ABSTRACT
Ecological morphology is a comparative discipline focused on the connections between morphological and ecological diversity (Williams 1972, Motta and Kotrschal 1992, Wainwright and Reilly 1994, Norton et al. 1995). The ecomorphological approach examines the optimization of functional morphology to specific ecological characters at multiple levels: among individuals within a species, among species and higher taxa, and among guilds and communities (Barel 1983, Wainwright 1988, Kotrschal 1989, Motta et al. 1995). Such examinations of the causative connections between form, function and ecology represent an important and a relevant framework for addressing adaptation (Wainwright 1994, Motta et al. 1995).
