This grant provides funding for the symposium "Insect Evolution" at the annual meeting of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology held in Boston, January 3-7, 2009. The symposium addresses the interface of two active fields in comparative biology: the study of evolution and advances in physiological ecology. Historically, the understanding of the pattern of evolution in insects was based on data from fossils and comparative anatomy. Recently, molecular data have provided new insights and new hypotheses about pattern and process in insect evolution. For example, new information has arisen regarding the relationships between different groups of insects. In this symposium, researchers will present talks addressing how new evolutionary insights inform the understanding of respiration, flight, social structure, cuticle, diurnal clocks, osmoregulation and vision in the insects. Substantial insights will be gained by the coming together of researchers in these two vibrant fields. The topics will also be of great interest to a listening audience composed of researchers and teachers in this broad and integrative scientific society. The symposium will broaden its impact by including a diverse program of presenters, including speakers at early stages of their careers, international speakers, female speakers, and speakers who are members of under-represented groups in the sciences.
