This work develops one aspect of the fascinating findings made by Juliey Beckman during her PhD research on allocation of reproductive effort in
A. agilis.
Remarkable trait variability in intraspecific differences in teat number in females is known to occur across the geographic range of antechinuses. For these small, litter-bearing marsupials, the number of teats possessed by a mother sets the upper limit to the number of offspring she can rear in one reproductive bout. As a consequence of selective pressures, optimal litter sizes are expected to emerge in response to the distribution and abundance of resources during the breeding season.
However, the nature and extent of reproductive isolation between different teat-number forms of the species is unclear. This is essential to know, if we are to understand the evolution of this critical trait.
To assess the basis of this geographic trait variation, microsatellite markers together with sequence data from the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) d-loop region will be analysed in population samples of
A. agilis from a region in the Otways Ranges where 6 and 10 teat populations are in close proximity.
For more information see also Juliey Beckman
