Data from: The genetic basis of color-related local adaptation in a ring-like colonization around the Mediterranean

Uncovering the genetic basis of phenotypic variation and the population history under which it established is key to understand the trajectories along which local adaptation evolves. Here, we investigated the genetic basis and evolutionary history of a clinal plumage color polymorphism in European barn owls (Tyto alba). Our results suggest that barn owls colonized the Western Palearctic in a ring-like manner around the Mediterranean and meet in secondary contact in Greece. Rufous coloration appears to be linked to a recently evolved non-synonymous derived variant of the melanocortin-1-receptor (MC1R) gene, which according to quantitative genetic analyses evolved under local adaptation during or following the colonization of Central Europe. Admixture patterns and linkage disequilibrium between the neutral genetic background and color found exclusively within the secondary contact zone suggest limited introgression at secondary contact. These results from a system reminiscent of ring species provide a striking example of how local adaptation can evolve from derived genetic variation.揭示表型变异的遗传基础及其形成的种群历史，是解析局部适应演化路径的核心所在。本研究针对欧洲仓鸮（Tyto alba）的梯度式羽色多态现象，解析其遗传基础与演化历史。研究结果显示，仓鸮以环绕地中海的环状扩散方式拓殖西古北界（Western Palearctic），并在希腊地区形成次生接触带。经鉴定，赤褐色羽色与黑皮质素1受体（MC1R）基因新近演化出的非同义衍生变异存在关联；数量遗传分析表明，该变异在中欧拓殖期间或之后经历了局部适应选择。仅在次生接触带中检测到的中性遗传背景与羽色间的混合模式及连锁不平衡特征，表明次生接触地带的基因渐渗（introgression）程度有限。本研究以类似环物种（ring species）的系统为研究对象，其结果生动展示了局部适应如何通过衍生遗传变异演化而来。