Meeting Abstract

64.3  Tuesday, Jan. 6  Is Adaptive Radiation an island phenomenon? Comparison of Mainland and West Indian Anolis Lizard Evolution LOSOS, J.B.; Harvard University jlosos@oeb.harvard.edu

West Indian anoles have radiated independently on each island in the Greater Antilles, producing in each case species morphologically and behaviorally adapted to use a wide variety of different ecological niches. Less well known is the fact that the diversity of anoles in mainland Central and South America is equally rich, both in terms of species number and ecomorphological disparity. In this study, we compare the extent of morphological variation. We demonstrate that mainland anoles occupy different parts of morphological space than that occupied by West Indian anoles; mainland anoles belong to two clades and have convergently evolved to occupy overlapping portions of morphological space. Comparison between mainland and island anoles indicates that the habitat specialiststermed ecomorphsthat have evolved repeatedly in the West Indies have not, for the most part, evolved in the mainland. Moreover, the relationship between morphology and habitat use differs between mainland and island forms. Greater predator richness and diversity in the mainland than on the islands may account for the different evolutionary trajectories experienced in these two areas.