University of Colorado Denver College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Bio 

Dr. Howard received his B.S. degree from Stanford University where he studied biology and graduated with distinction and honors. He received his M.Phil. and Ph.D. degrees in biology from Yale University. After a postdoc at Michigan State University he became Curator of Zoology at the Museum of Northern Arizona. He joined the faculty of New Mexico State University as an assistant professor in 1988, eventually becoming Regents Professor and Chair of the Department of Biology. He joined the faculty of the University of Colorado Denver in 2008 as Professor of Integrative Biology and Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Dr. Howard’s research, which has been continuously supported by the National Science Foundation since 1986, focuses on species formation, hybrid zones and the evolution of postmating, prezygotic barriers to gene exchange. PMPZ isolation appears to evolve early in the process of speciation and appears to be driven by positive Darwinian selection acting upon the reproductive proteins of males and females. Dr. Howard’s laboratory was one of the first laboratories to document the importance of PMPZ isolation in limiting gene exchange between closely related species. His current research program utilizes proteomics and DNA sequencing to identify the suite of genes that mediate PMPZ isolation in two pairs of closely related insect species.

Select Publications 

Marshall, J. L., M. L. Arnold, and D. J. Howard. 2002. "Reinforcement: The road not taken." Trends in Ecology & Evolution 17:558-563.

Howard, D. J., S.C. Britch, W.E. Braswell, and J.L. Marshall. 2003. "Evolution in hybrid zones", pp. 297-314. In R.S. Singh and M.K. Uyenoyama (eds.), The Evolution of Population Biology. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

Swenson, N.G. and D. J. Howard. 2004. "Do suture zones exist?"
Evolution 58: 2391-2397.

Swenson, N.G. and D. J. Howard. 2005. "Clustering of contact zones, hybrid zones, and phylogeographic breaks in North America." The American Naturalist 166:581-591.

Braswell, W.E., J.A. Andrés, L.S. Maroja, R.G. Harrison, D. J. Howard, and W.J. Swanson. 2006. "Identification and comparative analysis of accessory gland proteins in Orthoptera." Genome 49:1069-1080.

Britch, S.C., E.J. Swartout, D.D. Hampton, M.L. Draney, J. Chu, J.L. Marshall, and D. J. Howard. 2007. "Genetic architecture of conspecific sperm precedence."

Genetics 176:1209-1222.

Traylor, T., A. Birand, J.L. Marshall, and D. J. Howard. 2008. "A zone of overlap and hybridization between Allonemobius socius and a new Allonemobius spp." Annals of the Entomological Society of America. 101:30-39.

Birand, A.C. and D. J. Howard. 2008. "The relationship between proportion of endemics and species diversity on islands: expectations from a null model." Ecography 31:286-288.

Ross, C.H., J. H. Benedix, Jr., C. Garcia, K. Lambeth, R. Perry, V. Selwyn, and D. J. Howard. 2008. "Scale-independent criteria and scale-dependent agents determining the structure of a ground cricket mosaic hybrid zone." Biological Journal of the Linnean Society
94:777-796.

Howard, D. J., S. R. Palumbi, L. Birge, M. K. Manier. 2009. "Sperm and speciation", pp. 367-403. In T.R. Birkhead, D.J. Hosken and S. Pitnick (eds.), Sperm Biology: an Evolutionary Approach. Elsevier Press.

Courses Taught 

Zoology
Evolution
Speciation and Adaptation