Incipient allochronic speciation by climatic disruption of the reproductive period.

ABSTRACT: Disruptive selection of life-cycle timing may cause temporal isolation directly and, ultimately, allochronic speciation. Despite the fact that segregation of the reproductive period among related species has been broadly observed across taxa, it remains controversial whether temporal isolation can function as the primary process of speciation. In the Japanese winter geometrid moth Inurois punctigera, allochronic divergence has resulted from climatic disruption of the reproductive period. In habitats with severe midwinter, two sympatric groups of moth reproduce allochronically in early and late winter. These groups are genetically diverging sister lineages and now co-occur allochronically throughout Japan. By contrast, in habitats with milder midwinter these lineages form a continuous adult

SUBMITTER: Yamamoto S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2839949 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature