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Keywords

Parthenogenesis, Genomics, DNA, Non-Native, Native

Abstract

Non-native species are defined as species who live in any area outside of their native range, and they often have unique adaptational strategies to be able to populate various areas, even those different from their native habitat

The New Mexico Whiptail (Aspidoscelis neomexicanus) is a parthenogenetic (asexual) species of lizard of family Teiidae. It’s native range extends from central to south-central New Mexico [1]

Parthenogenetic species can colonize/invade new territories easily due to their ability to reproduce asexually [4]

Established populations of this species of lizard in multiple localities outside of their native range have been identified in Arizona and northern Utah [6]

We investigate how these non-native populations have dispersed from their native area into non-native areas using sequence data and comparative analysis

Because whiptail lizards are challenging to identify at the species level using morphological characters, we tested the phylogenetic placement of two new populations: southern Utah and northwest New Mexico.

We predict that these populations come from the same source population, and we will use molecular genetics to identify this and detect movement patterns

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2025

Language

English

College

Life Sciences

Department

Biology

University Standing at Time of Publication

Senior

Parthenogenetic Pathways: Investigating the Expansion of a Clonal Whiptail

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Life Sciences Commons

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