Rank 9808835 The PIs will examine mechanisms of temperature adaptation in the leaf beetle Chrysomela aeneicollis living in the Eastern Sierra Nevada, California. The PIs have selected beetle populations living in three drainages characterized by steep altitudinal and thermal gradients: Big Pine Creek, Bishop Creek, and Rock Creek. The PIs will characterize the thermal environment of these drainages and determine the body temperatures of beetles living in a variety of microhabitats. Air temperatures will be measured continuously over the summer at three altitudes per drainage. The PIs will map sunny and shady habitats in each locality precisely. The PIs will use digital thermometers equipped with micro-thermocouples to measure the body temperatures of adult beetles and larvae over the course of the summer: at a single location during the day, at different altitudes over several days, and in sunny and shady sites in each locality. The PIs will also quantify tissue levels of the heatstress inducible protein HSP70 in beetles of known body temperature. Finally, the PIs will use enzyme electrophoresis to characterize the populations genetically. These results will allow us to quantify environmental temperature variation and the beetles' response to it. Both field and laboratory portions of this project will involve extensive participation of undergraduates.
