Evolutionary Diversification within Lepidosauromorpha: The Origins, Phylogeny, and Adaptive Radiations of Squamates

我的研究计划致力于进一步了解化石和活蛇，蜥蜴和amphisbaenians的起源，进化和系统发育关系，统称为鳞。与过去的研究相一致，我的哲学和方法论方法将集中在所有化石和活的有鳞动物中存在的比较解剖学数据集上，重点是对基本上被忽视的化石类群的观察。化石记录作为解剖新奇性数据来源的重要性怎么强调都不过分，我的实验室致力于发现和传播这些数据集的价值和重要性，以帮助我们理解进化模式和过程。我的研究方法利用了所有可以从化石中获得的证据，例如，化石的解剖学、生物地层学和古生物地理学等，在假设的构建中，沿着所有可用的数据，从活蛇和蜥蜴（解剖学到分子）。学生指导和培训是本提案中描述的每个研究项目的关键。我与我的学生和外部合作者的合作工作被分解为十七个不同的研究项目：博士生的十个主要项目（当前和未来）;三个较小的项目，硕士生和博士后研究员，和四个小规模的研究集中在最近发现的标本;描述这些新化石及其系统发育关系的出版物将对我们理解有鳞动物的进化产生重大影响。主要项目研究关于蛇的进化，沧龙的进化和系统学的大图片问题，以及我的研究计划的新方向，borioteioids，macrocephalosaurs和鬣蜥的进化和系统学，特别是来自加拉帕戈斯群岛的海洋鬣蜥。蛇项目将建立在我以前的研究化石蛇从阿根廷，盲穴居蛇被称为Escherecophidians，和一个新描述的蛇从印度;沧龙项目的目的是详细研究的多样性和差异的分类群分配到沧龙和pythonomorphs的主要群体，并探索二级水生适应的过程。这里提出的研究活动将继续我的长期研究的大规模模式的多样化和辐射之间的各种群体的有鳞动物和更大的群体，他们来自。此外，我的学生和外部合作者的研究小组将继续探索一个研究领域，主要是在我的实验室小组内产生的，专注于比较牙齿组织学和牙齿附着在灭绝和现存的四足动物。一个拟议的项目将集中在蛇牙齿个体发育，但长期目标是收集所有脊椎动物的牙齿植入和组织学数据。

My research program is dedicated to furthering our understanding of the origin, evolution, and phylogenetic relationships of fossil and living snakes, lizards and amphisbaenians, collectively known as the Squamata. Consistent with past research, my philosophical and methodological approach will focus on the dataset of comparative anatomy present in all fossil and living squamates, with an emphasis on observations from largely ignored fossil taxa. The importance of the fossil record as a source of data on anatomical novelty cannot be overstated, and my lab is dedicated to discovering and disseminating the value and importance of that data set to our understanding of evolutionary patterns and processes. My research approach uses all available evidence from fossils, for example, their anatomy, biostratigraphy and palaeobiogeography, etc., in the construction of hypotheses, along with all available data from living snakes and lizards (anatomy through to molecules). Student mentoring and training is key to each research project described in this proposal. My collaborative work with my students and external collaborators is broken down into seventeen distinct research projects: ten major projects for Doctoral students (current and future); three smaller projects for Masters students and a Postdoctoral Fellow, and four small scale studies focused on recently discovered specimens; publications describing these new fossils and their phylogenetic relationships will have a significant impact on our understanding of squamate evolution. Major projects examine big picture questions on snake evolution, the evolution and systematics of mosasaurs, and new directions in my research program, the evolution and systematics of borioteioids, macrocephalosaurs, and iguanian lizards, specifically the marine iguana from the Galapagos Islands. Snake projects will build on my previous investigations of fossil snakes from Argentina, blind burrowing snakes known as scolecophidians, and a newly described Cretacous snake from India; mosasaur projects are designed to examine in detail the diversity and disparity of taxa assigned to major groups of mosasaurs and pythonomorphs, and explore processes of secondary aquatic adaptation. The research activities proposed here will continue my long term study of the large scale patterns of diversification and radiation between various groups of squamates and the larger group they are derived from. In addition, my research group of students and external collaborators will continue to explore a research field, largely generated within my lab group, focused on comparative dental histology and tooth attachment in extinct and extant amniote tetrapods. A proposed project will focus on snake dental ontogeny, but the long term goal is to collect data on tooth implantation and histology in all vertebrates.