DISSERTATION RESEARCH: The evolution of the locomotor system in Phrynosomatid lizards

论文研究：蜥蜴运动系统的进化

• 批准号: 0910400
• 负责人: Marguerite Butler
• 金额: $ 1.25万
• 依托单位: University of Hawaii
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2009
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2009-05-01 至 2011-04-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0910400&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: DISSERTATION; RESEARCH; evolution; locomotor; system

Understanding morphological adaptation is a fundamental goal of evolutionary biology. However, this goal is challenging because most traits are composed of many components, and it is often unclear how these components individually, and collectively, contribute to performance. For example, in locomotion, multiple muscles and skeletal elements contribute to movement. This study will use morphological and performance measurements, a systems approach, and evolutionary modeling to identify how each component of the locomotor system evolves and how they are functionally integrated to produce locomotor systems adapted for specific lifestyles. Desert lizards are an ideal system to study this question because they vary widely in ecology, which appears to have selected for different locomotor capabilities. This work will further our knowledge of the fundamental rules governing the design of terrestrial locomotor systems. This study will be synthetic, bringing together functional morphology, ecological physiology, and evolutionary modeling. Furthermore, it will be the first application of a systems-approach to whole animal function in order to identify where within the system adaptation occurs, the degree of complexity involved, and help identify key features and selective pressures that explain morphological diversity, a concept important for conservation.

了解形态适应是进化生物学的基本目标。然而，这个目标具有挑战性，因为大多数特征由许多组件组成，并且通常不清楚这些组件单独和共同如何对绩效做出贡献。例如，在运动中，多个肌肉和骨骼元件有助于运动。这项研究将使用形态学和性能测量、系统方法和进化模型来确定运动系统的每个组成部分如何进化以及它们如何在功能上整合以产生适合特定生活方式的运动系统。沙漠蜥蜴是研究这个问题的理想系统，因为它们的生态差异很大，似乎选择了不同的运动能力。这项工作将进一步加深我们对陆地运动系统设计基本规则的了解。这项研究将是综合性的，将功能形态学、生态生理学和进化模型结合在一起。此外，这将是系统方法首次应用于整个动物功能，以确定系统适应发生的位置、所涉及的复杂程度，并帮助确定解释形态多样性的关键特征和选择压力，形态多样性是保护的重要概念。