Ross Crozier's Home Page

SOCIOGENOMICS RESEARCH GROUP

Ross H Crozier Ph.D., M.Sc., B.Sc.

Comparative Genomics Centre,
Biological Sciences Bldg 23, James Cook University,
Townsville, 4811, Queensland, Australia
Telephone: 61-7-4781 5734 Fax: 61-7-4725 1570

Email: Ross.Crozier@jcu.edu.au

Brief Curriculum Vitae:
Prof. Ross Crozier is an evolutionary biologist with considerable expertise in the use of genetic techniques to solve questions of general evolutionary processes, evolution and maintenance of social systems, and in population biology.

Research interests:
Professor Crozier is interested in the evolution of sociality and life patterns and is pursuing these interests through studies in molecular ecology, molecular phylogeny and population genetic models. This work has led to broader investigations into molecular evolution, conservation biology and to pursuing earlier work on karyotype evolution. He has published scientific articles on ants, bees, mammals (including humans), birds, bryozoa and midges, amongst other things. His sociobiological interests include research into population structure, comparative analysis, colony structure, kin recognition, and relatedness. In conservation biology, his interest is the use of molecular and phylogenetic information to assess the conservation worth of populations and habitats. He has been an associate editor for Evolution, Behavioral Ecology & Sociobiology, and Molecular Biology & Evolution, and a member of the editorial board for Journal of Molecular Evolution, Genetique Selection Evolution and for Insectes Sociaux, and is currently an associate editor for Ecology Letters. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and a Fellow of the Australian Academy.

Current research:

Evolution of social insect immune genes. Differences in habitat and social structure are expected to lead to differences in evolutionary rates between lineages. In cases of high rates evidence of positive selection is expected, which may also identify parts of the gene products under the most stress.
Use of phylogenetic information (the concept of "molecular biodiversity") to set priorities for habitat preservation.
Molecular ecology of insects and birds, with the aim of determining population and social structure with regard to social behavior and in some instances conservation implications.
evolutionary ecology of caste in social insects.
The determination of inter-population relationships of endangered animals in the field.
Molecular characterization of the honeybee dance language. Honeybees have an elaborate communication dance indicating the distance and direction fo food sources. Some of the differences between honeybee strains in aspects of the dance are known to be under genetic control; in this work the genes controlling these differences are being sought.

Teaching Activities:
Contributes to: Behavioural and Evolutionary Ecology (ZL3061), Molecular Ecology (ZL3041), Conservation biology (ZL3204), Inheritance and the Evolution of Life (BZ1020), and Genetics and Biodiversity Conservation (BZ2420).

Selected publications:

Schmid-Hempel P, Crozier RH. 1999. Polyandry vs. polygyny vs. parasites. Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc. B 354:507-515.
Crozier RH. 1997. Preserving the information content of species: genetic diversity, phylogeny and conservation worth. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 28:243-268.
Crozier, R.H. and P. Pamilo. 1996 Evolution of social insect colonies. Sex allocation and kin-selection. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. 320pp
Crozier, R.H., Crozier, Y.C. 1993. The mitochondrial genome of the honeybee Apis mellifera: complete sequence and genome organization. Genetics 133: 97-117.
Crozier, R.H. 1986. Genetic clonal recognition abilities in marine invertebrates must be maintained by selection for something else. Evolution 40:1100-1101.
Crosland, M.W.J, Crozier, R.H. 1986. Myrmecia pilosula: an ant with one pair of chromosomes. Science 231:1278.
Crozier, R.H., Pamilo, P., Crozier, Y.C. 1984. Relatedness and microgeographic genetic variation in Rhytidoponera mayri, an Australian arid-zone ant. Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol. 15:143-150.
Crozier, R.H. 1977. Evolutionary genetics of the Hymenoptera. Annu. Rev. Entomol. 22: 263-288.
Crozier, R.H., Consul, P.C. 1976. Conditions for genetic polymorphism in social Hymenoptera under selection at the colony level. Theoret. Popul. Biol. 10: 1-9.
Crozier, R.H. 1970. Coefficients of relationship and the identity of genes by descent in the Hymenoptera. Amer. Nat., 104: 216-217

Full publication list

LINKS:

Sociogenomics Research Group, Comparative Genomics Centre, Key words: gene, genome, allele, locus, inherited, disease, popular science, biology, ants, bees, sex, society.