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Photo of  Nathan I. Morehouse, Ph.D. Biology

Nathan I. Morehouse, Ph.D. Biology

Assoc Professor

Associate Professor

Education/Credentials
  • Ph.D. Biology: Arizona State University
  • B.S. Biological Sciences: Cornell University
Contact Information
Research Interests

Reproduction is a social interface that intertwines the fates of males and females. I study the traits important to this evolutionary interface, from elaborate courtship displays and strong mate preferences to post-copulatory interactions between male and female reproductive proteins. I am interested in understanding 1) the co-evolutionary dynamics that generate diversity in reproductive traits, 2) how natural and sexual selection interact to produce different male and female phenotypes, and 3) how trait ...

Peer Reviewed Publications

Goté, J.T.*, Butler, P.M., Zurek, D.B., Buschbeck, E.K., and Morehouse, N.I. 2019. Growing tiny eyes: How juvenile jumping spiders retain high visual performance in the face of size limitations and developmental constraints. Vision Research, 160 , 24-36

Hill, J.A., Rastas, P., Hornett, E.A., Neethiraj, R., Clark, N., Morehouse, N.I., de la Paz Celorio-Mancera, M., Cols, J.C., Dircksen, H., Meslin, C., Keehnen, N., Pruisscher, P., Sikkink, K., Vives, M., Vogel, H., Wiklund, C., Woronik, A., Boggs, C., Nylin, S., Wheat, C. 2019. Unprecedented reorganization of holocentric chromosomes provides insights into the enigma of lepidopteran chromosome evolution. Science Advances, 5 6, eaau3648

McQueen, E.W. and Morehouse, N.I. 2018. Rapid divergence of pheromone profiles between subspecies of the butterfly Pieris rapae. Journal of Insect Science, 18 2, 33

Nallu, S., Hill, J., Don, K., Sahagun, C., Zhang, W., Meslin, C., Snell-Rood, E., Clark, N.L., Morehouse, N.I., Bergelson, J., Wheat, C.W., and Kronforst, M.R. 2018. The molecular genetic basis of herbivory between butterflies and their host-plants. Nature Ecology & Evolution, 2 , 1418-1427

Sandre, S-L., Kaart, T., Morehouse, N.I., Tammaru, T. 2018. Weak and inconsistent associations between melanic darkness and fitness related traits in an insect. Journal of Evolutionary Biology, 31 12, 1959-1968

Echeverri, S.A., Morehouse, N.I., and Zurek, D.B. 2017. Control of signaling alignment during the dynamic courtship display of a jumping spider Behavioral Ecology, ,

Meslin, C., Cherwin, T.S., Plakke, M.S., Small, B.S., Goetz, B.J., Morehouse, N.I., and Clark, N.L. 2017. Structural complexity and molecular heterogeneity of a butterfly ejaculate reflect a complex history of selection Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United State of America, 114 27, E5406-E5413

Morehouse, N.I., Buschbeck, E.K., Zurek, D.B., Steck, M., and Porter, M.L. 2017. Molecular evolution of spider vision: New opportunities, familiar players Biological Bulletin, ,

Limeri, L. B.; Morehouse, N. I. 2016. The evolutionary history of the "alba' polymorphism in the butterfly subfamily Coliadinae (Lepidoptera: Pieridae) Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 117 4, 716-724

Taylor, L. A.; Amin, Z.; Maier, E. B.; Byrne, K. J.; Morehouse, N. I. 2016. Flexible color learning in an invertebrate predator: Habronattus jumping spiders can learn to prefer or avoid red during foraging Behavioral Ecology, 27 2, 520-529

Meslin, C.; Plakke, M. S.; Deutsch, A. B.; Small, B. S.; Morehouse, N. I.; Clark, N. L. 2015. Digestive organ in the female reproductive tract borrows genes from multiple organ systems to adopt critical functions Molecular Biology and Evolution, 32 6, 1567-1580

Plakke, M. S.; Deutsch, A. B.; Meslin, C.; Clark, N. L.; Morehouse, N. I. 2015. Dynamic digestive physiology of a female reproductive organ in a polyandrous butterfly Journal of Experimental Biology, 218 10, 1548-1555

Snell-Rood, E.; Cothran, R.; Espeset, A.; Jeyasingh, P.; Hobbie, S.; Morehouse, N. I. 2015. Life history evolution in the anthropocene: Effects of increasing nutrients on traits and tradeoffs Evolutionary Applications, 8 , 635-649

Zurek, D. B.; Cronin, T. W.; Taylor, L. A.; Byrne, K.; Sullivan, M.; Morehouse, N. I. 2015. Spectral filtering enables trichromatic vision in colorful jumping spiders Current Biology, 25 10, R403-R404

Ligon, R. A.; Hicks, M. R.; Dolezal, A. G.; Butler, M. W.; Morehouse, N. I.; Ganesh, T. G. 2014. Using ants, animal behavior, and the learning cycle to investigate scientific processes American Biology Teacher, 76 8, 525-534

Limeri, L. B.; Morehouse, N. I. 2014. Sensory limitations and the maintenance of colour polymorphisms: viewing the 'alba' female polymorphism through the visual system of male Colias butterflies Functional Ecology, 28 5, 1197-1207

Morehouse, N. I. 2014. Condition-dependent ornaments, life histories, and the evolving architecture of resource-use Integrative and Comparative Biology, 54 4, 591-600

Taylor, L. A.; Maier, E. B.; Byrne, K. J.; Amin, Z.; Morehouse, N. I. 2014. Colour use by tiny predators: Jumping spiders show colour biases during foraging Animal Behaviour, 90 2, 149-157

Hua, J.; Morehouse, N. I.; Relyea, R. 2013. Pesticide tolerance in amphibians: Induced tolerance in susceptible populations, constitutive tolerance in tolerant populations Evolutionary Applications, 6 7, 1028-1040

Morehouse, N. I.; Mandon, N.; Christides, J. P.; Body, M.; Bimbard, G.; Casas, J. 2013. Seasonal selection and resource dynamics in a seasonally polyphenic butterfly Journal of Evolutionary Biology, 26 1, 175-185

Meadows, M. G.; Morehouse, N. I.; Rutowski, R. L.; Douglas, J. M.; McGraw, K. J. 2011. Quantifying iridescent coloration in animals: A method for improving repeatability Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 65 6, 1317-1327

Van Gossum, H.; Bots, J.; Van Heusden, J.; Hammers, M.; Huyghe, K.; Morehouse, N. I. 2011. Reflectance spectra and mating patterns support intraspecific mimicry in the colour polymorphic damselfly Ischnura elegans Evolutionary Ecology, 25 1, 139-154

Lindstedt, C.; Morehouse, N. I.; Pakkanen, H.; Casas, J.; Christides, J. P.; Kemppainen, K.; Lindstrom, L.; Mappes, J. 2010. Characterizing the pigment composition of a variable warning signal of Parasemia plantaginis larvae Functional Ecology, 24 4, 759-766

Morehouse, N. I.; Nakazawa, T.; Booher, C. M.; Jeyasingh, P. D.; Hall, M. D. 2010. Sex in a material world: Why the study of sexual reproduction and sex-specific traits should become more nutritionally-explicit Oikos, 119 5, 766-778

Morehouse, N. I.; Rutowski, R. L. 2010. In the eyes of the beholders: Female choice and avian predation risk associated with an exaggerated male butterfly color American Naturalist, 176 6, 768-784

Morehouse, N. I.; Rutowski, R. L. 2010. Developmental responses to variable diet composition in a butterfly: the role of nitrogen, carbohydrates and genotype Oikos, 119 4, 636-645

Meadows, M. G.; Butler, M. W.; Morehouse, N. I.; Taylor, L. A.; Toomey, M. B.; McGraw, K. J.; Rutowski, R. L. 2009. Iridescence: Views from many angles Journal of the Royal Society Interface, 6 , S107-S113

Morehouse, N. I.; Rutowski, R. L. 2009. Comment on “Floral iridescence, produced by diffraction optics, acts as a cue for animal pollinators” Science, 325 , 1072-d

Shawkey, M. D.; Morehouse, N. I.; Vukusic, P. 2009. A protean palette: colour materials and mixing in birds and butterflies Journal of the Royal Society Interface, 6 1578, S221-S231

McGraw, K. J.; Toomey, M. B.; Nolan, P. M.; Morehouse, N. I.; Massaro, M.; Jouventin, P. 2007. A description of unique fluorescent yellow pigments in penguin feathers Pigment Cell Research, 20 , 301-304

Morehouse, N. I.; Vukusic, P.; Rutowski, R. 2007. Pterin pigment granules are responsible for both broadband light scattering and wavelength selective absorption in the wing scales of pierid butterflies Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences, 274 1608, 359-366

Rutowski, R. L.; Macedonia, J. M.; Merry, J. W.; Morehouse, N. I.; Yturralde, K.; Taylor-Taft, L.; Gaalema, D.; Kemp, D. J.; Papke, R. S. 2007. Iridescent ultraviolet signal in the orange sulphur butterfly (Colias eurytheme): Spatial, temporal and spectral properties Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 90 2, 349-364

Merry, J. W.; Morehouse, N. I.; Yturralde, K.; Rutowski, R. L. 2006. The eyes of a patrolling butterfly: Visual field and eye structure in the Orange Sulphur, Colias eurytheme (Lepidoptera, Pieridae) Journal of Insect Physiology, 52 3, 240-248

Rutowski, R. L.; Macedonia, J. M.; Morehouse, N. I.; Taylor-Taft, L. 2005. Pterin pigments amplify iridescent ultraviolet signal in males of the orange sulphur butterfly, Colias eurytheme Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences, 272 1578, 2329-2335