Biological & Biomedical Seminar | Dr. Jay Storz, March 28

The Biological Sciences & Biomedical Sciences Research Seminar Series presents Dr. Jay Storz discussing "Mountaineering surveys yield new discoveries regarding elevational limits and physiological tolerances of Andean small mammals" on Monday, March 28, at 4 p.m. 

Zoom link: 

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83947983487?pwd=b0F6aklXblpObEhpSGV1dzdEQjFnUT09

Meeting ID: 839 4798 3487

Passcode: BIOSTALK

Storz is the Willa Cather Professor in Biological Sciences at the University of Nebraska. 

The event is sponsored by the Biological Sciences Graduate Society in the College of Arts & Sciences. The host is Diego F. Alvarado-Serrano , biological sciences.

Abstract: Identifying factors that influence geographic range limits of animal species is a longstanding goal in evolutionary physiology. Latitudinal and altitudinal shifts in species’ ranges are of special interest in the context of global climate change. However, in the most mountainous regions of the planet – where potential elevational range limits are the highest – the upper limits of species’ ranges are often poorly demarcated due to a paucity of survey data. Here we present results of mountaineering mammal surveys in the Central Andes that have yielded live‐trapping records of mice (genus Phyllotis) living at extraordinarily high elevations (5800‐6700 m [=~19,000‐22,000’]), far exceeding all previous specimen‐based records for mammals. Our trapping records prompt new lines of inquiry regarding basic natural history (What are the mice eating at these extreme elevations?) and physiology (How do they tolerate the extreme hypoxia and freezing cold?). We report preliminary physiological and genomic data that contribute to a new appreciation of the environmental limits and adaptability of mammals.