Collaborative Research: Mechanisms of Signal Diversity in Communication

在这个合作项目中，来自伊萨卡的康奈尔大学和圣路易斯的华盛顿大学的研究人员将探索导致动物通讯信号大规模多样化的机制。Mormyrids是来自非洲的一个多样化的鱼类群体，它们使用物种特有的电子器官放电(EOD)进行交流，这对物种识别至关重要。然而，有些物种是多态的，不同的个体具有不同的EOD形式，相应地电子器官形态也不同。这个项目将集中在多态物种--金丝鱼，将其作为电信号进化的一个缩影。研究人员将结合野外工作、分子遗传技术、电生理学和行为回放实验来确定金丝雀电信号多样性的遗传基础，以及这种多样性在推动种群之间的生殖隔离和使不同种群适应其特定环境方面的重要性。这些研究的结果将导致关于电信号多样化的根本原因的具体假设，研究人员将使用类似的技术在广泛的物种中进行测试。这项研究将通过提供对动物通信信号如何多样化的机械性理解，以及对这种多样化的最终原因以及由此导致的物种形成和通信行为演变的后果的洞察，证明该研究具有广泛的适用性。更广泛的影响：该项目包括一个面向公立学校学生的教育推广计划，该计划使用电鱼提供动手演示，将物理科学和生物学的基本概念联系起来。此外，研究人员将创建一个在线可搜索的电信号数据库，研究人员、学生和普通公众都可以访问。该数据库将用于对在非洲20多年的实地工作中收集的数千份EOD进行存档和编目。

Carlson, Bruce AIOS-0818390Collaborative Research: Mechanisms of Signal Diversity in Electric Fish Communication In this collaborative project, researchers from Cornell University in Ithaca and Washington University in St. Louis will explore the mechanisms responsible for the large-scale diversification of animal communication signals. The mormyrids are a diverse group of fishes from Africa that communicate using species-specific electric organ discharges (EODs) that are essential for species recognition. However, some species are polymorphic, with different individuals having distinct EOD forms and correspondingly different electric organ morphology. This project will focus on the polymorphic species Paramormyrops kingsleyae as a microcosm of electric signal evolution throughout the mormyrids. The researchers will use a combination of field work, molecular genetic techniques, electrophysiology, and behavioral playback experiments to determine the genetic basis for electric signal diversity in P. kingsleyae, and the importance of this diversity in driving reproductive isolation between populations and adapting different populations to their particular environments. The results of these studies will lead to specific hypotheses about the root causes of electric signal diversification throughout the mormyrids, which the researchers will test using similar techniques across a wide range of species. This research will prove broadly applicable by providing a mechanistic understanding of how animal communication signals diversify, as well as insight into the ultimate causes for this diversification and the resulting consequences for speciation and the evolution of communication behavior. Broader impacts: The project includes an educational outreach program for public school students, which uses electric fish to provide hands-on demonstrations for linking basic concepts in the physical sciences and biology. In addition, the researchers will create an online searchable database of electric signals that researchers, students, and the general public will be able to access. This database will be used to archive and catalogue thousands of EODs collected during more than 20 years of field work in Africa.