SNAKES AT SEA
Evolutionary transition to marine life: novel insight from sea snakes
| Coordinatore | CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE
Organization address
address: Rue Michel -Ange 3 contact info |
| Nazionalità Coordinatore | France [FR] |
| Totale costo | 253˙421 € |
| EC contributo | 253˙421 € |
| Programma | FP7-PEOPLE
Specific programme "People" implementing the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities (2007 to 2013) |
| Code Call | FP7-PEOPLE-2009-IOF |
| Funding Scheme | MC-IOF |
| Anno di inizio | 0 |
| Periodo (anno-mese-giorno) | 0000-00-00 - 0000-00-00 |
Partecipanti
| # | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE
Organization address
address: Rue Michel -Ange 3 contact info |
FR (PARIS) | coordinator | 253˙421.60 |
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Obiettivo del progetto (Objective)
'Evolutionary transitions from terrestrial to marine life entail massive modifications. Marine mammals and birds exhibit major adaptations of their morphology and physiology to increase the depths to which they can dive, and the time during which they can remain underwater. Marine reptiles have attracted far less attention in this respect, but we expect ectotherms to diverge dramatically from endotherms in several dive parameters, especially because ectothermy reduces oxygen demand. The failure to observe an exaggeration of respiratory capacities in marine reptiles, suggests that the primary adaptations for diving will be morphological and behavioural rather than physiological. Sea snakes provide an excellent model for studying the evolutionary transition between the terrestrial and marine environments, because sea snake species encompass a wide continuum in terms of the degree of their dependence on the ancestral terrestrial environment. Because significant constraints apply on a snake’s morphology and ability to efficiently move through the water, the aim of this project is to investigate diving behaviour and associated adaptations within a group of ectothermic air-breathing vertebrates (snakes) that has evolved to exploit aquatic environments. We will use two complementary approaches (experimental biomechanics and free-ranging bio-logging) to comprehensively study sea snake underwater movements and diving behaviour. This project therefore sets out to use an integrative and interdisciplinary approach to fill a major gap in our understanding of diving behaviour and associated morpho-functional adaptations, by focusing on a group of reptiles that has successfully conquered the marine environment: the sea snakes.'