from Isabel S. Novella and John B. Presloid writing in Rhabdoviruses: Molecular Taxonomy, Evolution, Genomics, Ecology, Host-Vector Interactions, Cytopathology and Control:
Rhabdoviruses have been preferred models for studies on the evolution of RNA viruses. Experiments in the laboratory can seldom, if ever, reproduce the complexity of natural environments, but because we can control and manipulate individual components, we can assess how each of these components affects (or not) viral evolution, including population size, environmental changes, coinfection, host responses, antiviral molecules etc. Experimental evolution is becoming increasingly sophisticated as technological advances provide the tools that we need to answer some novel and some old-standing questions, and to test extensively theoretical models.
Further reading: Rhabdoviruses: Molecular Taxonomy, Evolution, Genomics, Ecology, Host-Vector Interactions, Cytopathology and Control