Evolution in an Urbanizing World
The common wall lizard (Podarcis muralis) offers a great opportunity to study how humans are influencing the course of evolution. These lizards have a large native range, covering much of Southern Europe, but are also successfully established in many places, including Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. The common wall lizard was introduced to Cincinnati in the early... Continue Reading →
Climbing and clinging of urban lizards are differentially affected by morphology, temperature, and substrate P L Vaughn, C Colwell, E H Livingston, W McQueen, C Pettit, S Spears, L Tuhela, E J Gangloff Abstract Urbanization alters the environment along many dimensions, including changes to structural habitat and thermal regimes. These can present challenges, but may also provide suitable habitat for certain species.... Continue Reading →
Anole lizards are rapidly becoming a model for urban adaptation. Anolis cristatellus, or the Puerto Rican crested anole, is a lizard species that has a great affinity for city-living. Previous work has demonstrated shifts in toepad morphology with consequences for locomotion: urban lizards have larger toepads with more specialized sub-digital scales specialized for clinging to smooth surfaces (known... Continue Reading →
Urban areas around the world are an interesting combination of non-native and native species. In London, urban foxes are a common sight and because of this, we would predict that urban foxes have evolved due to differing selection factors in cities. For mammalogists, examing and comparing skulls is a common way to measure changes that... Continue Reading →
I’m excited to share an update on my foray into urban ecology and evolution research as an undergraduate! I've been working in the Revell Lab at the University of Massachusetts Boston since my freshman year. I've reported here before about some of my experiences in the field working on urban anoles. Over the past couple of... Continue Reading →
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