See more from this Division: General Discipline Sessions
See more from this Session: Paleontology II - Organismal and Morphological Paleontology
Abstract:
For this pilot study, we focused on samples collected during previous investigations in Smuggler's Cove and Salt River Bay along the coast of St. Croix. Individuals were digitally imaged, and morphological data were collected from landmark points corresponding to the beak, hinge area, muscle scars, and exterior outline of each shell. Multivariate techniques, including Generalized Procrustes Analysis, were applied to examine Chione morphology through space and time.
Results of our analyses to date point to significant changes in landmark positions in relation to geography and environment, even between samples from sites less than a kilometer apart where ambient conditions are also demonstrably different. Furthermore, within Smuggler's Cove, there is evidence of significant morphological differences among specimens collected two decades apart, although this result should be viewed as preliminary, pending further analyses. What is clear, however, is that Chione has a strong propensity to vary morphologically even over limited spatial scales, and we will continue to analyze the nature of this variation throughout a broader study region that encompasses the western Caribbean, the Bahamas, and Florida.
See more from this Division: General Discipline Sessions
See more from this Session: Paleontology II - Organismal and Morphological Paleontology