Repeated modification of early limb morphogenesis programmes underlies the convergence of relative limb length in<i>Anolis</i>lizards
-
- Thomas J. Sanger
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, 26 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
-
- Liam J. Revell
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts Boston, 100 Morrissey Boulevard, Boston, MA 02125-3393, USA
-
- Jeremy J. Gibson-Brown
- Department of Biology, Central Michigan University, Brooks 138, Mount Pleasant, MI 48859, USA
-
- Jonathan B. Losos
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, 26 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
説明
<jats:p>The independent evolution of similar morphologies has long been a subject of considerable interest to biologists. Does phenotypic convergence reflect the primacy of natural selection, or does development set the course of evolution by channelling variation in certain directions? Here, we examine the ontogenetic origins of relative limb length variation among<jats:italic>Anolis</jats:italic>lizard habitat specialists to address whether convergent phenotypes have arisen through convergent developmental trajectories. Despite the numerous developmental processes that could potentially contribute to variation in adult limb length, our analyses reveal that, in<jats:italic>Anolis</jats:italic>lizards, such variation is repeatedly the result of changes occurring very early in development, prior to formation of the cartilaginous long bone anlagen.</jats:p>
収録刊行物
-
- Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
-
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 279 (1729), 739-748, 2011-08-17
The Royal Society