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

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dc.contributor.authorPuckett, E.
dc.contributor.authorSherratt, E.
dc.contributor.authorCombs, M.
dc.contributor.authorCarlen, E.J.
dc.contributor.authorHarcourt-Smith, W.
dc.contributor.authorMunshi-South, J.
dc.date.issued2020
dc.description.abstractUrbanization 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 not the mandible. Specifically, rats from the 2010s had longer noses and shorter upper molar tooth rows, traits identified as adaptive to colder environments and higher quality or softer diets, respectively. Our results highlight the continual evolution to selection pressures. We acknowledge that urban selection pressures impacting cranial shape likely began in Europe prior to the introduction of rats to Manhattan. Yet, our study period spanned changes in intensity of artificial lighting, human population density, and human diet, thereby altering various aspects of rat ecology and hence pressures on the skull.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityEmily E. Puckett, Emma Sherratt, Matthew Combs, Elizabeth J. Carlen, William Harcourt-Smith, Jason Munshi-South
dc.identifier.citationEcology and Evolution, 2020; 10(11):4739-4748
dc.identifier.doi10.1002/ece3.6228
dc.identifier.issn2045-7758
dc.identifier.issn2045-7758
dc.identifier.orcidSherratt, E. [0000-0003-2164-7877]
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/2440/145805
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherWiley
dc.rights© 2020 The Authors. Ecology and Evolution published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.6228
dc.subjectgeometric morphometrics; rodent; urban evolution
dc.titleVariation in brown rat cranial shape shows directional selection over 120 years in New York City
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished

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