BUSCADOR RECOLECTA

ZoboGrad-GENEPOP Individual genotypes of the 401 individuals at 12 microsatellite loci. This file is provided in the universal GENEPOP format. The first section corresponds to a list of the name of the loci. Then, each row represent a single individual: first column is the individual identifier and the following columns correspond to the length (concatenation of 2 x 3 digits) of the different alleles at the 12 loci (one column each). Sampling localities are separated by a empty lines. ZoboGrad-Morpho File summarizing the morphological data for each individual. Each line corresponds to a single individual with informations about sampling localities, ringer and all the morphological variables measured: weight (g), wing length (mm), tail length (mm), tarsus length (mm), bill length (mm), bill depth (mm) and bill width (mm)., Adaptation to local environmental conditions and the range dynamics of populations can influence evolutionary divergence along environmental gradients. Thus, it is important to investigate patterns of both phenotypic and genetic variation among populations to reveal the respective roles of these two types of factors in driving population differentiation. Here, we test for evidence of phenotypic and genetic structure across populations of a passerine bird (Zosterops borbonicus) distributed along a steep elevational gradient on the island of Réunion. Using eleven microsatellite loci screened in 401 individuals from 18 localities distributed along the gradient, we found that genetic differentiation occurred at two spatial levels: (i) between two main population groups corresponding to highland and lowland areas, respectively, and (ii) within each of these two groups. In contrast, several morphological traits varied gradually along the gradient. Comparison of neutral genetic differentiation (FST) and phenotypic differentiation (PST) showed that PST largely exceeds FST at several morphological traits, which is consistent with a role for local adaptation in driving morphological divergence along the gradient. Overall, our results revealed an area of secondary contact mid-way up the gradient between two major, cryptic, population groups likely diverged in allopatry. Remarkably, local adaptation has shaped phenotypic differentiation irrespective of population history, resulting in different patterns of variation along the elevational gradient. Our findings underscore the importance of understanding both historical and selective factors when trying to explain variation along environmental gradients., Peer reviewed

Phased DNA sequences and aminoacids This file contains all the phased sequences used in the study, with heterozygous gaps resolved. Fasta containing aminoacids translations are also provided for markers used in MK tests. Phased_DNA_sequences_and_amino_acids.zip Informations about individuals This file contains for each individual included in the study its identifier, its color form/morph, the locality where it was sampled and its sex. Individual_information.xlsx, Studies on melanin-based color variation in a context of natural selection have provided a wealth of information on the link between phenotypic and genetic variation. Here, we evaluated associations between melanic plumage patterns and genetic polymorphism in the Réunion grey white-eye (Zosterops borbonicus), a species in which mutations on MC1R do not seem to play any role in explaining melanic variation. This species exhibits five plumage color variants that can be grouped into three color forms which occupy discrete geographic regions in the lowlands of Réunion and a fourth form which comprises two color morphs (grey and brown), occurs at high elevation, and represents a true color polymorphism. We conducted a comprehensive survey of sequence variation in 96 individuals at a series of seven candidate genes other than MC1R that have been previously shown to influence melanin-based color patterns in vertebrates, including genes that have rarely been studied in a wild bird species before: POMC, Agouti, TYR, TYRP1, DCT, Corin and SLC24A5. Of these seven genes, two (Corin and TYRP1) displayed an interesting shift in allele frequencies between lowland and highland forms and a departure from mutation-drift equilibrium consistent with balancing selection in the polymorphic highland form only. Sequence variation at Agouti, a gene frequently involved in melanin-based pigmentation patterning, was not associated with color forms or morphs. Thus, we suggest that functionally important changes in loci other than those classically studied may beare involved in the color polymorphism exhibited by the Réunion grey white-eye and possibly many other non-model species., Peer reviewed