The Genetic Basis of Speciation in a Grasshopper Hybrid Zone

摘要

Speciation has always been an important area of research in evolutionary biology, highlighted by its place in the Modern Synthesis (Dobzhansky, 1937; Mayr, 1942). Throughout, insects have played a major role in the development and testing of speciation theory, in particular Drosophih. Nevertheless, many questions remain and research on mechanisms of speciation by both evolutionary ecologists and geneticists continues to gather momentum (e.g. Otte and Endler, 1989; Howard and Berlocher, 1998; Schluter, 2000; Barton, 2001a, and papers therein). Currently, this impetus is being maintained by advances in our understanding of the genetic basis of speciation. The availability of novel molecular genetic and genomic approaches that attempt to identify and characterize 'speciation genes' has meant that non-model organisms can begin to contribute to our understanding of speciation in ways that until recently were only possible in model organisms like Drosophih. Importantly, these techniques allow speciationresearch to come out of the laboratory, to provide an interface between the genetics and ecology of speciation in both insects and other taxa. A good example of an organism ideally placed to take advantage of these latest techniques is the meadow grasshopper, Chorthippus pamllelus, and here we consider what C. parallelus can tell us about speciation genetics in an ecological context.