近日，新西兰奥塔哥大学Jonathan M. Waters及其团队揭示了人类驱动的石蝇拟态色彩演化。该项研究成果发表在2024年10月25日出版的《科学》杂志上。

研究人员展示了广泛的森林砍伐导致了野生昆虫种群中颜色的多次变化。具体而言，森林的丧失使得模仿有毒森林石蝇警告色的谱系发生了颜色变化。捕食实验表明，颜色表型的相对适应度在森林和非森林栖息地之间存在差异。

对1200个标本的基因组和颜色分析显示，在控制颜色多态性的黑色基因位点上出现了多次选择。这些发现代表了与物种相互作用改变相关的人类驱动演化的一个例子，并突显了种群在突发环境变化后迅速适应的可能性。

研究人员表示，快速适应被认为对物种在全球变化下的生存至关重要，但人们对人类引发的野外演化的理解仍然有限。

附：英文原文

Title: Human-driven evolution of color in a stonefly mimic

Author: Steven Ni, Graham A. McCulloch, Gracie C. Kroos, Tania M. King, Ludovic Dutoit, Brodie J. Foster, Kahu Hema, Jennifer M. Jandt, Mei Peng, Peter K. Dearden, Jonathan M. Waters

Issue&Volume: 2024-10-25

Abstract: Rapid adaptation is thought to be critical for the survival of species under global change, but our understanding of human-induced evolution in the wild remains limited. We show that widespread deforestation has underpinned repeated color shifts in wild insect populations. Specifically, loss of forest has led to color changes across lineages that mimic the warning coloration of a toxic forest stonefly. Predation experiments suggest that the relative fitness of color phenotypes varies between forested and deforested habitats. Genomic and coloration analyses of 1200 specimens show repeated selection at the ebony locus controlling color polymorphism across lineages. These findings represent an example of human-driven evolution linked to altered species interactions, highlighting the possibility for populations to adapt rapidly in the wake of sudden environmental change.

DOI: ado5331

Source: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ado5331