Education

2005 Ph.D., Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA.

2003-2004 Smithsonian Institution Predoctoral Fellow, Division of Amphibian and Reptiles, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian, Washington DC, USA.

2001 M.A., Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA.

1998 Licenciatura (B.Sc.), Biology, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, Quito, Ecuador.

Research Interests

I am interested in the theory and practice of phylogenetic systematics, particularly as they relate to the evolutionary biology of lizards.  During my undergraduate and graduate careers, I have focused on the study of the South American iguanian lizards of the genus Stenocercus, which occur in the Andes and adjacent lowlands from northern Colombia and Venezuela to central Argentina.  I have completed papers including a taxonomic revision of Stenocercus from Ecuador, descriptions of six newly discovered species from Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, the developmental biology of S. guentheri, and, more recently, the phylogenetic systematics of Stenocercus based on morphology and mitochondrial DNA sequence data, as well as a comprehensive taxonomic revision of the genus. Another aspect of my research involves studying the evolution of mite pockets in lizards.  Mite pockets are modifications of the skin on the neck, axillary, and postfemoral regions that are usually inhabited by trombiculid mite larvae.  Most species of Stenocercus have mite pockets, and I am exploring their morphological diversity and distribution in the phylogenetic tree of species of Stenocercus.  To better understand the evolution of mite pockets I plan to continue this research by studying these structures in other groups of lizards in a phylogenetic context.

Currently I am collaborating with Dr. Kevin de Queiroz as a postdoctoral fellow at the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution.  Our main goal is to infer the phylogenetic relationships among species of iguanian lizards based on large character (morphological and molecular) and taxon samples.  In collaboration with other colleagues we are constructing a specimen-based database of molecular and morphological characters for representative species of all major iguanian clades.  As part of this project I also am obtaining DNA sequence data of most species in the small (11 species) iguanian family Hoplocercidae.  Previous attempts to infer the phylogenetic relationships among species in Hoplocercidae are based on morphological data and have resulted in several poorly supported and incongruent trees.  We expect the DNA sequence data to contribute to a robust phylogenetic hypothesis for this clade.

I intend to expand my research to study the diversity, evolutionary biology, biogeography, and conservation of other reptiles and amphibians that occur in South America, with emphasis on Andean taxa.  I also have collaborated with colleagues from Ecuador who are studying amphibian extinctions by participating in recent field expeditions.  A major challenge in my research is that some areas in the Andes have been poorly explored or have not been explored at all.  There is evidence (including my experience with Stenocercus) suggesting that a considerable number of undescribed species of reptiles and amphibians occur in these areas.  For this reason I also intend to study the herpetofauna from these areas in collaboration with colleagues and students from South American and U.S. institutions.  The resulting specimens and tissue samples will contribute significantly to my study of diversity, evolutionary biology, and biogeography of Andean amphibian and reptiles.

Selected Publications

Torres-Carvajal, O. 2007. A taxonomic revision of South American Stenocercus (Squamata: Iguania) lizards. Herpetological Monographs. In Press.

Torres-Carvajal, O. 2007. Heterogeneous growth of marginal teeth in the black iguana Ctenosaura similis (Squamata: Iguania). Journal of Herpetology. 41:528–531.

Torres-Carvajal, O. 2007. Phylogeny and biogeography of a large radiation of Andean lizards (Squamata: Stenocercus). Zoologica Scripta 36:311–326.

Torres-Carvajal, O. 2007. A new species of iguanian lizard (Iguania: Stenocercus) from the Andes of Colombia. Copeia 2007:56–61.

Torres-Carvajal, O., J. A. Schulte, and J. E. Cadle. 2006. Phylogenetic relationships of South American lizards of the genus Stenocercus (Squamata: Iguania): a new approach using a general mixture model for gene sequence data. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 39:171–185.

Torres-Carvajal, O. 2005. A new species of Stenocercus (Squamata, Iguania) from central-western Brazil with a key to Brazilian Stenocercus. Phyllomedusa 4:111–120.

Torres-Carvajal, O., E. Lehr, and M. Lundberg. 2005. Resurrection of Stenocercus torquatus Boulenger, a spiny-tailed iguanid lizard (Squamata: Iguania) from Peru. Herpetologica 61(4):440­–448.

Torres-Carvajal, O. 2004. The abdominal skeleton of tropidurid lizards (Squamata: Tropiduridae). Herpetologica 60:75–83.

Torres-Carvajal, O. 2003. The Cranial Osteology of the Andean Lizard Stenocercus guentheri (Squamata: Iguanidae) and Its Postembryonic Development. Journal of Morphology 255:94–113.

Torres-Carvajal, O. 2000. Reptiles del Ecuador: lista de especies y distribución. Amphisbaena y Sauria. [en línea]. Ver. 1.1. 25 Mayo 2000. Museo de Zoología, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador. [HTML]