Genomic Signatures of Speciation in Sympatric and Allopatric Hawaiian picture-winged Drosophila

Understanding the genomic changes involved in speciation is a major goal of modern evolutionary biology. Such understanding will require the combined analysis of genome structural differences, gene-level divergence, and phenotypic measures of reproductive barriers between closely related species representing a range of speciation modes.The Hawaiian archipelago provides a natural arena for understanding adaptive radiation and speciation. The Hawaiian Drosophila are one of the most diverse endemic groups in Hawaii with up to 1000 species. We sequenced and analyzed entire genomes of recently diverged species of Hawaiian picture-winged Drosophila, D. silvestris and D. heteroneura from Hawai’i Island, in comparison with D. planitibia, their sister species from Maui.