Anolis Lizards of the Eastern Caribbean: A Case Study in Evolution. III. A Cladistic Analysis of Albumin Immunological Data, and the Definition of Species Groups

Abstract

Gorman, George C., Donald G. Buth, and Jeff S. Wyles (Department of Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90024) 1980. Anolis lizards of the eastern Caribbean: A case study in evolution. III. A cladistic analysis of albumin immunological data, and the definition of species groups. Syst. Zool., 29:143-158.-Albumin immunological distance data obtained primarily from the literature are interpreted cladistically for representatives of virtually all recognized groups of eastern Caribbean Anolis. A classification is proposed that differs substantially from the classification of Williams (1976). We argue that our classification is highly concordant with the character states used by Williams to generate his genealogy, but his interpretation cannot be forced into compatibility with the albumin evidence. We make no assumptions about regularity of rates of the albumin molecule, but the null hypothesis that rates of albumin evolution are equivalent along each lineage cannot be falsified. [Micro-complement fixation; immunological distance; cladistics; Anolis.] With well over 200 described species, the lizard genus Anolis can be very taxing to the working taxonomist. The current classification of the genus rests primarily on interpretation of data from the detailed comparative osteological study of Etheridge (1960). Williams (1976) used these data as a basis for presenting a formal classification of West Indian Anolis. In the terminology of Williams (1976), the genus is divided into two sections termed a and /8. These sections are distinguished by the absence (a) or pres