“To what extent do developmental variations reflect phylogenetic relationships?”

This is the question that motivates Einhard and Margarete Schierenberg even as they busy themselves with collecting and studying select groups of nematodes from areas in Southern California. Einhard is on sabbatical from the University of Cologne, Germany, to study variations in the pattern of early cleavages and gastrulation in taxa such as Chromadorida, Monhysterida and Enoplida, comparing these to the standard model Caenorhabditis elegans. He is nearing completion of his three months (March-May, 2004) at our laboratory and already has found new important pieces to the puzzle.