The genetics and evo-devo of butterfly wing patterns.
Understanding how the spectacular diversity of colour patterns on butterfly wings is shaped by natural selection, and how particular pattern elements are generated, has been the focus of both evolutionary and developmental biologists. The growing field of evolutionary developmental biology has now begun to provide a link between genetic variation and the phenotypes that are produced by developmental processes and that are sorted by natural selection. Butterfly wing patterns are set to become one of the few examples of morphological diversity to be studied successfully at many levels of biological organization, and thus to yield a more complete picture of adaptive morphological evolution.
Beldade
Patrícia
P
Institute of Evolutionary and Ecological Sciences, Leiden University, PO Box 9516, 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands. p.beldade@rulsfb.leidenuniv.nl
Brakefield
Paul M
PM
D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D002080:Butterflies / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000235:genetics*; D017753:Ecosystem; D014921:Wings, Animal / Q000033:anatomy & histology*