Variation in brown rat cranial shape shows directional selection over 120 years in New York City.

ABSTRACT: Urbanization exposes species to novel environments and selection pressures that may change morphological traits within a population. We investigated how the shape and size of crania and mandibles changed over time within a population of brown rats (Rattus norvegicus) living in Manhattan, New York, USA, a highly urbanized environment. We measured 3D landmarks on the cranium and mandible of 62 adult individuals sampled in the 1890s and 2010s. Static allometry explained approximately 22% of shape variation in crania and mandible datasets, while time accounted for approximately 14% of variation. We did not observe significant changes in skull size through time or between the sexes. Estimating the P-matrix revealed that directional selection explained temporal change of the crania but no

SUBMITTER: Puckett EE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7297766 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature