Journal article
Hurricane effects on Neotropical lizards span geographic and phylogenetic scales
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, v 117(19), pp 10429-10434
12 May 2020
PMID: 32341144
Featured in Collection : UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
Abstract
Extreme climate events such as droughts, cold snaps, and hurricanes can be powerful agents of natural selection, producing acute selective pressures very different from the everyday pressures acting on organisms. However, it remains unknown whether these infrequent but severe disruptions are quickly erased by quotidian selective forces, or whether they have the potential to durably shape biodiversity patterns across regions and clades. Here, we show that hurricanes have enduring evolutionary impacts on the morphology of anoles, a diverse Neotropical lizard clade. We first demonstrate a transgenerational effect of extreme selection on toepad area for two populations struck by hurricanes in 2017. Given this short-term effect of hurricanes, we then asked whether populations and species that more frequently experienced hurricanes have larger toepads. Using 70 y of historical hurricane data, we demonstrate that, indeed, toepad area positively correlates with hurricane activity for both 12 island populations of Anolis sagrei and 188 Anolis species throughout the Neotropics. Extreme climate events are intensifying due to climate change and may represent overlooked drivers of biogeographic and large-scale biodiversity patterns.
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Details
- Title
- Hurricane effects on Neotropical lizards span geographic and phylogenetic scales
- Publication Details
- PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, v 117(19), pp 10429-10434
- Publisher
- NATL ACAD SCIENCES; WASHINGTON
- Number of pages
- 0
- Grant note
- This work was made possible thanks to the Pine Cay Homeowners Association with fieldwork and logistical support from C. Santoro and E. Bell. We also thank E. Salamanca at the TCI Department of Environment and Coastal Resources (DECR). This work was funded by the following: National Science Foundation (NSF), IOS-1354620 to J.B.L. and A.H.; NSF, RAPID ISO-1806420 to J.J.K. and J.B.L.; NSF, Postdoctoral Fellowship 1609284 to C.M.D.; NSF, Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant Division of Environmental Biology 1500761 to A.J.G.; Harvard Museum of Comparative Zoology Putnam Expedition Grant to R. G.R.; Research Foundation Flanders Postdoctoral Fellowship 12I8819N to S. B.; Direccion General Asuntos del Personal-Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico Postdoctoral Fellowship to J.A. V.; and Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Discovery Grant 499376 to D. L.M. In addition, this publication was made possible through the support of a grant from the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the John Templeton Foundation.
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Drexel University
- Web of Science ID
- WOS:000532837500044
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-85084586406
- Other Identifier
- 991021860679204721
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- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- International collaboration
- Web of Science research areas
- Ecology