Phenotypic differentiation is associated with divergent sexual selection among closely related barn swallow populations

Sexual selection plays a key role in the diversification of numerous animal clades and may accelerate trait divergence during speciation. However, much of our understanding of this process comes from phylogenetic comparative studies, which rely on surrogate measures such as dimorphism that may not represent selection in wild populations. In this study, we assess sexual selection pressures for multiple male visual signals across four barn swallow (Hirundo rustica) populations. Our sample encompassed 2400 linear km and two described subspecies: European H. r. rustica (in the Czech Republic and Romania) and Eastern Mediterranean H. r. transitiva (in Israel), as well as a potential area of contact (in Turkey). We demonstrate significant phenotypic differentiation in four sexual signaling axes, despite very low-level genomic divergence and no comparable divergence in an ecological trait. Moreover, the direction of phenotypic divergence is consistent with differences in sexual selection press...