824 resultados para Competition in prices
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The recent increase in prices and production of quinoa have had important effects on the employment structures and livelihoods of rural communities in the Nor Lipez Province (Bolivia). The "quinoa boom" resulted in significant changes in household incomes and in gender roles in the context of increasing market integration. The nature of these changes however is not easy to grasp, as new official narratives on gender and on traditional systems of labour divisions and shared access to land have surfaced since the election of Evo Morales (2006) and the adoption of a new constitution (2009). Furthermore, rural employment is found to be much more diverse than the term suggests. Women have always participated in the production of quinoa when it was widely considered as a subsistence crop. Our research takes place in the Nor Lipez Province, Bolivia with exploratory studies that were conducted in January and February 2015 in 8 rural communities of quinoa producers. Preliminary results suggest positive effects for local women in that they managed to earn additional income which might have contributed to their empowerment. This article will present both preliminary results, challenges for gender-oriented research in Bolivia and the methodology aiming to capture changes at the individual, the household and the community level through a survey that will be conducted from September to November 2015 in 500 households.
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entral European grasslands vary widely in productivity and in mowing and grazing regimes. The resulting differences in competition and heterogeneity among grasslands might have direct effects on plants, but might also affect the growth and morphology of their offspring through maternal effects or adaptive evolution. To test for such transgenerational effects, we grew plants of the clonal herb Trifolium repens from seeds collected in 58 grassland sites differing in productivity and mowing and grazing intensities in different treatments: without competition, with homogeneous competition, and with heterogeneous competition. In the competition-free treatment, T. repens from more productive, less frequently mown, and less intensively grazed sites produced more vegetative offspring, but this was not the case in the other treatments. When grown among or in close proximity to competitors, T. repens plants did not show preferential growth towards open spaces (i.e., no horizontal foraging), but did show strong vertical foraging by petiole elongation. In the homogeneous competition treatment, petiole length increased with the productivity of the parental site, but this was not the case in the heterogeneous competition treatment. Moreover, petiole length increased with mowing frequency and grazing intensity of the parental site in all but the homogeneous competition treatment. In summary, although the expression of differences between plants from sites with different productivities and land-use intensities depended on the experimental treatment, our findings imply that there are transgenerational effects of land use on the morphology and performance of T. repens.
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On the role of parties as important channels for people to voice their preferences there is a sound consensus in the literature. Traditional socio-economic concerns have been more and more displaced by culturally fought issues such as immigration and European integration. Scholarly works, however, have paid less attention how, if at all, parties combine different cultural issues. The primary aim of the analysis is to investigate if and under which conditions parties link immigration and European integration issues to address the growing discontent in the population with these issues. Our expectation is that parties endorse different strategies depending on the party competition, in particular the presence of a populist challenger. The analysis is based on a quantitative content analysis of press releases and newspapers articles published in the 12 weeks preceding the 2014 EP election in five European countries (Austria, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom).
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Patterns of size inequality in crowded plant populations are often taken to be indicative of the degree of size asymmetry of competition, but recent research suggests that some of the patterns attributed to size‐asymmetric competition could be due to spatial structure. To investigate the theoretical relationships between plant density, spatial pattern, and competitive size asymmetry in determining size variation in crowded plant populations, we developed a spatially explicit, individual‐based plant competition model based on overlapping zones of influence. The zone of influence of each plant is modeled as a circle, growing in two dimensions, and is allometrically related to plant biomass. The area of the circle represents resources potentially available to the plant, and plants compete for resources in areas in which they overlap. The size asymmetry of competition is reflected in the rules for dividing up the overlapping areas. Theoretical plant populations were grown in random and in perfectly uniform spatial patterns at four densities under size‐asymmetric and size‐symmetric competition. Both spatial pattern and size asymmetry contributed to size variation, but their relative importance varied greatly over density and over time. Early in stand development, spatial pattern was more important than the symmetry of competition in determining the degree of size variation within the population, but after plants grew and competition intensified, the size asymmetry of competition became a much more important source of size variation. Size variability was slightly higher at higher densities when competition was symmetric and plants were distributed nonuniformly in space. In a uniform spatial pattern, size variation increased with density only when competition was size asymmetric. Our results suggest that when competition is size asymmetric and intense, it will be more important in generating size variation than is local variation in density. Our results and the available data are consistent with the hypothesis that high levels of size inequality commonly observed within crowded plant populations are largely due to size‐asymmetric competition, not to variation in local density.
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Tissue growth and regeneration are autonomous, stem-cell-mediated processes in which stem cells within the organ self-renew and differentiate to create new cells, leading to new tissue. The processes of growth and regeneration require communication and interplay between neighboring cells. In particular, cell competition, which is a process in which viable cells are actively eliminated by more competitive cells, has been increasingly implicated to play an important role. Here, we discuss the existing literature regarding the current landscape of cell competition, including classical pathways and models, fitness fingerprint mechanisms, and immune system mechanisms of cell competition. We further discuss the clinical relevance of cell competition in the physiological processes of tissue growth and regeneration, highlighting studies in clinically important disease models, including oncological, neurological, and cardiovascular diseases.
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Starting from almost null in the late 1990s, China's mobile phone handset industry has grown to account for more than 40 percent of the current world production. While export growth has been overwhelmingly led by multi-national corporations (MNCs), increasingly fierce competition in the domestic market ignited by the advent of local handset makers has induced unique industrial evolution: (1) outgrowth of independent design houses specialized in handset development and (2) emergence of IC fabless ventures that design core ICs for handsets. In the background of this evolutionary industrial growth there are factors such as, the scale and increasing diversity of China's domestic market that advantages local firms vis-a-vis MNCs; modularization of handset and semiconductor technologies; policy interventions that supports local startups. The emergence and evolution of China's handset industry is likely to have international implications as the growth of the global demand for low-cost and multi-function mobile phone handsets is expected to accelerate. Thus, our case suggests that the conventional view of latecomer industrialization and upgrading that emphasizes the key role of international production networks organized by MNCs needs to be modified in order to accommodate China's rise into perspective.
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If payment of goods is easily default, economic transaction may deeply suffer from the risk. This risky environment formed a mechanism that governs how economic transaction is realized, subsequently how trade credit is given. This paper distinguished ex ante bargaining and ex post enforcement, then modeled that bargaining power reduces trade credit ex ante, and ex post enforcement power and cash in hand of buyer can enhances both trade amount and trade credit in a presence of default risk. We modeled this relationship in order to organize findings from previous literature and from our original micro data on detailed transaction in China to consistently understand the mechanism governing trade credit. Then empirically tested a structure from the theoretical prediction with data. Results show that ex post enforcement power of seller mainly determines size of trade credit and trade amount, cash in hand of buyer can substitute with enforcement power; Bargaining power of seller is exercised to reduces trade credit and trade amount for avoiding default risk, but it simultaneously improves enforcement power as well. We found that ex post enforcement power consists of (ex ante) bargaining power on between two parties and intervention from the third party. However, its magnitude is far smaller than the direct impact to reduce trade credit and trade amount.
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Costa Rica has some concerns for the "middle income trap" stemming from her perceived weakening export competitiveness, intensifying competition in attracting FDI inflow; and apparent lack of innovation capabilities. Quantitative analyses on the impact of recent FTAs suggest only large firms benefit from FTAs suggesting the need for improving utilization by smaller firms. Continuing attraction of potential MNCs backed by human capital development is necessary. In pursuing its development goals, Costa Rica should be mindful of its reputation as an environmentally friendly place.
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Although there are many definitions of SME's there is no globally accepted definition of a small or medium-sized enterprise. Small Medium Enterprises (SME) the catalyst in economic growth & development of the country, are facing tough competition in market place and in establishing themselves as credible supplier of quality product and services. In India they are producing more than 8000 different products. The common perception is that small to medium businesses have very little options in terms of CRM solutions. This is clearly not the case. SME's now have a lot of options and can exercise same. Businesses are shifting from product centric to customer centric. Long before the advent of technology, businesses have always recognized that the customer is the soul of every business. Businesses try to have personal relationship with their customers. Moving towards customer centric approach is a multi prolonged efforts that requires transformation of process, culture and strategy from top level to every individual employee. Technology has a crucial role in providing tools and infrastructure to support this. CRM supports SMEs in their business customer loyalty.
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En los años recientes se ha producido un rápido crecimiento del comercio internacional en productos semielaborados que son diseñados, producidos y ensamblados en diferentes localizaciones a lo largo de diferentes países, debido principalmente a los siguientes motivos: el desarrollo de las tecnologías de la información, la reducción de los costes de transporte, la liberalización de los mercados de capitales, la armonización de factores institucionales, la integración económica regional que implica la reducción y la eliminación de las barreras al comercio, el desarrollo económico de los países emergentes, el uso de economías de escala, así como una desregulación del comercio internacional. Todo ello ha incrementado la competencia a nivel mundial en los mercados y ha posibilitado a las compañías tener más facilidad de acceso a potenciales mercados, así como a la adquisición de capacidades y conocimientos en otros países y a la realización de alianzas estratégicas internacionales con terceros, creando un entorno con mayor incertidumbre y más exigente para las compañías que componen una industria, y que tiene consecuencias directas en las operaciones de las compañías y en la organización de su producción. Las compañías, para adaptarse, ser competitivas y beneficiarse de este nuevo escenario globalizado y más competitivo, han externalizado partes del proceso productivo hacia proveedores especializados, creando un nuevo mercado intermedio que divide el proceso productivo, anteriormente integrado en las compañías que conforman una industria, entre dos conjuntos de empresas especializadas en esa industria. Dicho proceso suele ocurrir conservando la industria en que tiene lugar, los mismos servicios y productos, la tecnología empleada y las compañías originales que la conformaban previamente a la desintegración vertical. Todo ello es así debido a que es beneficioso tanto para las compañías originales de la industria como para las nuevas compañías de este mercado intermedio por diversos motivos. La desintegración vertical en una industria tiene unas consecuencias que la transforman completamente, así como la forma de operar de las compañías que la integran, incluso para aquellas que permanecen verticalmente integradas. Una de las características más importantes de esta desintegración vertical en una industria es la posibilidad que tiene una compañía de adquirir a una tercera la primera parte del proceso productivo o un bien semielaborado, que posteriormente será finalizado por la compañía adquiriente con la práctica del outsourcing; así mismo, una compañía puede realizar la primera parte del proceso productivo o un bien semielaborado, que posteriormente será finalizado por una tercera compañía con la práctica de la fragmentación. El principal objetivo de la presente investigación es el estudio de los motivos, los facilitadores, los efectos, las consecuencias y los principales factores significativos, microeconómicos y macroeconómicos, que desencadenan o incrementan la práctica de la desintegración vertical en una industria; para ello, la investigación se divide en dos líneas completamente diferenciadas: el estudio de la práctica del outsourcing y, por otro lado, el estudio de la fragmentación por parte de las compañías que componen la industria del automóvil en España, puesto que se trata de una de las industrias más desintegradas verticalmente y fragmentadas, y este sector posee una gran importancia en la economía del país. En primer lugar, se hace una revisión de la literatura existente relativa a los siguientes aspectos: desintegración vertical, outsourcing, fragmentación, teoría del comercio internacional, historia de la industria del automóvil en España y el uso de las aglomeraciones geográficas y las tecnologías de la información en el sector del automóvil. La metodología empleada en cada uno de ellos ha sido diferente en función de la disponibilidad de los datos y del enfoque de investigación: los factores microeconómicos, utilizando el outsourcing, y los factores macroeconómicos, empleando la fragmentación. En el estudio del outsourcing, se usa un índice basado en las compras externas sobre el valor total de la producción. Así mismo, se estudia su correlación y significación con las variables económicas más importantes que definen a una compañía del sector del automóvil, utilizando la técnica estadística de regresión lineal. Aquellas variables relacionadas con la competencia en el mercado, la externalización de las actividades de menor valor añadido y el incremento de la modularización de las actividades de la cadena de valor, han resultado significativas con la práctica del outsourcing. En el estudio de la fragmentación se seleccionan un conjunto de factores macroeconómicos, comúnmente usados en este tipo de investigaciones, relacionados con las principales magnitudes económicas de un país, y un conjunto de factores macroeconómicos, no comúnmente usados en este tipo de investigaciones, relacionados con la libertad económica y el comercio internacional de un país. Se emplea un modelo de regresión logística para identificar qué factores son significativos en la práctica de la fragmentación. De entre todos los factores usados en el modelo, los relacionados con las economías de escala y los costes de servicio han resultado significativos. Los resultados obtenidos de los test estadísticos realizados en el modelo de regresión logística han resultado satisfactorios; por ello, el modelo propuesto de regresión logística puede ser considerado sólido, fiable y versátil; además, acorde con la realidad. De los resultados obtenidos en el estudio del outsourcing y de la fragmentación, combinados conjuntamente con el estado del arte, se concluye que el principal factor que desencadena la desintegración vertical en la industria del automóvil es la competencia en el mercado de vehículos. Cuanto mayor es la demanda de vehículos, más se reducen los beneficios y la rentabilidad para sus fabricantes. Estos, para ser competitivos, diferencian sus productos de la competencia centrándose en las actividades que mayor valor añadido aportan al producto final, externalizando las actividades de menor valor añadido a proveedores especializados, e incrementando la modularidad de las actividades de la cadena de valor. Las compañías de la industria del automóvil se especializan en alguna o varias de estas actividades modularizadas que, combinadas con el uso de factores facilitadores como las economías de escala, las tecnologías de la información, las ventajas de la globalización económica y la aglomeración geográfica de una industria, incrementan y motivan la desintegración vertical en la industria del automóvil, desencadenando la coespecialización en dos sectores claramente diferenciados: el sector de fabricantes de vehículos y el sector de proveedores especializados. Cada uno de ellos se especializa en unas actividades y en unos productos o servicios específicos de la cadena de valor, lo cual genera las siguientes consecuencias en la industria del automóvil: se reducen los costes de transacción en los productos o servicios intercambiados; se incrementan la relación de dependencia entre fabricantes de vehículos y proveedores especializados, provocando un aumento en la cooperación y la coordinación, acelerando el proceso de aprendizaje, posibilitando a ambos adquirir nuevas capacidades, conocimientos y recursos, y creando nuevas ventajas competitivas para ambos; por último, las barreras de entrada a la industria del automóvil y el número de compañías se ven alteradas cambiando su estructura. Como futura línea de investigación, los fabricantes de vehículos tenderán a centrarse en investigar, diseñar y comercializar el producto o servicio, delegando el ensamblaje en manos de nuevos especialistas en la materia, el contract manufacturer; por ello, sería conveniente investigar qué factores motivantes o facilitadores existen y qué consecuencias tendría la implantación de los contract manufacturer en la industria del automóvil. 1.1. ABSTRACT In recent years there has been a rapid growth of international trade in semi-finished products designed, produced and assembled in different locations across different countries, mainly due to the following reasons: development of information technologies, reduction of transportation costs, liberalisation of capital markets, harmonisation of institutional factors, regional economic integration, which involves the reduction and elimination of trade barriers, economic development of emerging countries, use of economies of scale and deregulation of international trade. All these factors have increased competition in markets at a global level and have allowed companies to gain easier access to potential markets and to the acquisition of skills and knowledge in other countries, as well as to the completion of international strategic alliances with third parties, thus creating a more demanding and uncertain environment for these companies constituting an industry, which has a direct impact on the companies' operations and the organization of their production. In order to adapt, be competitive and benefit from this new and more competitive global scenario, companies have outsourced some parts of their production process to specialist suppliers, generating a new intermediate market which divides the production process, previously integrated in the companies that made up the industry, into two sets of companies specialized in that industry. This process often occurs while preserving the industry where it takes place, its same services and products, the technology used and the original companies that formed it prior to vertical disintegration. This is because it is beneficial for both the industry's original companies and the companies belonging to this new intermediate market, for various reasons. Vertical disintegration has consequences which completely transform the industry where it takes place as well as the modus operandi of the companies that are part of it, even of those who remain vertically integrated. One of the most important features of vertical disintegration of an industry is the possibility for a company to acquire from a third one the first part of the production process or a semi-finished product, which will then be finished by the acquiring company through the practice of outsourcing; also, a company can perform the first part of the production process or a semi-finish product, which will then be completed by a third company through the practice of fragmentation. The main objective of this research is to study the motives, facilitators, effects, consequences and major significant microeconomic and macroeconomic factors that trigger or increase the practice of vertical disintegration in a certain industry; in order to do so, research is divided into two completely differentiated lines: on the one hand, the study of the practise of outsourcing and, on the other, the study of fragmentation by companies constituting the automotive industry in Spain, since this is one of the most vertically disintegrated and fragmented industries and this particular sector is of major significance in this country's economy. First, a review is made of the existing literature, on the following aspects: vertical disintegration, outsourcing, fragmentation, international trade theory, history of the automobile industry in Spain and the use of geographical agglomeration and information technologies in the automotive sector. The methodology used for each of these aspects has been different depending on the availability of data and the research approach: the microeconomic factors, using outsourcing, and the macroeconomic factors, using fragmentation. In the study on outsourcing, an index is used based on external purchases in relation to the total value of production. Likewise, their significance and correlation with the major economic variables that define an automotive company are studied, using the statistical technique of linear regression. Variables related to market competition, outsourcing of lowest value-added activities and increased modularisation of the activities of the value chain have turned out to be significant with the practice of outsourcing. In the study of fragmentation, a set of macroeconomic factors commonly used for this type of research, is selected, related to the main economic indicators of a country, as well as a set of macroeconomic factors, not commonly used for this type of research, which are related to economic freedom and the international trade of a certain country. A logistic regression model is used to identify which factors are significant in the practice of fragmentation. Amongst all factors used in the model, those related to economies of scale and service costs have turned out to be significant. The results obtained from the statistical tests performed on the logistic regression model have been successful; hence, the suggested logistic regression model can be considered to be solid, reliable and versatile; likewise, it is in line with reality. From the results obtained in the study of outsourcing and fragmentation, combined with the state of the art, it is concluded that the main factor that triggers vertical disintegration in the automotive industry is competition within the vehicle market. The greater the vehicle demand, the lower the earnings and profitability for manufacturers. These, in order to be competitive, differentiate their products from the competition by focusing on those activities that contribute with the highest added value to the final product, outsourcing the lower valueadded activities to specialist suppliers, and increasing the modularity of the activities of the value chain. Companies in the automotive industry specialize in one or more of these modularised activities which, combined with the use of enabling factors such as economies of scale, information technologies, the advantages of economic globalisation and the geographical agglomeration of an industry, increase and encourage vertical disintegration in the automotive industry, triggering co-specialization in two clearly distinct sectors: the sector of vehicle manufacturers and the specialist suppliers sector. Each of them specializes in certain activities and specific products or services of the value chain, generating the following consequences in the automotive industry: reduction of transaction costs of the goods or services exchanged; growth of the relationship of dependency between vehicle manufacturers and specialist suppliers, which causes an increase in cooperation and coordination, accelerates the learning process, enables both to acquire new skills, knowledge and resources, and creates new competitive advantages for both; finally, barriers to entry the automotive industry and the number of companies are altered, changing their structure. As a future line of research, vehicle manufacturers will tend to focus on researching, designing and marketing the product or service, delegating the assembly in the hands of new specialists in the field, the contract manufacturer; for this reason, it would be useful to investigate what motivating or facilitating factors exist in this respect and what consequences would the implementation of contract manufacturers have in the automotive industry.
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Solar Decathlon Europe (SDE) is an international multidisciplinary competition in which 20 universityteams build and operate energy-efficient solar-powered houses. The aim of SDE is not only scientificbut also educational and divulgative, making visitors to understand the problems presented by realengineering applications and architecture. From a research perspective, the energy data gathered dur-ing the competition constitutes a very promising information for the analysis and understanding of thephotovoltaic systems, grid structures, energy balances and energy efficiency of the set of houses. Thisarticle focuses on the electrical energy components of SDE competition, the energy performance of thehouses and the strategies and behaviors followed by the teams. The rules evaluate the houses? electricalenergy self-sufficiency by looking at the electricity autonomy in terms of aggregated electrical energybalance; the temporary generation-consumption profile pattern correlation; and the use of electricityper measurable area. Although the houses are evaluated under the same climatological and consump-tion conditions, production results are very different due to the specific engineering solutions (differentelectrical topologies, presence or absence of batteries, diverse photovoltaic module solutions, etc.)
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The aims of this study were to analyse perceptions regarding the sporting events held in the Madrid Sports Palace and to analyse whether those perceptions vary by age or gender. One hundred and ninetyfive residents answered the Ntloko and Swart (2008) questionnaire. The dimensions most highly rated were economic benefits (3.9±0.8), the event as a regional showcase (3.6±0.7), and the event as entertainment (3.4±0.6). However, the respondents did not agree with the negative environmental impact (2.0±0.8). Men rated the use of public money (z=2.4; pmenor que.05) and the regional showcase (z=2.0 pmenor que.05) more positively than women. Finally, women rated the increase in prices (z=2.0; pmenor que.05) more highly than men. The age groups differed significantly only regarding the promotion of community pride. Seniors and middle-aged adults rated it more positively than young adults (?2(2)=9.9; pmenor que.01). The fact that in an urban sports facility regular sporting events take place on a regular basis means that there are diverse perceptions, though mainly positive, and those perceptions differ from the perceptions about mega events that take place once in a life time at temporary sports facilities.
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The competition in markets, the distribution of limited resources based on productivity and performance, and the efficient management of universities are changing the criteria of trust and legitimacy of the educational system in Peru. Universities are perceived more as institutions of the public sector, while the services they offer must rather contribute to the modernization of the emerging society and the knowledge economy. Higher Educations reforms - initiated in the 1980s - have been inspired by the successful university organizations that have managed to change their governance and addressed to transform certain bureaucratic institutions into organizations capable of playing active role in this global competition for resources and best talent. Within this context, Peruvian universities are facing two major challenges: adapting themselves to new global perspectives and being able to develop a better response to society demands, needs and expectations. This article proposes a model of governance system for higher education in Peru that gives a comprehensive solution to these challenges, allowing dealing with the problems of universities for their development and inclusion within the global trends. For this purpose, a holistic and qualitative methodologic approach was developed, considering an integrated method which considered educational reality as a whole, understanding its facts, components and elements that affects its outcomes. It is proposed to define a policy for university education in Peru that permeates society, by changing the planning model from a social reform model to a policy analysis model, where the Peruvian State acts as sole responsible for responding to the demanding society as its legal representative complemented with some external and independent bodies that define the basis of best practice, as it is being done in many university models worldwide.
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Ecological studies have demonstrated the role of competition in structuring communities; however, the importance of competition as a vehicle for evolution by natural selection and speciation remains unresolved. Study systems of insular faunas have provided several well known cases where ecological character displacement, coevolution of competitors leading to increased morphological separation, is thought to have occurred (e.g., anoline lizards and geospizine finches). Whiptail lizards (genus Cnemidophorus) from the islands of the Sea of Cortez and the surrounding mainland demonstrate a biogeographic pattern of morphological variation suggestive of character displacement. Two species of Cnemidophorus occur on the Baja peninsula, one relatively large (Cnemidophorus tigris) and one smaller (Cnemidophorus hyperythrus). Oceanic islands in the Sea of Cortez contain only single species, five of six having sizes intermediate to both species found on the Baja peninsula. On mainland Mexico C. hyperythrus is absent, whereas C. tigris is the smaller species in whiptail guilds. Here we construct a phylogeny using nucleotide sequences of the cytochrome b gene to infer the evolutionary history of body size change and historical patterns of colonization in the Cnemidophorus system. The phylogenetic analysis indicates that (i) oceanic islands have been founded at least five times from mainland sources by relatives of either C. tigris or C. hyperythrus, (ii) there have been two separate instances of character relaxation on oceanic islands for C. tigris, and (iii) there has been colonization of the oceanic island Cerralvo with retention of ancestral size for Cnemidophorus ceralbensis, a relative of C. hyperythrus. Finally, the phylogenetic analysis reveals potential cryptic species within mainland populations of C. tigris.