Systematics and Mechanisms of Speciation in Mites

许多种类的螨和昆虫，包括许多害虫， 农作物和牲畜，只吃一种植物， 动物，或几个密切相关的种类。 有时候是遗传的 变化，包括新物种的起源， 这些螨类和昆虫的食物发生了变化， 问题 拟议的工作将调查如何一组螨 以祖先的特定植物为食的物种 以不同种类的植物为食 此外，问题 为什么这些螨的食性如此特殊 被研究。 因为我们已经知道了很多关于 生态和行为的这组螨，研究他们的 遗传史可能对我们的研究特别有价值。 了解螨和昆虫如何成为 专门研究它们的进食习惯，以及这些习惯如何 变化

Many kinds of mites and insects, including numerous pests of crops and livestock, feed on only a single kind of plant or animal, or a few closely related kinds. Sometimes genetic changes, including the origination of new species, produce a shift in the diet of these mites and insects, creating new pest problems. The proposed work will investigate how a group of mite species that feed on particular plants originated from ancestors that fed on different kinds of plants. In addition, the question of why these mites are so specific in their feeding habits will be studied. Because a great deal is already known about the ecology and behavior of this group of mites, a study of their genetic history is likely to be especially valuable to our understanding of basic principles of how mites and insects become specialized in their feeding habits, and how these habits may change.