DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Behavioral and genomic evidence for reproductive isolation between two sister species of Peromyscus

所提出的研究的主要目的是确定行为如何改变？尤其是择偶偏好的改变？促进新物种的进化。本研究的重点是两个密切相关的北美物种，白足鼠（Peromyscus leucopus）和棉鼠（P. gossypinus），它们之间积累了很少的遗传差异，但在交配偏好上存在差异。本研究采用行为择偶测试和遗传分析相结合的方法，旨在确定：(1)在受控的实验室条件下，白棉和棉棉的交配偏好差异在多大程度上阻碍了基因交换；(2)这些行为差异的遗传基础。通过研究哪些类型的基因变化会产生阻止物种杂交的行为，我们可以了解行为是如何进化的，并量化其在新物种形成中的作用。拟议研究的结果将提高我们对生命的整体理解。它将被用来制作几个家庭节目，并在哈佛自然历史博物馆的进化展览中设立一个陈列柜。

The primary objective of the proposed research is to determine how behavioral changes?specifically changes in preferences for mates?contribute to the evolution of new species. This study focuses on a pair of two closely related North American species, the white-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus) and the cotton mouse (P. gossypinus), which have accumulated few genetic differences between them yet differ in mating preferences. Using a combination of behavioral mate choice tests and genetic analysis, this research aims to determine: (1) the degree to which different mating preferences between P. leucopus and P. gossypinus prevent gene exchange under controlled laboratory conditions, and (2) the genetic basis of those behavioral differences. By studying what types of genetic changes produce behaviors that prevent species from hybridizing, we can learn how behavior evolves as well as quantify its role in the formation of new species. The results from the proposed research will improve our overall understanding of life?s diversity, and will be used to create several family programs and a display case in the Evolution exhibit for the Harvard Museum of Natural History.