SWS2 visual pigment evolution as a test of historically contingent patterns of plumage color evolution in warblers.

ABSTRACT: Distantly related clades that occupy similar environments may differ due to the lasting imprint of their ancestors-historical contingency. The New World warblers (Parulidae) and Old World warblers (Phylloscopidae) are ecologically similar clades that differ strikingly in plumage coloration. We studied genetic and functional evolution of the short-wavelength-sensitive visual pigments (SWS2 and SWS1) to ask if altered color perception could contribute to the plumage color differences between clades. We show SWS2 is short-wavelength shifted in birds that occupy open environments, such as finches, compared to those in closed environments, including warblers. Phylogenetic reconstructions indicate New World warblers were derived from a finch-like form that colonized from the Old World 15-20 Ma.

SUBMITTER: Bloch NI 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4310824 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature