DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Evolution of convergent functional systems in a hyperdiverse clade of parasitic wasps (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae, Cryptini)

趋同进化是进化生物学中最古老、最引人入胜的模式之一。趋同塑造了生命的许多方面？S多样性，理解它对于我们了解生物变异和进化是必不可少的。尽管如此，趋同的特征往往只被定性地记录下来。这项研究将使用一种严格的方法论方法来研究相似的生活策略如何在不同的昆虫群体的身体形状上产生趋同。隐翅蜂是一类优势但鲜为人知的寄生昆虫。它们的主人被不同程度地隐藏起来，从模仿卷叶和树枝到树木原木和粘土巢穴。攻击隐藏很深的昆虫的物种进化出了一系列适应能力，以找到并接触到它们的宿主。我们将探讨这样一种假设，即这些特征在一个复杂的功能系统中是相互联系的，并且生活策略的趋同对隐蜂的身体形状施加了限制。除了该项目产生的科学产品外，外联和指导工作还将利用美国自然历史博物馆提供的无与伦比的科学教育资源，广泛传播关于汇聚进化和寄生蜂的科学知识。这个项目将使用一个系统发育框架来研究收敛的生活策略在隐蜂占据的形态空间中的影响。这将需要对隐蜂之间的进化关系进行全面的分析，数据来自DNA序列和形态特征。统计方法将用于重建寄主位置适应的祖先特征，并检验生活史特征与多种形态特征之间的相关性假说。最后，将使用一系列数量性状和测量来生成身体形状的多维估计(形态空间)，从而允许对形态重叠和收敛进行定量测试

Convergent evolution - the presence of similar characteristics among independent lineages - is one of the oldest and most fascinating patterns in evolutionary biology. Convergence shapes so many aspects of life?s diversity that understanding it is essential to our knowledge of biological variation and evolution. In spite of that, convergent traits have often been documented only qualitatively. This study will use a rigorous methodological approach to investigate how similar life strategies can produce convergence in the body shape of a diverse group of insects. Cryptine wasps are a dominant but poorly known group of parasitic insects. Their hosts are concealed to various degrees, from mimicking leaf rolls and twigs to tree logs and clay nests. Species attacking insects that are deeply concealed have evolved a number of adaptations to find and reach their hosts. We will investigate the hypothesis that these features are linked in a complex functional system, and that the convergence of life strategies imposes constraints on the body shape of cryptine wasps. In addition to the scientific products resulting from this project, outreach and mentoring work will broadly disseminate scientific knowledge about convergent evolution and parasitic wasps, taking advantage of the unparalleled resources for scientific education available at the American Museum of Natural History. This project will use a phylogenetic framework to investigate the impact of convergent life strategies in the morphospace occupied by cryptine wasps. This will require a comprehensive analysis of the evolutionary relationships among cryptine wasps, with data derived from both DNA sequences and morphological characters. Statistical methods will be used to to reconstruct the ancestral features for host location adaptations and to test hypotheses of correlation among life history traits and multiple morphological characters. Finally, a series of quantitative traits and measurements will be used to generate a multi-dimensional estimation of body shape (morphospace), allowing for quantitative tests of morphological overlap and convergence