RPG: Social Behavior And Population Genetics of Subterranean Rodents

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

9704462 Lacey The proposed research will explore relationships between social behavior, demography, and population genetic structure in two species of tuco-tucos (Rodentia: Ctenomyidae) from northern Patagonia. Previous studies by the PI have revealed that these taxa exhibit marked differences in social behavior and demography that generate discrete predictions regarding interspecific differences in the apportionment of genetic variation within and among local populations. To quantify population genetic structure, tissue samples will be obtained from multiple populations of each species by sampling along north-south transects through the Limay Valley, Neuquen Province, Argentina. Ctenomyid-specific microsatellite primeers developed by the PI will be used to characterize levels and patterns of genetic diversity in each species. To assess the role of historical factors in creating observed differences in population genetic structure, sequence data will be generated for two portions of the mitochondrial genome. Sequence data from the mitochondrial control region will be used in phylogeographic analyses that distinguis between current and historical gene flow. To place comparative studies of ctenomyids into an evolutionary framework, sequence data from the cytochrome b locus of the mitochondrial genome will be used to explore the phylogenetic relationship between the study taxa. Although current hypotheses regarding the evolution of sociality among subterranean rodents suggestthat social behavior and population genetic structure are fundamentally linked, no studies have explicitly compared patterns of genetic variation in solitary and social taxa. When combined with behavioral and demographic data from ongoing studies of tuco-tucos from theLimay Valley, the proposed molecular analyses will yield a uniquely detailed picture of ctnomyid population structure. Data form these taxa will, in turn, provide the basis for comparative analyses of social behavior, demography, and population str ucture among ctenomyids from other portions of South America. More generally, the proposed research will establish much needed links between the disciplines of behavioral ecology, population genetics and evolutionary biology.