Convergent evolution of sexual dimorphism in skull shape using distinct developmental strategies

Title
Convergent evolution of sexual dimorphism in skull shape using distinct developmental strategies
Publication Date
2013
Author(s)
Sanger, Thomas J
Sherratt, Emma
McGlothlin, Joel W
Brodie, Edmund D
Losos, Jonathan B
Abzhanov, Arhat
Type of document
Journal Article
Language
en
Entity Type
Publication
Publisher
John Wiley & Sons Ltd
Place of publication
United States of America
DOI
10.1111/evo.12100
UNE publication id
une:18007
Abstract
Studies integrating evolutionary and developmental analyses of morphological variation are of growing interest to biologists as they promise to shed fresh light on the mechanisms of morphological diversification. Sexually dimorphic traits tend to be incredibly divergent across taxa. Such diversification must arise through evolutionary modifications to sex differences during development. Nevertheless, few studies of dimorphism have attempted to synthesize evolutionary and developmental perspectives. Using geometric morphometric analysis of head shape for 50 'Anolis' species, we show that two clades have converged on extreme levels of sexual dimorphism through similar, male-specific changes in facial morphology. In both clades, males have evolved highly elongate faces whereas females retain faces of more moderate proportion. This convergence is accomplished using distinct developmental mechanisms; one clade evolved extreme dimorphism through the exaggeration of a widely shared, potentially ancestral, developmental strategy whereas the other clade evolved a novel developmental strategy not observed elsewhere in the genus. Together, our analyses indicate that both shared and derived features of development contribute to macroevolutionary patterns of morphological diversity among 'Anolis' lizards.
Link
Citation
Evolution, 67(8), p. 2180-2193
ISSN
1558-5646
0014-3820
Start page
2180
End page
2193

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