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Patterns Of Morphological And Molecular Evolution In The Antillean Tree Bat, Ardops Nichollsi (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae), Roxanne J. Larsen, Peter A. Larsen, Caleb D. Phillips, Hugh H. Genoways, Gary G. Kwiecinski, Scott C. Pedersen, Carleton J. Phillips, Robert J. Baker

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Species endemic to oceanic islands offer unique insights into the mechanisms underlying evolution and have served as model systems for decades. Often these species show phenotypic variation that is correlated with the ecosystems in which they occur and such correlations may be a product of genetic drift, natural selection, and/or environmental factors. We explore the morphologic and genetic variation within Ardops nichollsi, a species of phyllostomid bat endemic to the Lesser Antillean islands. Ardops nichollsi is an ideal taxon to investigate the tempo of evolution in Chiroptera, as it: is a recently derived genus in the family Phyllostomidae; contains …