Horned Lark
Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris) are comprised of 42 known subspecies across their global range, with 26 named subspecies in North America, and are thought to have been diversifying for only 1.5 million years. Horned Larks use a wide range of environments, elevations, and latitudes, including agricultural fields, shortgrass prairie, steppe, desert, and alpine habitats. The plumage coloration of Horned Lark varies significantly across their range and they exhibit background matching, where their cryptic plumage matches both the environment (soil substrate) and climate, following Gloger’s rule. This adaptation to the environment allows them to thermoregulate more efficiently in hot and dry climates. Importantly, populations of Horned Lark along the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada in the United States (California and Nevada) display remarkable associations between elevation and the presence of a chromosomal inversion (i.e. a structural variant) on the Z chromosome. This suggests there may be genes important in environmental or elevation adaptation under selection that are maintained in this structural variant. Thus, the focus of our research will be to more broadly quantify structural variation as it relates to variation in plumage and environmental and local adaptation. This necessitates a new high-quality chromosome-level reference genome with annotated genes for Horned Lark.
This project aims to study the mechanisms behind environmental adaptation and population structure in the Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris), a songbird that has extensive variation in plumage, habitat, and genomic architecture. BGP postdoc Johanna Beam will use structural variants (e.g., chromosomal inversions and transposable elements) and SNPs to determine both the interplay of these elements as well as their influence on genome architecture and adaptive potential. By quantifying all types of genomic variation of a species and generating a new pangenome, this project will form a new model for understanding what genomic mechanisms drive population structure, adaptation, and speciation.
Team
Nancy Mahony, Environment and Climate Change Canada
Nick Mason, Louisiana State University Museum of Natural Science
Joe Manthey, Texas Tech University
Andy Johnson, University of New Mexico/Museum of Southwestern Biology
Rauri Bowie, University of California Berkely/Museum of Vertebrate Zoology
Jay Carlisle, Boise State University
Devin De Zwaan, Acadia University
Sarah Bonnett and Erica Nol, Trent University
We are actively trying to acquire new samples or increase samples sizes across both breeding and wintering areas for the Horned Lark. If you are interested in collecting or donating Horned Lark samples from any location, please contact Amanda Carpenter to learn more about how you can contribute to the project.