Resolving rapid radiations and recent speciation in North American spiny lizards (Sceloporus)

了解物种的快速爆发需要新的系统发育方法和大量的数据集。在这个项目中，研究人员将研究一组蜥蜴(Scelopus属)，以解决生命树中的快速辐射和最近的物种形成事件。在短暂的时间间隔内新物种的积累是这两个事件的特征，这两个事件都很难阐明，因为它们在整个基因组中留下了有限的遗传签名。研究人员将应用新的DNA测序技术来研究快速物种形成；确定使用新模型分析超大基因组数据集的可行性；以及压力测试推理方法，以确定数据集大小和复杂性的分析上限。促进科学进步和研究与教育的整合将涉及四项活动：1)在伯克自然历史和文化博物馆进行教育和公众宣传，包括一个关于基因组学和自然历史研究整合的新的公开展览；2)博士后指导；3)本科生和研究生培训；以及4)获取和传播新的比较基因组学数据。北美蜥蜴属的蜥蜴在生态学、生理学、生活史进化和染色体进化的比较研究中占有突出地位。这项生物学研究将对这些蜥蜴的进化史做出强有力的新估计，这对比较生物界来说是一种有价值的商品。

Understanding rapid bursts of speciation requires new phylogenetic methods as well as large data sets. In this project, the investigators will study a group of lizards (genus Sceloporus) to resolve rapid radiations and recent speciation events in the tree of life. The accumulation of new species over brief time intervals characterizes both of these events, which are challenging to elucidate because they leave limited genetic signatures across the genome. The investigators will apply new DNA sequencing technologies to investigate rapid speciation; determine the feasibility of analyzing extremely large genomic datasets using new models; and stress-test inference methods to identify the analytical upper limits of dataset size and complexity.Promoting the progress of science and the integration of research and education will involve four activities: 1) education and public outreach at The Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, including a new public exhibit on the integration of genomics and natural history research, 2) postdoctoral mentoring, 3) undergraduate and graduate student training, and 4) the acquisition and dissemination of new comparative genomics data. Lizards in the North American genus Sceloporus are prominent in comparative studies of ecology, physiology, life history evolution, and chromosome evolution. This organismal research will yield a robust new estimate of the evolutionary history of these lizards, a valuable commodity for the comparative biology community.