Systematic relationships among Anseriformes (screamers, ducks, geese and swans) have remained controversial for decades. Major attempts to resolve these relationships have been made using morphological, behavioral and molecular approaches, yet important parts of the tree remain unresolved. This study uses a new approach in an attempt to resolve a major polytomy within that tree by isolating and characterizing specific sites in the genome where a transposable element (called CR1) is present in some species, but not in others. Such approaches have recently proven powerful for studies of mammalian phylogeny, and it is hoped that they will be similarly important in studies of birds.
The project's broader impacts include the introduction of genomic studies to many undergraduate students including underrepresented groups and the introduction of the general concepts to other scientists visiting a university-based center focused on conservation genetics and systematics. Studies of CR1 in birds will also increase scientific understanding of the activity of transposable elements within genomes. Such elements comprise over half of the human genome, and are increasingly recognized as being important components of eukaryotic genomes for an increasing variety of reasons. Finally, the technique that is central to this study has many other applications beyond the field of systematics and will allow the isolation of a wide variety of DNA targets from uncharacterized genomes of many organisms unrelated to birds.
