Meeting Abstract
Urbanization creates local environments that are hotter than surrounding natural areas. Urban warming likely has widespread biological consequences, affecting temporal patterns of growth, survival and reproduction. Therefore urban heat islands may provide insights into thermal adaptation and evolution. We explore the evolution and divergence of thermal tolerance between urban and natural populations of the crested anole across the island of Puerto Rico. We hypothesize that ectotherms from warm, urban environments should tolerate heat better and cold worse than ectotherms from cooler natural environments. To test our predictions, we will compare the thermal tolerance of crested anoles (Anolis cristatellus) from populations in urban environments and nearby forests. Ongoing research is using functional genomics to identify specific regulatory pathways associated with thermal tolerance under hot and cold conditions, respectively and search for signatures of selection on thermal tolerance in urban environments.
