratory; morphological measurements are subsequently made. The latter include measures of mass, body size, limb-length and scanning electron microscope assessments of digital lamellar hairs which function in adhesion. Integrated studies such as this, that take advantage of diverse species in natural environments, lead to an understanding of how species evolve adaptations to their environments. This, in turn, provides basic information on how to protect the biodiversity of the earth.