IOS: The Adaptive Significance of Juvenile Coloration: Precocial Partner Preference

在许多动物物种中，雄性和雌性在外貌和行为上存在差异，这些差异通常在青春期左右出现，此时激素发生了广泛的变化。然而，只要差异的优势在成年后在获得繁殖配偶方面表现出来，就没有理论上的理由说明为什么差异不能在生命早期发展。然而，这种差异的早期表达（以及后来的优势）并没有得到太多的研究。在一个极好的例子中，刚孵化的雄性颈圈蜥蜴正在建立自己的领地，它们会发出一种明亮的颜色信号，并对其他刚孵化的雄性有攻击性，而对其他刚孵化的雌性没有攻击性。这些年轻的雄性开始与年轻的雌性配对，作为未来的配偶，并排斥年轻的雄性作为未来的配偶竞争对手。本研究采用生物化学、遗传、分子和实地研究方法，记录了导致该物种早期性别差异的激素，以及在以后的生活中表达的遗传优势。这个物种是研究这种现象的一个模型，结果应该广泛适用，甚至适用于人类。该研究将激发更多关于早期男女分化的研究，并在进化生态学中确立范式转变。研究生和本科生都将参与这项研究，特别是美国原住民将被招募来学习如何进行科学研究和交流。本科生将在研究的各个阶段接受个别指导，包括在公开会议上展示结果。研究结果将发表在科学和非专业媒体上，包括杂志、报纸、电视和互联网。数据将在俄克拉荷马州PetaStore （http://oscer.ou.edu/petastore.php）上提供，对所有学术用户免费，结果和意义可从俄克拉荷马州立大学动物学系的主要公共网页上访问（http://zoology.okstate.edu/）。

In many animal species males and females differ in appearance and behavior and these differences usually arise about the time of puberty, when extensive hormone changes occur. However, there is no theoretical reason why differences cannot develop earlier in life as long as the advantages of the differences are expressed later, as adults, in gaining reproductive mates. Nevertheless, this early expression of differences (and the later advantages) has not been the subject of much study. In one excellent case, hatchling male collared lizards that are setting up their territories develop a bright color signal and treat other hatchling males aggressively and hatchling females non-aggressively. These young males begin to pair bond with young females as future mates and repel young males as future mate rivals. This study uses biochemical, genetic, molecular, and field approaches to document the hormones responsible for the development of the early sexual differences in this species, and the genetic advantages expressed later in life. This species is a model for the study of this phenomenon, and results should apply broadly, even to humans. The research should spur more investigation of early male-female differentiation and plant a paradigm shift in evolutionary ecology. Both graduate and undergraduate students will take part in this research and especially Native Americans will be recruited to learn how science is done and communicated. Undergraduates will be individually mentored through all stages of the research, including presentation of results at public conferences. Results will be published in scientific and lay outlets, including magazines, newspapers, television, and the internet. Data will be available at the Oklahoma PetaStore (http://oscer.ou.edu/petastore.php), free to all academic users, and readable results and significance on a webpage accessed from the main public webpage of the Department of Zoology at Oklahoma State University (http://zoology.okstate.edu/).