Major population splits coincide with episodes of rapid climate change in a forest-dependent bird.

ABSTRACT: Climate change influences population demography by altering patterns of gene flow and reproductive isolation. Direct mutation rates offer the possibility for accurate dating on the within-species level but are currently only available for a handful of vertebrate species. Here, we use the first directly estimated mutation rate in birds to study the evolutionary history of pied flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca). Using a combination of demographic inference and species distribution modelling, we show that all major population splits in this forest-dependent system occurred during periods of increased climate instability and rapid global temperature change. We show that the divergent Spanish subspecies originated during the Eemian-Weichselian transition 115-104 thousand years ago (kya),

SUBMITTER: Warmuth VM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8564624 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature