RT Journal Article
T1 Adaptive phenotypic and genomic divergence in the common chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs) following niche expansion within a small oceanic island
A1 Recuerda, María
A1 Palacios López, María Merce
A1 Frías, Oscar
A1 Hobson, Keith
A1 Nabholz, Benoit
A1 Blanco, Guillermo
A1 Milá, Borja
AB According to models of ecological speciation, adaptation to adjacent, contrasting habitat types can lead to population divergence given strong enough environment-driven selection to counteract the homogenizing effect of gene flow. We tested this hypothesis in the common chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs) on the small island of La Palma, Canary Islands, where it occupies two markedly different habitats. Isotopic (δ13C, δ15N) analysis of feathers indicated that birds in the two habitats differed in ecosystem and/or diet, and analysis of phenotypic traits revealed significant differences in morphology and plumage colouration that are consistent with ecomorphological and ecogeographical predictions respectively. A genome-wide survey of single-nucleotide polymorphism revealed marked neutral structure that was consistent with geography and isolation by distance, suggesting low dispersal. In contrast, loci putatively under selection identified through genome-wide association and genotype-environment association analyses, revealed a marked adaptive divergence between birds in both habitats. Loci associated with phenotypic and environmental differences among habitats were distributed across the genome, as expected for polygenic traits involved in local adaptation. Our results suggest a strong role for habitat-driven local adaptation in population divergence in the chaffinches of La Palma, a process that appears to be facilitated by a strong reduction in effective dispersal distances despite the birds' high dispersal capacity.
PB Wiley
SN 1420-9101
YR 2023
FD 2023-06-18
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/121504
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/121504
LA eng
NO Recuerda, M., Palacios, M., Frías, O., Hobson, K., Nabholz, B., Blanco, G., & Milá, B. (2023). Adaptive phenotypic and genomic divergence in the common chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs) following niche expansion within a small oceanic island. Journal of Evolutionary Biology, 36(9), 1226–1241. https://doi.org/10.1111/jeb.14200
NO Financiación: Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (CGL2015-66381P, PGC2018-098897-B-I00) y Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte (FPU16/05724) .Agradecimientos: Apoyo logístico del Cabildo de La Palma y permisos de investigación del Gobierno de Canarias
NO Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (España)
NO Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte (España)
DS Docta Complutense
RD 19 mar 2026