Navigation Links
Scientists determine family tree for most-endangered bird family in the world
Date:10/20/2011

Using one of the largest DNA data sets for a group of birds and employing next-generation sequencing methods, Smithsonian scientists and collaborators have determined the evolutionary family tree for one of the most strikingly diverse and endangered bird families in the world, the Hawaiian honeycreepers.

Not only have the researchers determined the types of finches that the honeycreeper family originally evolved from, but they have also linked the timing of that rapid evolution to the formation of the four main Hawaiian Islands.

"There were once more than 55 species of these colorful songbirds, and they are so diverse that historically it wasn't even entirely clear that they were all part of the same group," said Heather Lerner, who was a postdoctoral researcher at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute's Center for Conservation and Evolutionary Genetics when she conducted this research, and is currently an assistant professor of biology at Earlham College and Joseph Moore Museum director.

"Some eat seeds, some eat fruit, some eat snails, some eat nectar. Some have the bills of parrots, others of warblers, while some are finch-like and others have straight, thin bills. So the question that we started with was how did this incredible diversity evolve over time," Lerner said.

The answer is unique to the Hawaiian Islands, which are part of a conveyor belt of island formation, with new islands popping up as the conveyor belt moves northwest. Each island that forms represents a blank slate for evolution, so as one honeycreeper species moves from one island to a new island, those birds encounter new habitat and ecological niches that may force them to adapt and branch off into distinct species.

The researchers looked at the evolution of the Hawaiian honeycreepers after the formation of Kauai-Niihau, Oahu, Maui-Nui and Hawaii. The largest burst of evolution into new species, called a radiation, occurred between
'/>"/>

Contact: Lindsay Renick Mayer
202-633-3081
Smithsonian
Source:Eurekalert

0

GOOD

Page: 1 2 3

Related biology news :

1. Jefferson scientists deliver toxic genes to effectively kill pancreatic cancer cells
2. Scientists identify novel inhibitor of human microRNA
3. Argonne scientists peer into heart of compound that may detect chemical, biological weapons
4. MU scientists go green with gold, distribute environmentally friendly nanoparticles
5. Scientists identify gene that may contribute to improved rice yield
6. Scientists discover why a mothers high-fat diet contributes to obesity in her children
7. MU scientists see how HIV matures into an infection
8. Earth scientists keep an eye on Texas
9. Thinking it through: Scientists call for policy to guide biofuels industry toward sustainability
10. Scientists identify a molecule that coordinates the movement of cells
11. Scientists Find new migratory patterns for Mediterranean and Western Atlantic bluefin tuna
Post Your Comments:
*Name:
*Comment:
*Email:
(Date:6/17/2013)... JOLLA, CA June 17, 2013 An international ... (TSRI), the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Albert Einstein ... highly promising new anti-tuberculosis compound that attacks the tuberculosis ... represent an effort to help solve one of the ... TB and its dangerous drug-resistant strains," said Peter G. ...
(Date:6/17/2013)... 17, 2013 As mobile devices, smartphones ... secure them grows exponentially, and biometric authentication offers ... Heavy Reading Insider ( www.heavyreading.com/mobile-networks ), ... ( www.heavyreading.com ). Biometrics Offer ... for biometric authentication on smartphones, analyzing the most ...
(Date:6/17/2013)... and Entrepreneurship will be the topics under discussion ... June. For the third consecutive year, this will ... sharing of experiences among members of Academy, Business, ... students. Confirmed speakers: Elisa Martn Garijo (IBM South ... Tree) and Mary O,Donovan (Hovione), among others. E3 ...
Breaking Biology News(10 mins):New compound excels at killing persistent and drug-resistant tuberculosis 2New compound excels at killing persistent and drug-resistant tuberculosis 3New compound excels at killing persistent and drug-resistant tuberculosis 4Biometric Authentication Provides Better Mobile Device Security, Heavy Reading Finds 2Biometric Authentication Provides Better Mobile Device Security, Heavy Reading Finds 3'E3 Forum -- Education, Employment & Entrepreneurship on a Global context' 2
... functions is largely based on our family,s genetic makeup, according ... published in the international publication the Journal of Neuroscience ... how ,cost-efficient, our brain network wiring is, shedding light on ... Alex Fornito from the Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre at the University ...
... the important first rung of the food web each spring ... to its advantage, according to the first published findings about ... algae as a kind of antifreeze against temperatures well below ... channels and pores in ice that are hospitable to itself ...
... bugs, originally from Asia, were first detected in Pennsylvania ... and vegetables and invading homes in many parts of ... entomologists from the eastern U.S. and Canada will converge ... brown marmorated stink bug plague during the 82nd Annual ...
Cached Biology News:Better brain wiring linked to family genes 2Algal antifreeze makes inroads into ice 2Stink bug experts gather in Pennsylvania to address growing problem 2
(Date:6/18/2013)... DUBLIN , June 18, 2013 /PRNewswire/ ... http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/4b8vj2/injectable_drug ) has announced the addition of ... Formulations [Liposomes, Microspheres, & Nanoparticles], Devices [Disposables ... Free & Auto Injectors] & Therapeutics [Diabetes ... report to their offering. ...
(Date:6/18/2013)... Though health care jobs continued to be added ... Labor Statistics -- the increase was far below the calendar ... care jobs were added in home health care and outpatient ... jobs. Overall, the U.S. unemployment rate stayed flat at 7.6 ... that a total of just over 36,000 job cuts were ...
(Date:6/18/2013)... Port Monmouth, NJ (PRWEB) June 18, 2013 ... for the AdWords advertising platform. As this directly impacts ... this to be the one of the most sweeping updates ... at Core and More Technologies recently posted a very ... not initially set a ‘must-have’ upgrade date for enhanced ...
(Date:6/18/2013)... (PRWEB) June 18, 2013 Kitware ... today announces a new Fast-Track award from the U.S. ... design-analysis environment (IDAE) for the nuclear power industry. , ... for more than 30 years, but the United States’ ... remarkable gains in power plant utilization through improved refueling, ...
Breaking Biology Technology:Injectable Drug Delivery Market by Formulations, Devices & Therapeutics - Global Forecasts to 2017 2Injectable Drug Delivery Market by Formulations, Devices & Therapeutics - Global Forecasts to 2017 3MedZilla Employment Report for June 2013 -- Jobs in Health Care Grow, But at Slower Pace 2MedZilla Employment Report for June 2013 -- Jobs in Health Care Grow, But at Slower Pace 3Core and More Technologies Helps Organizations Migrate to Google’s Enhanced Campaign Structure 2Core and More Technologies Helps Organizations Migrate to Google’s Enhanced Campaign Structure 3Kitware to Develop an Open-Source HPC Design-Analysis Environment for Nuclear Energy Research 2
... Jan. 23, 2012 Novus International Inc., a leading ... and Verenium Corporation (Nasdaq: VRNM ), a ... commercialization of high-performance enzymes, today announced the selection of ... the two companies, strategic collaboration to advance ...
...   NeoStem, Inc. (NYSE Amex: NBS ) ... focus on cell-based therapeutic development, today announced that its Chief ... 2 clinical trial for AMR-001 for preservation of heart ... of its subsidiary, Progenitor Cell Therapy, LLC , have ...
... Jan. 23, 2012   BioLife Solutions , Inc. (OTCBB: ... hypothermic storage and cryopreservation freeze ... three additional key opinion leaders in the biobanking ... markets have joined the Company,s Scientific Advisory ...
Cached Biology Technology:First Product Candidate Moving Toward Commercialization as Result of Novus International and Verenium Collaboration 2First Product Candidate Moving Toward Commercialization as Result of Novus International and Verenium Collaboration 3First Product Candidate Moving Toward Commercialization as Result of Novus International and Verenium Collaboration 4First Product Candidate Moving Toward Commercialization as Result of Novus International and Verenium Collaboration 5Senior Management of NeoStem and Its Subsidiaries Invited to Speak at Seventh International Conference on Cell Therapy for Cardiovascular Disease 2Senior Management of NeoStem and Its Subsidiaries Invited to Speak at Seventh International Conference on Cell Therapy for Cardiovascular Disease 3Senior Management of NeoStem and Its Subsidiaries Invited to Speak at Seventh International Conference on Cell Therapy for Cardiovascular Disease 4BioLife Solutions Adds Clinical and Commercialization Experts to Scientific Advisory Board 2BioLife Solutions Adds Clinical and Commercialization Experts to Scientific Advisory Board 3BioLife Solutions Adds Clinical and Commercialization Experts to Scientific Advisory Board 4BioLife Solutions Adds Clinical and Commercialization Experts to Scientific Advisory Board 5
Rabbit polyclonal to Staphylococcus Enterotoxin A (HRP) ( Abpromise for all tested applications)....
... Novexin offers bespoke, cost-effective solutions for complex protein processing ... expertise and experience to help you develop a solution ... , ... transfer all methodology to ...
... is a highly scalable analysis platform ... in a workgroup or an enterprise ... 40 leading pharmaceutical, biotechnology, academic and ... streamlines genomics research at large and ...
... LC Sciences provides a genome-wide microRNA ... and proprietary probe design, which enable highly ... (1-3). We have standard arrays for mature ... latest version of the Sanger miRBase database ...
Biology Products: