OSTMAN, Bjorn*; OAKLEY, Todd H.; University of California, Santa Barbara: Evolutionary rates of loss and gain of gene expression The importance of gene regulatory elements for evolutionary events has been largely overshadowed by a focus on the evolution of protein-coding sequences. Nevertheless, regulatory elements should be important for evolution, in part due to their short […]

COLLAZO, Andres; BRICAUD, Olivier; ZELLER, Robert W.; House Ear Institute, Los Angeles; House Ear Institute, Los Angeles; San Diego State University: Developmental role of the Pax-Six-Eya-Dach gene regulatory network during chordate evolution Many studies in Drosophila have demonstrated that members of the Pax, Six, Eya and Dach gene families interact with each other and are […]

OBER, KA; JOCKUSCH, EL*; College of the Holy Cross; University of Connecticut: Conserved appendage morphology results from divergence in appendage developmental networks in insects Appendage development has been well studied in Drosophila. However, Drosophila limbs are formed from imaginal discs, which are patterned during larval life, rather than developing directly during embryogenesis as in most […]

LEE, DN*; TANG-MARTINEZ, Z; University of Missouri – St. Louis; University of Missouri – St. Louis: of Early Social Environment on the Physical Development of Prairie Voles In general, the size at birth, size at weaning, and growth rate of rodents vary with differences in the early environment a neonate experiences (Mendl 1988). This study […]

FONTAINE, JOSEPH/J*; MARTIN, THOMAS/E; University of Montana; University of Montana: Reproductive responses to experimentally reduced nest predation risk The reproductive strategy that an individual adopts has long term fitness implications for itself and its offspring. These fitness consequences result in strong selection to express optimal life history and parental care behaviors. Yet, while there is […]

JOHNSON, M. A.; Washington University, St. Louis, MO: Does Where an Animal Lives Determine Its Behavior? The Role of Microhabitat in Lizard Territoriality Many animals defend territories to monopolize resources. Despite much work on interspecific variation in territoriality, little is known about the role of habitat in this behavior. Specifically, species that occur in different […]

SNELL-ROOD, Emilie C; University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ: Developmental costs of behavioral plasticity: exploration during oviposition-cue learning in butterflies (Lepidoptera: Pieridae) Why is there is variation in the degree of phenotypic plasticity within and among species? Somatic selection (e.g., trial-and-error learning) is a developmentally costly mechanism of plasticity as individuals must explore their environment, test […]

CHRISTY, J.H.*; RISSANEN, J.R.; BACKWELL, P.R.Y.; Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute; Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute; Australian National University: A One-day Pause in the Biweekly Courtship Cycle of a Tropical Fiddler Crab Allows Females to Avoid Releasing Larvae During Twilight Predation on adults or young in the intertidal zone may vary predictably with the daylight, tidal height […]

Meeting Abstract 59.2  Jan. 7  The esthetal canal system in chitons (Mollusca: Polyplacophora) and homologous structures in Lower Cambrian small shelly fossils. VINTHER, Jakob; Yale University jakob.vinther@yale.edu The esthetal canal system in chitons is one of the most complex canal systems within a mineralized matrix with both a sensory and secretory function. The esthete system is regarded […]

Meeting Abstract 59.5  Jan. 7  Early evolution of Monstersauria (Reptilia, Squamata) CONRAD, J.L.*; NORELL, M.A.; American Museum of Natural History, New York jconrad@amnh.org Monstersauria (beaded lizards, Gila monsters, and their fossil relatives) has a fossil record that extends back 100 million years (Ma) and includes taxa from North America, Europe, and eastern Asia. Most Cretaceous monstersaurs are […]