Maria Servedio

University of North Carolina, USA

Patterns of migration, assortative mating, and the effects of sexual selection on speciation and divergence

[When and where]

Theoretical and empirical research on the evolution of reproductive isolation have both indicated that the effects of sexual selection on speciation with gene flow are quite complex. I focus on how two factors, the pattern of migration between incipient species and the mechanism leading to assortative mating, interact to alter the effect that sexual selection through mate choice has on speciation and trait divergence. I concentrate on two commonly-considered patterns of migration: a two-island pattern, as might approximate gene flow between incipient species following a vicariance event, and a contintnent-island pattern, as might approximate gene flow from a large population to a peripheral one. Similarly, I consider two mechanisms of assortative mating: phenotype matching and separate preferences and traits. I show that both of these factors interact to influence whether sexual selection has a driving, versus inhibitory role in divergence of a locally adapted trait between populations. I also discuss the evolution of assortative mating strength across these scenarios.

Keynote

Updated June 19, 2015, by Minus