| RESEARCH ACTIVITY
Research Interests: I have a broad interest in evolution and employ molecular genetic techniques to address a variety of questions and topics in evolutionary biology. The common thread to my research is speciation, the process whereby a single species "splits," creating two or more inchoate species. I have taken a largely empirical approach with which to examine many theoretical issues that have ties, some more tangential than others, with the concept of speciation. For example, I have examined how historical (geologic) events have shaped genetic divergence among populations within species along well defined geographic tracks. Isolation plays a key inceptive role; groups of organisms separated geographically from others assume their own evolutionary trajectory. Geographic concordance observed in the genetic variation of many different species with similar distributions often implies similar evolutionary histories and underscores the role of biogeography in speciation.
One potential effect of long-term geographic isolation is the evolution of species that are endemic to the isolated area. For example, southern Africa is characterized by high levels of endemism, much of it partitioned regionally. I am currently examining the role geologic events may have played in shaping endemism observed among lizards in southern Africa. To assess the influence of regional events on lizard diversity, I am constructing molecular phylogenies for each of five lizard genera. Branching patterns of these phylogenies will be compared for overall similarities in tree shape. The more similar the branching patterns among trees, the stronger the argument that lizard evolution has been shaped by common biogeographic processes. This research, conducted in collaboration with Aaron M. Bauer (Villanova University), represents the first such survey in southern Africa and should complement limited studies on intracontinental biogeography.
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SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
Bond, J. E., D. A. Beamer, T. Lamb, and M. C. Hedin. 2006. Combining genetic and geospatial analyses to infer population extinction in mygalomorph spiders endemic to Los Angeles region. Animal Conservation, in press. Lamb, T., and A. M. Bauer. 2006. Footprints in the sand: independent reduction of subdigital lamellae in the Kalahari-Namib burrowing geckos. Proceedings of the Royal Society B., London, 273:855—864. Lamb, T., and T. C. Justice. 2005. Comparative phylogeography of Florida scrub insects: implications for systematics, biogeography, and conservation. Fla. Fish and Wild. Conserv. Comm. Final Rep. Tallahassee. 61 pp. Bauer, A. M., and T. Lamb. 2005. Phylogenetic relationships of southern African geckos in the Pachydactylus group (Squamata:Gekkonidae). African Journal of Herpetology 54:105—129. Leuteritz, T. E. J., T. Lamb, and J. C. Limberaza. 2005. Distribution, status, and conservation of radiated tortoises (Geochelone radiata) in Madagascar. Biological Conservation 124:451—461. Lamb, T., and A. M. Bauer. 2003. Meroles revisited: complementary systematic inference from additional mitochondrial genes and complete taxon sampling of southern Africa’s desert lizards. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 29:360—364. Bauer, A. M., and T. Lamb. 2003. A new species of the Pachydactylus weberi group (Reptilia: Squamata: Gekkonidae) from the Waterberg Plateau, Namibia. Cimbebasia 19:1—12. Schwartz, T. S., M. Osentoski, T. Lamb, and S. A. Karl. 2003. Microsatellite loci for the North American tortoises (genus Gopherus) and their applicability to other turtle species. Molecular Ecology Notes 3:283—286. Lamb, T., A. M. Meeker, A. M. Bauer, and W. R. Branch. 2003. On the systematic status of the desert plated lizard (Angolosaurus skoogi): phylogenetic inference from DNA sequence analysis of the African Gerrhosauridae. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 78:253—261. Lamb, T., and A. M. Bauer. 2002. Phylogenetic relationships of the large-bodied members of the African lizard genus Pachydactylus (Reptilia: Gekkonidae). Copeia 2002:586—596. Lamb, T., and A. M. McLuckie. 2002. Genetic differences among geographic races of the desert tortoise. in T. R. Van Devender, ed. The Sonoran Desert Tortoise, pp. 67—85. Bauer, A. M., and T. Lamb. 2002. Phylogenetic relationships among members of the Pachydactylus capensis group of southern African geckos. African Zoology 37:209—220. Masta, S., B. Sullivan, T. Lamb, and E. Routman. 2002. Molecular systematics, hybridization and phylogeography of the Bufo americanus complex in eastern North America. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 24:302—314. Bauer, A. M., T. Lamb, and W. R. Branch. 2002. A revision of Pachydactylus scutatus (Reptilia: Squamata: Gekkonidae) with the description of a new species from northern Namibia. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences 53:23—36. Bauer, A. M., and T. Lamb. 2001. A reconsideration of the systematic status of Rhoptropus bradfieldi diporus Haacke 1965. African Journal of Herpetology 50:71—78. Lamb, T., and A. M. Bauer. 2001. Mitochondrial phylogeny of the Namib day geckos (Rhoptropus) based on cytochrome b and 16S rRNA sequences. Copeia 2001:775—780. Malmos, K., B. K. Sullivan, and T. Lamb. 2001. Calling behavior and directional hybridization between two toads (Bufo microscaphus X B. woodhousii ) in Arizona. Evolution 55:626—630. Theodorakis, C. W., J. W. Bickham, T. Lamb, P. A. Medica, and T. B. Lyne. 2001. Integration of genotoxicity and population genetic analyses in kangaroo rats (Dipodomys merriami) exposed to radionuclide contamination at the Nevada Test Site. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 20:317—326. Lamb, T., and A. M. Bauer. 2000. Phylogenetic relationships of the Pachydactylus rugosus group of geckos (Reptilia: Squamata: Gekkonidae). African Zoology 35:55—67. Lamb, T., B. K. Sullivan, and K. Malmos. 2000. Mitochondrial gene markers for the hybridizing toads Bufo microscaphus and Bufo woodhousii in Arizona. Copeia 2000:234—237. Bauer, A. M., V. Schneider, T. Lamb, P. E. Moler, and R. D. Babb. 1999. New data on the acontine skink Typhlosaurus lomii (Squamata: Scincidae). African Journal of Herpetology 48:21—25. McLuckie, A. M., T. Lamb, C. R. Schwalbe, and R. D. McCord. 1999. Genetic and morphometric assessment of an unusual tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) population in the Black Mountains of Arizona. Journal of Herpetology 33:36—44. Lamb, T., R. W. Gaul, J. M. Horton, and B. W. Grant. 1998. A herpetofaunal inventory of the lower Roanoke River floodplain. Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society 114:43—55. Lamb, T., and M. F. Osentoski 1997. On the paraphyly of Malaclemys: a molecular genetic assessment. Journal of Herpetology 31:258—265. Gibbons, J.W., V.J. Burke, J.E. Lovich, R.D. Semlitsch, T. Tuberville, J.L. Greene, P. Niewiaroski, H. Whiteman, J. Krenz, J.H.K. Pechmann, D.E. Scott, M. S. Mills, K.A. Buhlman, J. Lee, N.B. Frazer, J.D. Congdon, M. H. Smith, R. Seigel, A. Tucker, T. Mills, T. Lamb, M. Dorcas, D.H. Nelson, B.M. Dietsch, H. Hanlin, and J. A. Ott. 1997. Perceptions of species abundance, distribution, and diversity: Lessons from four decades of sampling on a government-managed reserve. Environmental Management 21:259—268. Lamb, T., T. R. Jones, and P. J. Wettstein. 1997. Evolutionary genetics and phylogeography of the tassel-eared squirrels (Sciurus aberti). Journal of Mammalogy 78:117—133. Bickham, J. W., T. Lamb, P. Minx and J. C. Patton. 1996. Molecular systematics of the genus Clemmys and the intergeneric relationships of emydid turtles. Herpetologica 52:89—97. Lovich, J., and T. Lamb. 1995. Morphometric similarity between the turtles Kinosternon subrubrum hippocrepis and K. baurii. Journal of Herpetology 29:621—624. Osentoski, M. F., and T. Lamb. 1995. Intraspecific phylogeography of the gopher tortoise, Gopherus polyphemus: RFLP analysis of amplified mtDNA segments. Molecular Ecology 4:709—718. Lamb, T., J. W. Bickham, T. B. Lyne, and J. W. Gibbons. 1995. The slider turtle as an environmental sentinel: Multiple tissue assays using flow cytometric analysis. Ecotoxicology 4:5—13. Wettstein, P.J., M. Strausbauch, T. Lamb, L. Jin, J. States, R. Chakraborty, and R. Riblet. 1995. Phylogeny of six Sciurus aberti subspecies based on nucleotide sequences of cytochrome b. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 4:150—162. Lamb, T., C. Lydeard, R. W. Walker, and J. W. Gibbons. 1994. Molecular systematics of map turtles (Graptemys): A comparison of mitochondrial restriction site versus sequence data. Systematic Biology 43:543—559. Lamb, T., and C. Lydeard. 1994. A molecular phylogeny of the gopher tortoises, with comments on familial relationships within the Testudinoidea. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 3:283—291. ------------------------------------------------------------------------
COURSES TAUGHT
Principles of Genetics
Herpetology
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PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS
Society of Systematic Biologists
American Society of Icthyologists and Herpetologists
Society for the Study of Evolution
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