PARTIAL REPRODUCTIVE ISOLATION OF A RECENTLY DERIVED RESIDENT-FRESHWATER POPULATION OF THREESPINE STICKLEBACK (GASTEROSTEUS ACULEATUS) FROM ITS PUTATIVE ANADROMOUS ANCESTOR

• Published in: Evolution Vol. 66; no. 10; pp. 3277 - 3286
• Main Authors: Furin, Christoff G, von Hippel, Frank A, Bell, Michael A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Malden, USA Blackwell Publishing Inc 01.10.2012; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc; Oxford University Press
• Subjects: Adaptation, Biological; Animal reproduction; Animals; Assortative mating; asymmetric mate choice; Biological evolution; BRIEF COMMUNICATION; Correlation analysis; Ecological genetics; Evolution; Female; Female animals; Fish; Genetic Speciation; Male; Male animals; Mating behavior; Mating Preference, Animal; Morphology; Population biology; Population ecology; premating isolation; Rabbits; rapid evolution; Reproductive Isolation; Smegmamorpha; Speciation; Alaska
• ISSN: 0014-3820; 1558-5646
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.2012.01672.x

We used no-choice mating trials to test for assortative mating between a newly derived resident-freshwater population (8—22 generations since founding) of threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) in Loberg Lake, Alaska and its putative anadromous ancestor as well as a morphologically convergent but distantly related resident-freshwater population. Partial reproductive isolation has evolved between the Loberg Lake population and its ancestor within a remarkably short time period. However, Loberg stickleback readily mate with morphologically similar, but distantly related resident-freshwater stickleback. Partial premating isolation is asymmetrical; anadromous females and smaller resident-freshwater males from Loberg Lake readily mate, but the anadromous males and smaller Loberg females do not. Our results indicate that premating isolation can begin to evolve in allopatry within a few generations after isolation as a correlated effect of evolution of reduced body size.