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Kevin G. McCracken Associate Professor Institute of Arctic Biology & Department of Biology and Wildlife University of Alaska Museum


[Research Interests] [Andean Hemoglobin Website] [Lecture Courses] [People in the Lab] [Publications] [Useful Links] [Login to Secure Site]

[Information for Prospective Graduate Students]


Research Interests:
Population genetics and molecular evolution; high-altitude adaptation; waterfowl; the Andes.
Our research in the Andes focuses on the parallel evolution of the hemoglobins of South American ducks that have independently colonized the same high-altitude, low-oxygen alpine wetland environments. Oxygen pressure is 60% of sea level at 4,000 meters, and the hypoxic stress that results can be severely debilitating. This model system presents an unparalleled opportunity to study the genetics of adaptation of oxygen binding and delivery in a set of closely related but phylogenetically independent lineages, which exhibit a diverse set of patterns consistent with local adaption to high-altitude hypoxia in the Andes. A collaborative study is now underway to measure the strength of selection on hemoglobin variants and the rate at which individuals migrate between lowland and highland populations experiencing contrasting selection pressures. Other projects in our lab are examining the influence of selection on non-coding DNA sequences, as well as a variety of population genetics studies of Holarctic dabbling ducks and sea ducks. We also collaborate with numerous researchers on studies of parasites (e.g., lice) and avian influenza (AI) viruses. Grant support: NSF 0444748, 0746365, 0814322

Lecture Courses:
Principles of Genetics
Systematic & Comparative Biology
Modern Synthesis of Evolution

People in the Lab:
Robert Wilson		Ph.D. Candidate
Travis Booms		Ph.D. Candidate
Mariana Bulgarella		Ph.D. Candidate

Ph.D. Students Fledged:
John Pearce		2008 - USGS, Alaska Science Ceter
Jen Schmidt		2007 - UAF
Sarah Sonsthagen		2006 - Smithsonian Institution
Irina Kulikova		2005 - Institute of Biology & Soil Science, Vladivostok, Russia

Postdocs Fledged:
Jeff Peters		Wright State University

Publications: (bold text indicates lab member)
2009	McCracken, K. G., C. P. Barger, M. Bulgarella, K. P. Johnson, M. K. Kuhner, A. V. Moore, J. L. Peters., J. Trucco, T. H. Valqui, K. Winker, and R. E. Wilson. Signatures of high-altitude adaptation in the major hemoglobin of five species of Andean dabbling ducks. American Naturalist (in press).

2009	Sonsthagen, S. A., S. L. Talbot, R. B. Lanctot, K. Scribner, and K. G. McCracken. Hierarchical spatial genetic structure of Common Eiders (Somateria mollissima) breeding along a migratory corridor. The Auk (in press).

2009	Pearce, J. M., K. G. McCracken, T. K. Christensen, and Y. N. Zhuravlev. Migratory patterns and population structure among breeding and wintering Red-breated (Mergus serrator) and Common Mergansers (M. merganser). The Auk (in press).

2009	Bulgarella, M., N. C. Stewart, V. B. Fedorov, A. V. Moore, and K. G. McCracken. Hemoglobin transcript abundance in a bone marrow cDNA library of Crested Ducks in the Peruvian high Andes. The Auk (in press) [Summary of dbEST accessions]

2009	McCracken, K. G., M. Bulgarella, K. P. Johnson, M. K. Kuhner, J. Trucco, T. H. Valqui, R. E. Wilson, and J. L. Peters. Gene flow in the face of countervailing selection: Adaptation to high-altitude hypoxia in the beta-A hemoglobin subunit of yellow-billed pintails. Molecular Biology and Evolution 26:815-827 [PDF]

2009	Schmidt, J. I., K. J. Hundertmark, R. T. Bowyer, and K. G. McCracken. Population structure and genetic diversity of moose in Alaska. Journal of Heredity 100:170-180. [PDF]

2008	Wilson, R. E., and K. G. McCracken. Specimen shrinkage in Cinnamon Teal. Wilson Journal of Ornithology 120:390-392 [PDF]

2008	Wilson, R. E., M. Eaton, and K. G. McCracken. Color divergence among Cinnamon Teal (Anas cyanoptera) subspecies from North America and South America. Ornitologia Neotropical 19:307-314. [PDF]

2007	Bulgarella, M., R. E. Wilson, C. Kopuchian, T. H. Valqui, and K. G. McCracken. Elevational variation in body size of Crested Ducks (Lophonetta specularioides) from the Central High Andes, Mendoza, and Patagonia. Ornitologia Neotropical 18:587-602. [PDF]

2007	Sonsthagen, S. A., S. L. Talbot, and K. G. McCracken. Genetic characterization of Common Eiders breeding in the Yukon-Kuskokwin Delta, Alaska. Condor 109:878-893. [PDF]

2007	Wilson, R. E., S. A. Sonsthagen, C. P. Barger, and K. G. McCracken. Asymmetric molt or feather wear in Flying Steamer Ducks (Tachyeres patachonicus) from coastal habitats in Argentina. Ornitologia Neotropical 18:193-300. [PDF]

2007	McCracken, K. G. [Review of] Ducks, Geese, and Swans, Vol. 1 & 2. Quarterly Review of Biology 82:157. [PDF]

2007	Brennan, P. L. R., R. O. Prum, K. G. McCracken, M. D. Sorenson, R. E. Wilson, and T. R. Birkhead. Coevolution of male and female genital morphology in waterfowl. PLoS ONE 2:e419 [PDF]

2007	Winker, K. , K. G. McCracken, D. D. Gibson, C. L. Pruett, R. Meier, F. Huettmann, M. Wege, I. V. Kulikova, Y. N. Zhuravlev, M. L. Perdue, E. Spackman, D. L. Suarez , and D. E. Swayne. Movement of birds and avian influenza from Asia to Alaska. Emerging Infectious Diseseases 13:547-552. [PDF]

2007	Spackman, E., K. G. McCracken, K. Winker, and D. E. Swayne. An avian influenza virus from waterfowl in South America contains genes from North American avian and equine lineages. Avian Diseases 51:273-274. [PDF]

2006	Wilson, R. E., T. H. Valqui, and K. G. McCracken. Aberrant plumage in the Yellow-billed Pintail Anas georgica. Wildfowl 56:192-196. [PDF]

2006	Sonsthagen, S. A., S. L. Talbot, R. B. Lanctot, K. T. Scribner, and K. G. McCracken. Population genetic structure of Common Eiders (Somateria mollissima) nesting on coastal barrier islands adjacent to oil facilities in the Beaufort Sea, Alaska. U.S. Department of Interior, Minerals Management Service, Final Report OCS Study MMS 2006-40:1-94.

2006	Spackman, E., K. G. McCracken, K. Winker, and D. E Swayne. H7N3 avian influenza virus found in a South American wild duck is related to the Chilean 2002 poultry outbreak, contains genes from equine and North American wild bird lineages, and is adapted to domestic turkeys. Journal of Virology 80:7760–7764. [PDF]

2006	Johnson, K. P., M. Kennedy, and K. G. McCracken. Reinterpreting the origins of flamingo lice: Cospeciation or host-switching. Biology Letters 2:275-278. [PDF]

2005	Kulikova, I. V., S. V. Drovetski, D. D. Gibson, R. J. Harrigan, S. Rohwer, M. D. Sorenson, K. Winker, Y. N. Zhuravlev, and K. G. McCracken. Phylogeography of the Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos): Hybridization, dispersal, and lineage sorting contribute to complex geographic structure. The Auk 122:949-965. [PDF]

2005	Peters, J. L., K. G. McCracken, R. E. Wilson, Y. N. Zhuravlev, Y. Lu, K. P. Johnson, and K. E. Omland. Phylogenetics of wigeons and allies (Anatidae: Anas spp.): The importance of sampling multiple loci and multiple individuals. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 35:209-224. [PDF]

2005	McCracken, K. G., and M. D. Sorenson. Is homoplasy or lineage sorting the source of incongruent mtDNA and nuclear gene trees in the stiff-tailed ducks (Nomonyx-Oxyura)? Systematic Biology 54:35-55. [PDF]

2005	Callaghan, D., and K. G. McCracken. Musk Duck: Taxonomy pp. 213 in J. Kear (ed.) Bird Families of the World: Ducks, Geese, and Swans. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

2005	McCracken, K. G. Musk Duck Biziura lobata pp. 213-217 in J. Kear (ed.) Bird Families of the World: Ducks, Geese, and Swans. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

2005	Callaghan, D., and K. G. McCracken. The stiff-tailed ducks and their allies: Taxonomy in J. Kear (ed.) pp. 343-346 in Bird Families of the World: Ducks, Geese, and Swans. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

2004	Wilson, R. E., S. D. Goldfeder, and K. G. McCracken. Bill sexual dichromatism of Yellow-billed Pintail (Anas georgica) and Speckled Teal (A. flavirostris). Ornitologia Neotropical 15:543-545. [PDF]

2004	Kulikova, I. V., Y. N. Zhuravlev, and K. G. McCracken. Asymmetric hybridization and sex-biased gene flow between Eastern Spot-billed Ducks and Mallards in the Russian Far East. The Auk 121:930-949. [PDF]

2003	McCracken, K. G., J. Hemmings, D. C. Paton, and A. D. Afton. Capture methods for Musk Ducks. Wildfowl 54:211-214. [PDF]

2002	McCracken, K. G., P. J. Fullagar, E. C. Slater, D. C. Paton, and A. D. Afton. Advertising displays of male Musk Ducks indicate population subdivision across the Nullarbor Plain of Australia. Wildfowl 53:137-154. [PDF]

2001	McCracken, K. G., R. E. Wilson, P. J. McCracken, and K. P. Johnson. Are ducks impressed by drakes' display. Nature 413:128. [PDF]

2001	McCracken, K. G., W. P. Johnson, and F. H. Sheldon. Molecular population genetics, phylogeography, and conservation biology of the Mottled Duck (Anas fulvigula ). Conservation Genetics 2:87-102. [PDF]

2001	McClellan, D. A., and K. G. McCracken. Estimating the influence of selection on the variable amino acid sites of the cytochrome b protein functional domains. Molecular Biology and Evolution 18:917-925. [PDF]


2000	McCracken, K. G., D. C. Paton, and A. D. Afton. Sexual size dimorphism of the Musk Duck. Wilson Bulletin 112:457-466. [PDF]

2000	McCracken, K. G., J. Harshman, M. D. Sorenson, and K. P. Johnson. Are Ruddy Ducks and White-headed Ducks the same species? British Birds 93:396-398. [PDF]

2000	McCracken, K. G., A. D. Afton, and D. C. Paton. Nest and eggs of Musk Ducks (Biziura lobata) at Murray Lagoon, Cape Gantheaume Conservation Park, Kangaroo Island, South Australia. South Australian Ornithologist 33:65-70. [PDF]

2000	McCracken, K. G. The 20-cm spiny penis of the Argentine Lake Duck (Oxyura vittata). The Auk 117:820-825. [PDF]

2000	McCracken, K. G., A. D. Afton, and M. S. Peters. Condition bias of hunter-shot Ring-necked Ducks exposed to lead. Journal of Wildlife Management 64:584-590.

2000	Sheldon, F. H., C. E. Jones, and K. G. McCracken. Relative patterns and rates of evolution in heron nuclear and mitochondrial DNA. Molecular Biology and Evolution 17:437-450. [PDF]

1999	McCracken, K. G., J. Harshman, D. A. McClellan, and A. D. Afton. Data set incongruence and correlated character evolution: An example of functional convergence in the hind-limbs of stifftail diving ducks. Systematic Biology 48:683-714. [PDF]

1999	McCracken, K. G. Systematics, ecology, and social biology of the Musk Duck (Biziura lobata) of Australia. Ph.D. Dissertation, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

1998	McCracken, K. G. [Review of] Ruddy ducks and other stifftails: Their behavior and biology. Quarterly Review of Biology 73:362-363. [PDF]

1998	McCracken, K. G., and F. H. Sheldon. Molecular and osteological heron phylogenies: Sources of incongruence. The Auk 115:127-141. [PDF]

1997	McCracken, K. G., A. D. Afton, and R. T. Alisauskas. Nest morphology and body size of Ross's Geese and Lesser Snow Geese. The Auk 114:610-618. [PDF]

1997	McCracken, K. G., and F. H. Sheldon. Avian vocalizations and phylogenetic signal. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science USA. 94:3833-3836. [PDF]

1995	Sheldon, F. H., K. G. McCracken, and K. D. Stuebing. Phylogenetic relationships of the Zigzag Heron (Zebrilus undulatus) and White-crested Bittern (Tigriornis leucolophus) estimated by DNA-DNA hybridization. The Auk 112: 672-679. [PDF]

1995	McCracken, K. G., D. Amrol, N. Walker, and G. B. Craig, Jr. Ectoparasites from mammals of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Vector Control Bulletin of the North Central States 4:42-53.



If you would like to find out more information about the McCracken Lab you can write to: Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska 99775; call 1 (907) 474-7640; or e-mail fnkgm at uaf.edu.

Last Updated: 14 March 2009