Peramorphosis, an evolutionary developmental mechanism in neotropical bat skull diversity

Background The neotropical leaf‐nosed bats (Chiroptera, Phyllostomidae) are an ecologically diverse group of mammals with distinctive morphological adaptations associated with specialized modes of feeding. The dramatic skull shape changes between related species result from changes in the craniofacial development process, which brings into focus the nature of the underlying evolutionary developmental processes. Results In this study, we use three‐dimensional geometric morphometrics to describe, quantify, and compare morphological modifications unfolding during evolution and development of phyllostomid bats. We examine how changes in development of the cranium may contribute to the evolution of the bat craniofacial skeleton. Comparisons of ontogenetic trajectories to evolutionary trajectories reveal two separate evolutionary developmental growth processes contributing to modifications in skull morphogenesis: acceleration and hypermorphosis. Conclusion These findings are consistent with a role for peramorphosis, a form of heterochrony, in the evolution of bat dietary specialists

The d 1Πg(v=1) Rydberg state of O2: Optical-optical double-resonance and Huggins-band ozone-photolysis, resonance-enhanced multiphoton-ionization studies with a b 1Σ+g(v=0)-state platform

The d←←b(1,0) band of O2 following Huggins-band photolysis of O3 was explored. Analyses of these REMPI spectra yield, not only the first information on d(v=1) rotational levels with J>29, but also the first estimate of an O2(b-state fragment rotation