Most animals have complex sets of characteristics (traits) used in communication. A blue-colored signaling patch of skin, for example, requires the animals have an eye that is sensitive to blue wavelengths of light. Mechanisms integrating sets of correlated traits are not well-studied, and comparatively little is known about the physiological bases of these complex correlations, and how mechanisms may vary across species. The project will detail such mechanisms underlying correlated traits, and how they may be "pulled apart? evolutionarily, by studying twelve closely-related lizard species in the genus Sceloporus (fence lizards), in which there are repeated origins of a specific novel communicative trait. Studies of physiological and genetic mechanisms related to the co-evolution of visual and chemical communication will assess traits involved in both signal production (e.g., chemical components of secretions; skin cells producing color; hormone controllers) and signal reception (e.g., color-sensitivity of the eye; chemical sensitivity of the sensory tissues in the nasal region) . The PIs will also develop statistical methods needed to analyze data on correlated traits when the study species are closely related. The resulting software enabling such statistical analyses will be made freely available online for other researchers. There are diverse broader impacts. First, undergraduate and graduate student will be trained by and will collaborate with researchers in biochemistry, molecular biology, neurophysiology, animal behavior, evolutionary biology, and biostatistics. Second, funding will enhance infrastructure for research and education by facilitating collaborations between scientists in different disciplines and institutions in the US, and also in Mexico where many of the study species occur. Third, the PIs will enhance scientific and technological understanding of the public by collaborating with two Indiana science museums to establish displays based on the project, and by connecting research outcomes with ongoing outreach activities with local K-12 science teachers.
