Department News
The Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology embraces education and research on all aspects of biodiversity, including the history of life on earth, evolutionary mechanisms that generate diversity, the ecological context in which all life has evolved, and consequences of interactions among organisms, including humans. Faculty expertise ranges from the tropics to the tundra, from the theoretical to the practical.
Research feature
Genetic study of house dust mites demonstrates reversible evolution
In evolutionary biology, there is a deeply rooted supposition that you can't go home again: once an organism has evolved specialized traits, it can't return to the lifestyle of its ancestors.
There's even a name for this pervasive idea. Dollo's law states that evolution is unidirectional and irreversible. But this "law" is not universally accepted and is the topic of heated debate among biologists.
Now a research team led by two University of Michigan biologists has used a large-scale genetic study of the lowly house dust mite to uncover an example of reversible evolution that appears to violate Dollo's law.
The study shows that tiny free-living house dust mites, which thrive in the mattresses, sofas and carpets of even the cleanest homes, evolved from parasites, which in turn evolved from free-living organisms millions of years ago.
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When two of Professor Earl Werner's former students heard of his impending retirement (December 2013), they joined forces to plan EarlFest: a symposium to pay tribute to their mentor.
Professor 
Dr. Kenneth Elgersma has been awarded a $50,000 research grant from U-M’s new Water Center to support Great Lakes restoration and protection efforts.Events
Thursday seminars
Seminars resume fall 2013
Tuesday lunch seminars
Seminars resume fall 2013
