Latitudinal variation in photoperiodic response of the three‐spined stickleback Gasterosteus aculeatus in western North America |
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Authors: | Q. S. Yeates‐Burghart C. O'Brien W. A. Cresko C.M. Holzapfel W. E. Bradshaw |
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Affiliation: | Center for Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403‐5289, U.S.A. |
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Abstract: | Reproductive maturation in both male and female three‐spined stickleback Gasterosteus aculeatus was strongly photoperiodic in a northern population (Alaska, 61° N) but not in a southern population (Oregon, 43° N) from western North America. Increasing reliance on photoperiod with increasing latitude is a general phenomenon among vertebrates, and is probably due to the anticipation of a narrower window of opportunity for reproduction and development at higher latitudes. |
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Keywords: | biogeography evolution kidney seasonal development sexual dimorphism |
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