scholarly journals Are eastern and western monarch butterflies distinct populations? A review of evidence for ecological, phenotypic, and genetic differentiation and implications for conservation

Author(s):  
Micah G. Freedman ◽  
Jacobus C. Roode ◽  
Matthew L. Forister ◽  
Marcus R. Kronforst ◽  
Amanda A. Pierce ◽  
...  
2012 ◽  
Vol 21 (14) ◽  
pp. 3433-3444 ◽  
Author(s):  
JUSTINE I. LYONS ◽  
AMANDA A. PIERCE ◽  
SETH M. BARRIBEAU ◽  
ELEANORE D. STERNBERG ◽  
ANDREW J. MONGUE ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Micah Freedman ◽  
Jacobus De Roode ◽  
Matthew Forister ◽  
Marcus Kronforst ◽  
Amanda Pierce ◽  
...  

Monarch butterflies are a species of conservation priority due to declining overwintering populations in both eastern and western North America. Declines in western overwintering monarchs—more than 99% since monitoring began—are especially acute. However, the degree to which the western monarch is a distinct biological entity is uncertain. In this review, we focus on phenotypic and genetic differentiation between eastern and western monarchs, with the goal of informing researchers and policy-makers who are interested in monarch conservation. Eastern and western monarchs occupy distinct environments and show some evidence for phenotypic differentiation—particularly for migration-associated traits—though population genetic and genomic studies suggest that they are genetically indistinguishable from one another. We suggest future studies that could improve our understanding of differences between eastern and western monarchs. We also discuss the concept of adaptive capacity in eastern and western monarchs as well as non-migratory populations outside of the monarch’s primary North American range.


2018 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
FAZAL AKBAR ◽  
ABDUL LATIF KHAN ◽  
SYED ABDULLAH GILANI ◽  
AHMED AL-HARRASI ◽  
ABDULLAH M. AL-SADI ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Eisuke Hasegawa ◽  
Yuuka Murakami ◽  
So Shiraiwa ◽  
Tatsumi Kudo

Author(s):  
Francisco J. Ayala ◽  
Camilo J. Cela-Conde

This chapter deals with the similarities and differences between Homo neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens, by considering genetic, brain, and cognitive evidence. The genetic differentiation emerges from fossil genetic evidence obtained first from mtDNA and later from nuclear DNA. With high throughput whole genome sequencing, sequences have been obtained from the Denisova Cave (Siberia) fossils. Nuclear DNA of a third species (“Denisovans”) has been obtained from the same cave and used to define the phylogenetic relationships among the three species during the Upper Palaeolithic. Archaeological comparisons make it possible to advance a four-mode model of the evolution of symbolism. Neanderthals and modern humans would share a “modern mind” as defined up to Symbolic Mode 3. Whether the Neanderthals reached symbolic Mode 4 remains unsettled.


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