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School of Biological & Chemical Sciences
Fogg Building
Queen Mary, University of London
Mile End Road
London, E1 4NS
United Kingdom
Tel: (0)20 7882 7528 or ext. 4787

email: k.t.j.davies[at]qmul.ac.uk

 

Group Leader
Stephen Rossiter

PhD students
Kalina Davies
Hao-Chih Kuo
Lee Sim Lim
Helen Ward

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Research interests:

I have recently completed my NERC funded PhD entitled ‘A comparative study of the evolution of mammalian high-frequency hearing and echolocation’ supervised by Dr Stephen Rossiter (QMUL) and Prof. Norman MacLeod (NHM). This project used molecular and morphological evidence to address the evolutionary origins of laryngeal echolocation in bats as until recently it was thought that laryngeal echolocation had evolved just once in bats. However, molecular evidence supports the grouping of five echolocating families with the non-echolocating Old World fruit bats, to the exclusion of several other echolocating families. This relationship implies that echolocation either evolved multiple times or was lost in Old World fruit bats. As well as the unclear evolutionary history, the genetic basis behind the control and development of echolocation was also largely unknown.

To elucidate the evolutionary history of this key trait in bats, a combined molecular and morphological approach was taken. Firstly, for two mammalian ‘hearing genes’ sequence convergence, phylogenetic signal and selection pressures were examined across echolocating and non-echolocating mammal species. Secondly, substitution rates of non-coding regions associated with genes regulating ear development were compared across mammals. Finally, as mammalian inner ear development is controlled by many genes, the gross structure of the bony labyrinth was studied in order to examine the combined genetic effect.

I am interested in studying the evolution of morphological adaptations and diversification, particularly in mammalian species. Recently I have become interested in studying convergent evolution at the morphological and molecular level. I am keen on using holistic methods and approaches that integrate molecular and morphological information. In a wider context, I am interested in combining evolutionary and ecological studies to address conservation and biodiversity questions.

Publications:

Davies KTJ, Cotton JA, Kirwan J, Teeling EC and Rossiter SJ (2012) Parallel signatures of sequence evolution among hearing genes in echolocating mammals: an emerging model of genetic convergence. Heredity, Epub ahead of print: DOI 0.1038/hdy.2011.119