Chapter 20, Problem 2Q

Summary Introduction

To review:

The reason behind requirement of the common garden in the experiment and different conclusions obtained if the observation, which is derived from raising the lizards in a controlled environment were also not evident.

Introduction:

Anoles is the largest and diverse group of lizards found in America. It is the most common organism for the ecological and evolutionary studies. The two species Anoles carolinensis and the A. sagrei compete with each other and are aggressive. The species of anoles have a strong association of height and structure of toe pads, which the lizards use to climb. The researchers found that the habitat of lizards affected evolution in the lizards.

When the A. sagrei was introduced on the islands the changes were observed. On the islands, which did not support the A. sagrei and only had A. carolinensis, no changes were observed. The researchers then collected samples of each type and also raised an offspring of lizard in the controlled environment and they researched about the differences in the genetic basis.