DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Sexual signal variation within and between populations of an incipiently speciating lizard

变异是进化的关键。 种群内个体之间的差异，同一物种种群之间的差异，以及密切相关的物种之间的差异代表了新物种形成的连续阶段。 博士学生Elizabeth Bastiaans和巴里Sinervo博士将研究牧豆树蜥蜴物种复合体中的个体、种群和物种之间的变异，牧豆树蜥蜴是一种墨西哥蜥蜴，其进化关系尚未完全了解。 牧豆树蜥蜴栖息在墨西哥中部和北方的山区，由于气候变化和城市化的加剧，这种环境正在迅速变化。 巴斯蒂安斯女士和辛纳沃博士对这些蜥蜴的研究将有助于阐明新物种是如何形成和适应环境的。 在种群内，蜥蜴在交配和攻击性互动中使用的明亮色素斑块的颜色各不相同。 在种群和密切相关的物种之间，蜥蜴在颜色，栖息地使用和遗传特征方面存在差异。 研究人员将使用实地调查，行为实验和分子工具来解决生态学，行为和遗传学如何导致牧豆树蜥蜴种群之间的分歧。 研究结果将揭示哪些种群最容易因气候变化和/或栖息地丧失而下降或灭绝。 这项工作促进了美国和墨西哥在不尊重边界的问题上的合作，并为培训和教育两国的高中和大学生提供了机会。

Variation is key to evolution. Differences between individuals within a population, between populations of the same species, and between closely related species represent successive stages in the formation of new species. Ph.D. student Elizabeth Bastiaans and Dr. Barry Sinervo will study individual, population and between species variation in the mesquite lizard species complex, a Mexican lizard whose evolutionary relationships are not yet fully understood. The mesquite lizard inhabits the mountains of central and northern Mexico, an environment that is changing rapidly due to both climate change and increasing urbanization. Ms. Bastiaans and Dr. Sinervo?s work with these lizards will help illuminate how new species form and adapt to the environment. Within populations, the lizards vary in the color of brightly pigmented patches used in mating and aggressive interactions. Between populations and closely related species, the lizards vary in coloration, habitat use, and genetic characteristics. The researchers will use field surveys, behavioral experiments, and molecular tools to address how ecology, behavior, and genetics contribute to divergence between populations in the mesquite lizard. The results of the research will shed light on which populations are most vulnerable to decline or extinction due to climate change and/or habitat loss. This work fosters collaboration between the United States and Mexico on problems that show no respect for borders, and it provides opportunities to train and educate high school and college students from both nations.