Replicated evolutionary inhibition of a complex ancestral behaviour in an adaptive radiation.

ABSTRACT: Adaptive radiations often exhibit high levels of phenotypic replication, a phenomenon that can be explained by selection on standing variation in repeatedly divergent environments or by the influence of ancestral plasticity on selection in divergent environments. Here, we offer the first evidence that plastic loss of expression of a complex display in a novel environment, followed by selection against expression, could lead to replicated evolutionary inhibition of the phenotype. In both ancestral (oceanic) and benthic (freshwater) populations of the threespine stickleback fish, cannibalism is common and males defending nests respond to approaching groups with a complex diversionary display. This display is not exhibited by males in allopatric, limnetic (freshwater) populations from which c

SUBMITTER: Foster SA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6371902 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature