EXAMINING TWO STANDARD ASSUMPTIONS OF ANCESTRAL RECONSTRUCTIONS: REPEATED LOSS OF DICHROMATISM IN DABBLING DUCKS (ANATINI)

Although phylogenetic reconstruction of ancestral character states is becoming an increasingly common technique for studying evolution, few researchers have assessed the reliability of these reconstructions. Here I test for congruence between a phylogenetic reconstruction and a widely accepted scenario based on independent lines of evidence. I used Livezey's (1991) phylogeny to reconstruct ancestral states of plumage dichromatism in dabbling ducks (Anatini). Character state mapping reconstructs monochromatic ancestors for the genus Anas as well as most of its main clades. This reconstruction differs strongly from the widely accepted scenario of speciation and plumage evolution in the group (e.g., Delacour and Mayr 1945; Sibley 1957). This incongruence may occur because two standard assumptions of character state reconstruction are probably not met in this case. Violating either of these two assumptions would be a source of error sufficient to create misleading reconstructions. The first assumption that probably does not apply to ducks is that terminal taxa, in this case species, are monophyletic. Many of the widespread dichromatic species of ducks may be paraphyletic and ancestral to isolated monochromatic species. Three lines of evidence support this scenario: population-level phylogenies, biogeography, and vestigial plumage patterns. The second assumption that probably does not apply to duck plumage color is that gains and losses of character states are equally likely. Four lines of evidence suggest that dichromatic plumage might be lost more easily than gained: weak female preferences for bright male plumage, biases toward the loss of sexually dichromatic characters, biases toward the loss of complex characters, and repeated loss of dichromatism in other groups of birds. These seven lines of evidence support the accepted scenario that widespread dichromatic species repeatedly budded off isolated monochromatic species. Drift and genetic biases probably caused the easy loss of dichromatism in ducks and other birds during peripatric speciation. In order to recover the accepted scenario using Livezey's tree, losses of dichromatism must be five times more likely than gains. The results of this study caution against the uncritical use of unordered parsimony as the sole criterion for inferring ancestral states. Detailed population-level sampling is needed and altered transformation weighting may be warranted in ducks and in many other groups and character types with similar attributes.     

THE USEFULNESS OF BEHAVIOR FOR PHYLOGENY ESTIMATION: LEVELS OF HOMOPLASY IN BEHAVIORAL AND MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERS

It is widely believed that behavior is more evolutionarily labile and/or more difficult to characterize than morphology, and thus that behavioral characters are not as useful as morphological characters for estimating phylogenetic relationships. To examine the relative utility of behavior and morphology for estimating phylogeny, we compared levels of homoplasy for morphological and behavioral characters that have been used in systematic studies. In an analysis of 22 data sets that contained both morphological and behavioral characters we found no significant difference between mean consistency indices (CIs, which measure homoplasy) within data sets for the two types of characters. In a second analysis we compared overall CIs for 8 data sets comprised entirely of behavioral characters with overall CIs for 32 morphological data sets and found no significant difference between the two types of data sets. For both analyses, 95% confidence limits on the difference between the two types of characters indicate that, even if given the benefit of the doubt, morphological characters could not have substantially higher mean CIs than behavioral characters. These results do not support the idea that behavioral characters are less useful than morphological characters for the estimation of phylogeny.     

Implications of Molecular and Morphological Data for Understanding Ateline Phylogeny

The ateline monkeys constitute as certain a monophyletic group as there is among primates. The group is intriguing because while their adaptations are well-documented and their monophyly as a group is unquestioned, their phylogenetic interrelationships are controversial. Molecular data indicate a phylogeny at odds with their morphology. Traditional morphological comparisons isolate Alouatta from the atelins, and link Ateles and Brachyteles as a sister group to the exclusion of Lagothrix. In contrast, several recent molecular studies point to a closer relationship between Brachyteles and Lagothrix than between Brachyteles and Ateles. At the heart of the problem lie the assumptions we make about the validity of data and the homology of observed traits. The fossil record further confounds the issue. We must account for the fossil record because it is positive evidence. But we cannot control how much of it there is or how much of it ever will be known. At this point in time, the ateline molecular and fossil record provoke us to examine critically our morphological approach to phylogenetic modeling.     

ANOLIS SEX CHROMOSOMES ARE DERIVED FROM A SINGLE ANCESTRAL PAIR

To explain the frequency and distribution of heteromorphic sex chromosomes in the lizard genus Anolis, we compared the relative roles of sex chromosome conservation versus turnover of sex‐determining mechanisms. We used model‐based comparative methods to reconstruct karyotype evolution and the presence of heteromorphic sex chromosomes onto a newly generated Anolis phylogeny. We found that heteromorphic sex chromosomes evolved multiple times in the genus. Fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) of repetitive DNA showed variable rates of Y chromosome degeneration among Anolis species and identified previously undetected, homomorphic sex chromosomes in two species. We confirmed homology of sex chromosomes in the genus by performing FISH of an X‐linked bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) and quantitative PCR of X‐linked genes in multiple Anolis species sampled across the phylogeny. Taken together, these results are consistent with long‐term conservation of sex chromosomes in the group. Our results pave the way to address additional questions related to Anolis sex chromosome evolution and describe a conceptual framework that can be used to evaluate the origins and evolution of heteromorphic sex chromosomes in other clades.     

ANCESTRAL CHARACTER ESTIMATION UNDER THE THRESHOLD MODEL FROM QUANTITATIVE GENETICS

Evolutionary biology is a study of life's history on Earth. In researching this history, biologists are often interested in attempting to reconstruct phenotypes for the long extinct ancestors of living species. Various methods have been developed to do this on a phylogeny from the data for extant taxa. In the present article, I introduce a new approach for ancestral character estimation for discretely valued traits. This approach is based on the threshold model from evolutionary quantitative genetics. Under the threshold model, the value exhibited by an individual or species for a discrete character is determined by an underlying, unobserved continuous trait called “liability.” In this new method for ancestral state reconstruction, I use Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) to sample the liabilities of ancestral and tip species, and the relative positions of two or more thresholds, from their joint posterior probability distribution. Using data simulated under the model, I find that the method has very good performance in ancestral character estimation. Use of the threshold model for ancestral state reconstruction relies on a priori specification of the order of the discrete character states along the liability axis. I test the use of a Bayesian MCMC information theoretic criterion based approach to choose among different hypothesized orderings for the discrete character. Finally, I apply the method to the evolution of feeding mode in centrarchid fishes.     

THE PARADOX OF THE PHYLOGENY: CHARACTER DISPLACEMENT OF ANALYSES OF BODY SIZE IN ISLAND ANOLIS

The evolution of body size in Anolis lizards of the Lesser Antilles Islands has been the subject of intensive, if divisive, study. Early research by Schoener revealed a regularity in the number of Anolis species that coexisted on islands and the difference in body size between coexisting congeners in the Northern Lesser Antilles. This consistent pattern of body size was suggested to be the result of competitive character displacement. Two recent studies critically evaluated this hypothesis by incorporating information about the phylogenetic relationships of insular Anolis. Roughgarden and Pacala suggested that the patterns of body-size differences in the Northern Lesser Antilles could be explained as a cyclical phenomenon that they labeled a taxon cycle. However, Losos supported the character-displacement hypothesis (“size adjustment”). The conflict between these two studies is important because both investigations were based on the same phylogenetic hypothesis. We investigated body-size evolution in Lesser Antilles Anolis to resolve the differences in the conclusions of these studies. Our new analysis supported the taxon-cycle hypothesis but nevertheless failed to reject the character-displacement hypothesis. We argue that this curious scenario is largely a function of the method by which phylogenetic information is incorporated in comparative analyses. Different comparative analyses may lead to dramatic differences in results and ambiguity in the conclusions to be drawn. We suggest that ecologists and evolutionary biologists specifically consider the underlying assumptions and models of character evolution inherent to each of the phylogenetically based analytical methods now available.     

PARALLEL EVOLUTION AT MULTIPLE LEVELS IN THE ORIGIN OF HUMMINGBIRD POLLINATED FLOWERS IN IPOMOEA

A transition in flower color accompanying a shift in pollinator guilds is a prominent and repeated adaptation in angiosperms. In many cases, shifts to similar pollinators are associated with similar flower‐color transitions. The extent to which this parallelism at the phenotypic level results from parallel changes at the biochemical, developmental, and genetic levels, however, remains an open question. There have been few attempts to determine whether parallelism at these lower levels results from mutation bias or fixation bias of different classes of mutation. We address these issues by examining the biochemical, developmental, and genetic changes that have occurred in red‐flowering species of the Mina lineage of morning glories (Ipomoea) and compare these to the changes reported for I. horsfalliae, which has independently evolved red flowers. Using transgenic techniques, we demonstrate that the transition from blue to red flowers in Mina species is due primarily to down‐regulation of the enzyme flavonol‐3′‐hydroxylase (F3′H) in flowers but not in vegetative tissues, and that this down‐regulation is at least partly due to cis‐regulatory change in the gene for F3′H. These changes are similar to those exhibited by I. horsfalliae, indicating parallelism at the biochemical and developmental levels, and possibly at the genetic level.     

Review of the ultrastructure of the nematode body cuticle and its phylogenetic interpretation

The phylogenetic interpretation of the nematode cuticle ultrastructure is reviewed within the framework of recent DNA-sequence data. In particular, the structure of the median and basal zones is discussed. Several structural elements of the cuticle seem to have arisen independently several times within the Nematoda and thus are highly homoplasious (e.g. the cortical or basal radial striae, spiral fibre layers and a fluid matrix with struts). Moreover, identifying the homology of the nematode cuticle ultrastructures is often very difficult at deep taxonomic levels. Hence, the cuticle appears to be unreliable regarding resolution of deep-level relationships in the Nematoda. However, at less inclusive taxonomic levels (e.g. families, genera, ...) the cuticle seems to be a more reliable phylogenetic marker.     

Delimiting baridine weevil evolution (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Baridinae)

Since the erection of the weevil subfamily Baridinae by Schönherr in 1836, no phylogenetic hypothesis using cladistic methods has been proposed for this extraordinarily diverse group. This study provides the first hypothesis for the evolution of Baridinae using phylogenetic methods, including 301 taxa and 113 morphological characters. Despite fairly well‐resolved results, indicating paraphyly of nearly all of the currently recognized intrasubfamilial divisions, no change to the current classification is made. Even though groupings are proposed based on the final results, it is believed that more rigorous analyses need to be made prior to a re‐evaluation and subsequent alteration of the current classification. © 2010 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2010.     

EVIDENCE OF ADAPTATION FROM ANCESTRAL VARIATION IN YOUNG POPULATIONS OF BEACH MICE

To understand how organisms adapt to novel habitats, which involves both demographic and selective events, we require knowledge of the evolutionary history of populations and also selected alleles. There are still few cases in which the precise mutations (and hence, defined alleles) that contribute to adaptive change have been identified in nature; one exception is the genetic basis of camouflaging pigmentation of oldfield mice (Peromyscus polionotus) that have colonized the sandy dunes of Florida's Gulf Coast. To quantify the genomic impact of colonization as well as the signature of selection, we resequenced 5000 1.5‐kb noncoding loci as well as a 160‐kb genomic region surrounding the melanocortin‐1 receptor (Mc1r), a gene that contributes to pigmentation differences, in beach and mainland populations. Using a genome‐wide phylogenetic approach, we recovered a single monophyletic group comprised of beach mice, consistent with a single colonization event of the Gulf Coast. We also found evidence of a severe founder event, estimated to have occurred less than 3000 years ago. In this demographic context, we show that all beach subspecies share a single derived light Mc1r allele, which was likely selected from standing genetic variation that originated in the mainland. Surprisingly, we were unable to identify a clear signature of selection in the Mc1r region, despite independent evidence that this locus contributes to adaptive coloration. Nonetheless, these data allow us to reconstruct and compare the evolutionary history of populations and alleles to better understand how adaptive evolution, following the colonization of a novel habitat, proceeds in nature.     

A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE ECOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE OF MAXIMAL LOCOMOTOR PERFORMANCE IN CARIBBEAN ANOLIS LIZARDS

We examined the sprinting and jumping capabilities of eight West Indian Anolis species during three natural activities (escape from a predator, feeding, and undisturbed activity). We then compared these field data with maximal performance under optimal laboratory conditions to answer three questions: (1) Has maximal (i.e., laboratory) sprinting and jumping performance coevolved with field performance among species? (2) What proportion of their maximum capabilities do anoles sprint and jump in different ecological contexts? (3) Does a relationship exist between maximal sprinting and jumping ability and the proportion of maximal performance used in these contexts? Among species, maximal speed is tightly positively correlated with sprinting performance during both feeding and escape in the field. Sprinting speed during escape closely matches maximal sprinting ability (i.e., about 90% of maximum performance). By contrast, sprinting performance during undisturbed activity is markedly lower (about 32% of maximum) than maximal sprinting performance. Sprinting ability during feeding is intermediate (about 71% of maximum) between field escape and field undisturbed activity. In contrast to sprinting ability, jumping ability is always substantially less than maximum (about 40% of maximum during feeding and undisturbed activity). A negative relationship exists among species between maximal speed and the proportion to which species sprint to their maximal abilities during field escape.     

温度和盐度对卤虫生物学特性的影响

本实验以产自美国旧金山湾,我国山西运城盐湖,河北张北,新疆阿勒泰的两性生死卤虫,及产于天津塘沽、新疆艾比湖的孤雌生殖卤虫,计３种６个品系卤虫为实验材料,分别测量它们在不同温度下的孵化率、生长、发育及生殖的情况,并比较了各品系卤虫以坑盐的耐受性。通过全长的测量,得出了各品系卤虫在不同温度及协度下的生长方程。除了旧金山卤虫为耐低温高盐的种外,张北卤虫也具此特性。在生殖特征方面,我斩５个地理品系卤虫之间     

QUANTITATIVE GENETICS OF FEMALE MATE PREFERENCES IN AN ANCESTRAL AND A NOVEL ENVIRONMENT

A female's mate preference is a potentially complex function relating variation in multiple male phenotypes with her probability of accepting individual males as a mate. Estimating the quantitative genetic basis preference functions within a population is empirically challenging yet key to understanding preference evolution. We employed a recently described approach that uses random‐coefficient mixed models in the analysis of function‐valued traits. Using a half‐sibling breeding design in a laboratory‐adapted Drosophila serrata population, we estimated the genetic (co)variance function of female preference for male sexual displays composed of nine contact pheromones. The breeding design was performed across two environments: the food to which the population was well adapted and a novel food that reduced average female productivity by 35%. Significant genetic variance in female preference was detected and the majority (64.2%) was attributable to a single genetic dimension (eigenfunction), suggesting that preferences for different pheromones are not genetically independent. The second eigenfunction, accounting for 24% of the total genetic variance, approached significance in a conservative test, suggesting the existence of a second, independent genetic dimension. There was no evidence that the genetic basis of female preference differed between the two environments, suggesting the absence of genotype‐by‐environment interactions and hence a lack of condition‐dependent preference expression.     

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF GALL MORPHOLOGY IN AUSTRALIAN GALL THRIPS: THE EVOLUTION OF EXTENDED PHENOTYPES

We used a combination of morphometric, phylogenetic, and life-history information to analyze the evolution and possible adaptive significance of gall morphology in a clade of 24 species of gall-inducing thrips (Insecta: Thysanoptera) on Australian Acacia trees. Principal components analysis revealed that galls varied in morphology along two main axes, spherical versus elongate (PC1) and general size (PC2). A high degree of conservation of gall shape on an independently derived phylogeny of the insects and the presence of nine species of Acacia each bearing two or three morphologically disparate gall forms induced by different thrips species indicate that interspecific variation in gall form is determined predominantly by the insects. Character optimization of PC1 on the phylogeny of gall thrips suggested that the ancestral gall form was a simple roll or curl. The diversification of gall form involved four main processes: (1) the convergent evolution of relatively spherical galls in two clades; (2) the evolution of small elongate and hemispherical galls in one clade; (3) the evolution of a lobed interior in a species with a spherical gall and multiple within-gall generations; and (4) the evolution of intraspecific gall polymorphism in a clade of apparent sibling species. Comparative analyses indicated that gall sphericity was associated with the presence of physogastry (foundress hyperfecundity) and that small elongate and hemispherical forms may be associated with the presence of multiple generations in a gall and, perhaps, with the presence of soldier castes. The evolution of a lobed interior in one species, which greatly increases inner surface area, coincided with the evolution of multiple generations. In the clade with intraspecific gall polymorphism in some species, patterns of intraspecific variation mirror patterns of interspecific variation within the clade as a whole. This is the first study to analyze the evolution of gall size and shape in a phylogenetic context and to investigate the life-history correlates of evolutionary changes in gall form. Taken together, our findings indicate that the main selective pressures driving the evolution of gall form in Australian gall thrips on Acacia involve inner surface area to volume relationships, which change in concert with foundress fecundity and the number of within-gall generations.     

水生植物叶片的分形特征研究

应用分形几何理论对保安湖部分水生植物叶的分形特征进行研究 ,以寻找其中的自相似性特征 ,计算其分形维数 ,并力图了解各个分维的生态学含义。计算得到各物种分维平均值 ,马来眼子菜为 1 441(1 3 2 2 -1 52 0 ,sd =0 0 547) ,菹草为 1 472 (1 3 81-1 565,sd =0 0 489) ,大茨藻为 1 3 2 5(1 2 0 9-1 40 6,sd =0 0 470 ) ,轮叶黑藻为 1 10 3(1 0 0 1-1 2 17,sd =0 0 456)。按分维值排序 ,菹草 >金鱼藻 >马来眼子菜 >茨藻 >黑藻。叶片分维的大小 ,说明了不同种类水生植物叶片占据空间的程度和利用生态空间的能力有差异。通过对五种植物叶的空间格局的定量化描述 ,更好地理解水生植物对水环境的适应机理 ,为进一步对更大尺度下的水生植物空间格局研究提供基础信息     

Homology and hominid phylogeny: Problems and potential solutions

This paper addresses the problem of how to reconstruct accurately the hominid evolutionary tree from skeletal remains. Few would disagree that DNA is generally better than bone as a source of data for assessing phylogenetic relationships. To be sure, DNA base pairs present their own special headaches for phylogenetic reconstruction,¹ not the least of which is that only four possible characters exist at any locus. But base pairs satisfy all the criteria for good phylogenetic data (see Box 1): By definition, they are discrete, heritable, quantifiable, and natural units of phylogenetic information that pass directly from ancestor to descendant. © 1999 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

CHARACTER EVOLUTION IN POLYKRIKOID DINOFLAGELLATES1

A synthesis of available data on the morphological diversity of polykrikoid dinoflagellates allowed us to formulate a hypothesis of relationships that help explain character evolution within the group. Phylogenetic analyses of new SSU rDNA sequences from Pheopolykrikos beauchampii Chatton, Polykrikos kofoidii Chatton, and Polykrikos lebourae Herdman helped refine this hypothetical framework. Our results demonstrated that “pseudocolonies” in dinoflagellates evolved convergently at least three times independently from different Gymnodinium‐like ancestors: once in haplozoans; once in Ph. beauchampii; and at least once within a lineage containing Ph. hartmannii, P. kofoidii, and P. lebourae. The Gymnodiniales sensu stricto was strongly supported by the data, and the type species for the genus, namely Gymnodinium fuscum (Ehrenb.) F. Stein, formed the nearest sister lineage to a well‐supported Polykrikos clade. The best synapomorphy for the Polykrikos clade was the presence of two nuclei irrespective of zooid number. Two unidentified Gymnodinium species formed the nearest sister clade to Ph. beauchampii, which has four nuclei and four zooids per pseudocolony. The chain‐forming dinoflagellate G. catenatum L. W. Graham branched closely to the clade containing all members of Polykrikos and Pheopolykrikos, suggesting that an ancestral capacity toward chain formation existed before the evolution of pseudocolonies in this group. Our results also clarified the phylogenetic significance of nematocysts, ocelloids, and photosynthesis in reconstructing the evolution of polykrikoids and warnowiids. The molecular phylogenies exposed taxonomic problems associated with Polykrikos, Pheopolykrikos, and Gymnodinium, and suggested that a revision for some of these genera is warranted.     

汉字识别的眼动特性-字频效应及信道容量

用眼动测量方法,对字频为４×１０－３至１．６×１０－５范围内笔画数为４至１４的常用汉字进行识别实验,结果表明,汉字识别时间与笔画数无关,而是存在识别时间随字频减小而增大的字频效应,即当汉字字频每减小一个对数单位其识别时间增加约０．０７９秒;识别眼动的注视次数（ｎｕｍｂｅｒｏｆｆｉｘａｔｉｏｎｓ）也随字频减小而增多,注视时程（ｆｉｘａｔｉｏｎｄｕｒａｔｉｏｎ）基本不变;采用＂二决一＂及＂重复显示＂汉字识别实验,证实字频效应反映了识别时间与该字在识别时的先验概率的关系,从而可由实验数据计算出识别的信道容量（ＣｈａｎｎｅｌＣａｐａｃｉｔｙ）约为４２ｂｉｔｓ／ｓ。     

松属花粉的形态特征及其研究意义

一、引言松属植物在地球上分布广泛,整个北半球北极圈以南到赤道以北的广大区域都有生长,垂向上可分布于0—4,000米不同海拔高度。我国是松属植物重要分布中心区域之一,种类繁多,几乎遍及全国各省区,是我国重要的建林树木。松属花粉因其产量大(一株花可有5,455,000—22,500,000粒花粉)特征明显,以及易于、被风和水流搬运而广