Durmaz Mitchell, Esra 
ORCID: 0000-0002-4345-2264, Kerdaffrec, Envel ORCID: 0000-0001-8667-6850, Harney, Ewan ORCID: 0000-0003-0680-3253, Paulo, Tânia F ORCID: 0000-0002-8815-2636, Veselinovic, Marija Savic ORCID: 0000-0001-8461-4373, Tanaskovic, Marija ORCID: 0000-0003-1440-2257, Tyukmaeva, Venera ORCID: 0000-0002-1864-5101, de Arcaya, Teresa Abaurrea Fernandez ORCID: 0000-0003-4304-9819, Aksoy, Cansu, Argyridou, Eliza ORCID: 0000-0002-6890-4642 et al (show 85 more authors)
(2025)
Continent-wide differentiation of fitness traits and patterns of climate adaptation among European populations of <i>Drosophila melanogaster</i>.
Evolution letters, 9 (4).
pp. 473-490.
ISSN 2056-3744, 2056-3744
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Abstract
A particularly well-studied evolutionary model is the vinegar fly <i>Drosophila melanogaster</i>, a cosmopolitan insect of ancestral southern-central African origin. Recent work suggests that it expanded out of Africa ∼9,000 years ago, and spread from the Middle East into Europe ∼1,800 years ago. During its global expansion, this human commensal adapted to novel climate zones and habitats. Despite much work on phenotypic differentiation and adaptation on several continents (especially North America and Australia), typically in the context of latitudinal clines, little is known about phenotypic divergence among European populations. Here, we sought to provide a continent-wide study of phenotypic differentiation among European populations of <i>D. melanogaster</i>. In a consortium-wide phenomics effort, we assayed 16 fitness-related traits on a panel of 173 isofemale lines from 9 European populations, with the majority of traits measured by several groups using semi-standardized protocols. For most fitness-related traits, we found significant differentiation among populations on a continental scale. Despite inevitable differences in assay conditions among labs, the reproducibility and hence robustness of our measurements were overall remarkably good. Several fitness components (e.g., viability, development time) exhibited significant latitudinal or longitudinal clines, and populations differed markedly in multivariate trait structure. Notably, populations experiencing higher humidity/rainfall and lower maximum temperature showed higher viability, fertility, starvation resistance, and lifespan at the expense of lower heat-shock survival, suggesting a pattern of local adaptation. Our results indicate that derived populations of this tropical fly have been shaped by pervasive spatially varying multivariate selection and adaptation to different climates on the European continent.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | D. melanogaster, Europe, adaptation, fitness traits, phenotypic variation, population differentiation |
| Divisions: | Faculty of Health & Life Sciences Faculty of Health & Life Sciences > Inst. Infection, Vet & Ecological Sciences Faculty of Health & Life Sciences > Inst. Infection, Vet & Ecological Sciences > Inst. Infection, Vet & Ecological Sciences (T&R Staff) Faculty of Health & Life Sciences > Inst. Infection, Vet & Ecological Sciences > Evolution, Ecology & Behaviour Faculty of Health & Life Sciences > Tech, Infrastructure & Env Directorate Faculty of Health & Life Sciences > Tech, Infrastructure & Env Directorate > Liverpool Shared Research Facilities |
| Depositing User: | Symplectic Admin |
| Date Deposited: | 22 Oct 2025 15:56 |
| Last Modified: | 22 Oct 2025 15:56 |
| DOI: | 10.1093/evlett/qraf014 |
| Related Websites: | |
| URI: | https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3194961 |
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