DISSERTATION RESEARCH: The geographic mode, ecological mechanisms, as well as genetic basis of local adaptation and ecological reproductive isolation

进化生物学的主要目标之一是了解适应和新物种形成之间的联系。 为此，研究人员将重点关注猴子花（Mimulus guttatus）的沿海和内陆亚种的分歧。 研究人员已经证明，这两个亚种都适应了各自的栖息地。在这项拟议中的研究中，研究人员将确定是什么生态压力导致了亚种的分化。 研究人员还将确定亚种分化的遗传机制，并测试相同的机制是否导致亚种在其分布范围内的分化。 最后，研究人员将进行一项新的实地实验，以测试特定的基因组区域是否有助于亚种的分离。拟议的研究将确定在大规模地理异质性背景下适应和物种形成的生态和遗传基础。 研究人员将在遗传学，生态学和进化领域的交叉点开发和实施新方法，以进行拟议的研究。 此外，该研究将有助于北卡罗来纳州少数民族本科生的培训，以及来自加州的当地牧场主的参与。

One of the major goals of evolutionary biology is to understand the connection between adaptation and the formation of new species. To this end the investigators will focus on divergence of coastal and inland subspecies of the monkey flower (Mimulus guttatus). The investigators have shown that both subspecies are adapted to their respective habitat. In the proposed study, the investigators will determine what ecological pressures contribute to the divergence of the subspecies. The investigators will also determine the genetic mechanisms that underlie the divergence of the subspecies and test if the same mechanisms are responsible for divergence of the subspecies over the range of their distribution. Finally, the investigators will conduct a novel field experiment to test whether particular genomic regions contribute to the separation of the subspecies.The proposed research will determine the ecological and genetic basis of adaptation and species formation in the context of large-scale geographic heterogeneity. The investigators will develop and implement novel methods at the intersection of the fields of genetics, ecology, and evolution in order to conduct the proposed studies. In addition, the study will contribute to the training of minority undergraduate students in North Carolina and the involvement of local ranchers from California.