Guest Lecture on Natural Selection

Dr. David Reznick will give a program on the adaptation of insects to extreme environments at the San Bernardino County Museum in Redlands on Wednesday, February 22 at 7:30 p.m. This free guest lecture is open to the public.

Reznick will describe his research on evolution and adaptation in natural populations from an experimental perspective. Through studies of guppies from the Caribbean Island of Trinidad, his work has shown that life histories evolve as predicted by theory and in a fashion that is consistent with the earlier comparative studies. His research has also shown that evolution by natural selection can be remarkably fast, on the order of four to seven orders of magnitude faster than inferred from the fossil record.

“I will discuss considerations about the implications of this work and recent work by other scientists relative to the potential role that natural selection has played in shaping the larger scale events that we associate with evolution,” said Reznick, “including the origin of new species and the dramatic changes in morphology that are seen among species.”

Dr. Reznick earned his Ph.D. in biology from the University of Pennsylvania in 1980 and came to UC Riverside in 1984 where he is a Professor of Biology. He specializes in evolutionary biology. His awards include the E.O. Wilson Naturalist Award (2003), Distinguished Professor at the University of Miami (1999), UC Riverside Faculty Research Lecturer (1999) and Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences (2000). He studies the process of evolution by natural selection from an experimental perspective and testing evolutionary theory in natural populations. He is a participant in the Evolutionary Biology graduate group and the Intercampus Research Program on Experimental Evolution.

This lecture is part of a series of guest lectures offered at no charge by the county museum. Upcoming guest lectures include Suzie Earp speaking on “The 1938 Flood” on March 22; David Van Norman on “CSI San Bernardino: Insects at the Scene of the Crime” on April 26; Joyce Hanson on “Voices of San Bernardino” on May 24; and Susan Hough on “Earthquake Country” on June 28.

The San Bernardino County Museum is at the California Street exit from Interstate 10 in Redlands. Parking is free. For more information, visit www.sbcountymuseum.org.

The San Bernardino County Museum is accessible to persons with disabilities. If assistive listening devices or other auxiliary aids are needed in order to participate in museum exhibits or programs, requests should be made through Museum Visitor Services at least three business days prior to your visit. Visitor Services’ telephone number is 909-307-2669 ext. 229 or (TTD/TTY) 909-792-1462.