Speciation and repeated origins of hypertrophied lips in parallel adaptive radiations of cyprinid fish from East Africa.

ABSTRACT: The evolution of convergent phenotypes is one of the most interesting phenomena of repeated adaptive radiations. Here, we examined the repeated patterns of thick-lipped or "rubberlip" phenotype of cyprinid fish of the genus Labeobarbus discovered in riverine environments of the Ethiopian Highlands, East Africa. To test the adaptive value of thickened lips, identify the ecological niche of the thick-lipped ecomorphs, and test whether these ecomorphs are the products of adaptive divergence, we studied six sympatric pairs of ecomorphs with hypertrophied lips and the normal lip structure from different riverine basins. Trophic morphology, diet, stable isotope (δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C) signatures, as well as mtDNA markers and genome-wide SNP variation, were analyzed. Our resu

SUBMITTER: Levin B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10497736 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature