{"entity": "researcher", "timestamp": "2026-10-05T20:38:34.563Z", "family": "Talavera", "given": "Gerard", "initials": "G", "orcid": "0000-0003-1112-1345", "affiliations": ["Institut Bot\u00e0nic de Barcelona (IBB), CSIC-Ajuntament de Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.", "Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology and Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA."], "links": {"self": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/1081486b2353478b8dba3388e819822b.json"}, "display": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/1081486b2353478b8dba3388e819822b"}}, "publications": [{"entity": "publication", "iuid": "79685133481d424091f6bbe60bed024e", "links": {"self": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/publication/79685133481d424091f6bbe60bed024e.json"}, "display": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/publication/79685133481d424091f6bbe60bed024e"}}, "title": "Resource Availability Modulates Gene Expression Across Life Stages in a Migratory Butterfly.", "authors": [{"family": "Shipilina", "given": "D", "initials": "D", "orcid": "0000-0002-1145-9226", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/758a7bdbc6654826ab7f06cf3938b5c3.json"}}, {"family": "H\u00f6\u00f6k", "given": "L", "initials": "L"}, {"family": "N\u00e4svall", "given": "K", "initials": "K"}, {"family": "Talla", "given": "V", "initials": "V"}, {"family": "Palah\u00ed", "given": "A", "initials": "A"}, {"family": "Parkes", "given": "E", "initials": "E"}, {"family": "Vila", "given": "R", "initials": "R", "orcid": "0000-0002-2447-4388", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/12f9f7ce050d463bb9a67d6970b9428a.json"}}, {"family": "Talavera", "given": "G", "initials": "G", "orcid": "0000-0003-1112-1345", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/1081486b2353478b8dba3388e819822b.json"}}, {"family": "Backstr\u00f6m", "given": "N", "initials": "N", "orcid": "0000-0002-0961-8427", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/674a0756dcf44e79ac6a6a2499b01760.json"}}], "type": "journal article", "published": "2026-03-00", "journal": {"title": "Mol. Ecol.", "issn": "1365-294X", "volume": "35", "issue": "5", "pages": "e70293", "issn-l": "0962-1083"}, "abstract": "Natural populations are in constant need of balancing resource allocation to compensate for seasonal environmental variation. In many insects, a well-established trade-off between migration and reproduction exists. While this trade-off has been characterised phenotypically for decades, the underlying regulatory pathways are poorly understood. Here, we examined how resource-related environmental cues shape transcription across development in the long-distance migrant butterfly Vanessa cardui. In a multi-cue, developmental stage-specific design, adult females were exposed to host-plant presence or absence, while larvae experienced food limitation or crowding. Adult exposure to host plants was associated with differential expression in ecdysteroid and juvenile-hormone pathways, consistent with endocrine regulation of reproductive readiness and predictions of the oogenesis-flight syndrome. Larval resource limitation altered developmental and metabolic pathways, suggesting molecular predispositions and potential carry-over effects to adult traits. Across all contrasts, metabolism emerged as a shared axis linking responses across life stages. Together, our results show that resource-driven cues leave both stage-specific and general transcriptional signatures that connect environmental context with the molecular basis of migratory behaviour.", "doi": "10.1111/mec.70293", "pmid": "41797265", "labels": {"National Genomics Infrastructure": "Service", "NGI Stockholm (Genomics Production)": "Service", "NGI Short read": "Service"}, "xrefs": [{"db": "pmc", "key": "PMC12968515"}], "notes": [], "created": "2026-03-23T13:21:43.409Z", "modified": "2026-03-23T13:21:43.572Z"}, {"entity": "publication", "iuid": "8901ae491c224ece95ecca7bcd0fb242", "links": {"self": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/publication/8901ae491c224ece95ecca7bcd0fb242.json"}, "display": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/publication/8901ae491c224ece95ecca7bcd0fb242"}}, "title": "An Equatorial Hemispheric Barrier Shapes the Diversification of Migratory Belenois Butterflies.", "authors": [{"family": "Janiczek", "given": "Anna", "initials": "A", "orcid": "0009-0002-8654-6946", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/57a0474b15674fb08e3572896dd004ee.json"}}, {"family": "Palah\u00ed", "given": "Aleix", "initials": "A", "orcid": "0000-0002-1373-4949", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/ee01ff0f2c3746939dbf64a7fca04439.json"}}, {"family": "Dapporto", "given": "Leonardo", "initials": "L", "orcid": "0000-0001-7129-4526", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/17d272c2c8214d8fb107f095ac656297.json"}}, {"family": "D\u00edaz-Mart\u00ednez", "given": "Gemma", "initials": "G", "orcid": "0009-0003-4084-4734", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/dbfd1115d0274688a24ca44352e00d6d.json"}}, {"family": "Nazari", "given": "Vazrick", "initials": "V", "orcid": "0000-0001-9064-8959", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/47148cc85ab042d78cfcaf5b406e3a95.json"}}, {"family": "Garc\u00eda-Berro", "given": "Aurora", "initials": "A", "orcid": "0000-0002-2419-2516", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/7fdb6dd337074a89bf36e3b06458f042.json"}}, {"family": "Bahleman", "given": "Farid", "initials": "F", "orcid": "0000-0002-5439-0804", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/f22a3054ef304d08972c52077aeceaa9.json"}}, {"family": "Collins", "given": "Steve C", "initials": "SC"}, {"family": "Akite", "given": "Perpetra", "initials": "P", "orcid": "0000-0002-0302-1822", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/19097e8ac2ed4f8580906122df0da105.json"}}, {"family": "Braby", "given": "Michael F", "initials": "MF", "orcid": "0000-0002-5438-587X", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/74c15f10e0aa48488f51ddec5282dfb9.json"}}, {"family": "Backstr\u00f6m", "given": "Niclas", "initials": "N", "orcid": "0000-0002-0961-8427", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/674a0756dcf44e79ac6a6a2499b01760.json"}}, {"family": "Vila", "given": "Roger", "initials": "R", "orcid": "0000-0002-2447-4388", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/12f9f7ce050d463bb9a67d6970b9428a.json"}}, {"family": "Suchan", "given": "Tomasz", "initials": "T", "orcid": "0000-0002-0811-8754", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/8b3c7df2089e4060a8ad426a5570654c.json"}}, {"family": "Talavera", "given": "Gerard", "initials": "G", "orcid": "0000-0003-1112-1345", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/1081486b2353478b8dba3388e819822b.json"}}], "type": "journal article", "published": "2026-03-00", "journal": {"title": "Mol. Ecol.", "issn": "1365-294X", "volume": "35", "issue": "6", "pages": "e70310", "issn-l": "0962-1083"}, "abstract": "Biogeographic barriers are typically considered prominent geographic features that block or severely restrict dispersal and gene flow. However, mating barriers can also emerge within continuous suitable habitats, driven by ecological or behavioural constraints. Migratory insects show an extraordinary capacity to traverse vast geographic ranges, as well as notable landscape features like mountains, deserts and oceans. Yet, their movements are not unrestricted: they are shaped by seasonal dynamics that dictate the feasibility of migration across these landscapes. Hemisphericity, the existence of inverted seasonal regimes and orientation cues in the two latitudinal hemispheres, has been proposed as a potential abiotic barrier involved in the diversification of migratory insects. Here, we use population genomic data to investigate patterns of diversification in migratory caper butterflies (Belenois spp.) across Africa. We identify a striking phylogeographic break around the equator in Belenois aurota, and emerging population structure between northern and southern African populations in Belenois creona, consistent with migratory divides aligned with hemispheric barriers. These divergences largely predate the Last Glacial Maximum, when major environmental changes such as contractions-expansions of equatorial rainforests and savannahs occurred. This reinforces the hypothesis that long-term abiotic factors, such as hemisphericity, had a role in limiting north-south dispersal. Given the absence of detectable gene flow detected even in sympatric populations of B. aurota in their contact zone in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania, we argue that populations from the Northern and Southern Hemispheres represent different species, and reinstate the taxon Belenois syrinx (Wallengren 1860) reinst. stat. for the Southern African lineage. Our findings provide genomic evidence of migratory divides in insects, which surprisingly emerge in the absence of physical barriers in the landscape, highlighting a role of hemisphere-specific adaptations in driving reproductive isolation and diversification in migratory insects.", "doi": "10.1111/mec.70310", "pmid": "41860563", "labels": {"National Genomics Infrastructure": "Service", "NGI Stockholm (Genomics Production)": "Service", "NGI Short read": "Service"}, "xrefs": [{"db": "pmc", "key": "PMC13004182"}], "notes": [], "created": "2026-03-23T13:39:58.929Z", "modified": "2026-03-23T13:39:59.651Z"}, {"entity": "publication", "iuid": "96f3d22ca79f4d718217e5f0af6a3865", "links": {"self": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/publication/96f3d22ca79f4d718217e5f0af6a3865.json"}, "display": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/publication/96f3d22ca79f4d718217e5f0af6a3865"}}, "title": "A north-south hemispheric migratory divide in the butterfly Vanessa cardui.", "authors": [{"family": "Garc\u00eda-Berro", "given": "Aurora", "initials": "A", "orcid": "0000-0002-2419-2516", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/7fdb6dd337074a89bf36e3b06458f042.json"}}, {"family": "Shipilina", "given": "Daria", "initials": "D", "orcid": "0000-0002-1145-9226", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/758a7bdbc6654826ab7f06cf3938b5c3.json"}}, {"family": "Backstr\u00f6m", "given": "Niclas", "initials": "N", "orcid": "0000-0002-0961-8427", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/674a0756dcf44e79ac6a6a2499b01760.json"}}, {"family": "Suchan", "given": "Tomasz", "initials": "T", "orcid": "0000-0002-0811-8754", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/8b3c7df2089e4060a8ad426a5570654c.json"}}, {"family": "Palah\u00ed", "given": "Aleix", "initials": "A", "orcid": "0000-0002-1373-4949", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/ee01ff0f2c3746939dbf64a7fca04439.json"}}, {"family": "Collins", "given": "Steve C", "initials": "SC"}, {"family": "Martins", "given": "Dino J", "initials": "DJ"}, {"family": "Pierce", "given": "Naomi E", "initials": "NE", "orcid": "0000-0003-3366-1625", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/7c1e6c94b58244ada2442e0541168252.json"}}, {"family": "Vila", "given": "Roger", "initials": "R", "orcid": "0000-0002-2447-4388", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/12f9f7ce050d463bb9a67d6970b9428a.json"}}, {"family": "Talavera", "given": "Gerard", "initials": "G", "orcid": "0000-0003-1112-1345", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/1081486b2353478b8dba3388e819822b.json"}}], "type": "journal article", "published": "2025-12-30", "journal": {"title": "Nat Commun", "issn": "2041-1723", "volume": "16", "issue": "1", "pages": "11341", "issn-l": "2041-1723"}, "abstract": "Reversed seasonality and distinct navigation cues in the Earth's two hemispheres may shape the evolution of migratory behaviour in animals. Migratory divides-contact zones where populations have evolved alternative migratory strategies-are well-documented in birds and typically occur longitudinally. We hypothesise that insect migratory divides are less likely to emerge longitudinally, but may exist latitudinally, driven by hemisphere-specific sensory adaptations that lead to spatial and temporal isolation. Here, we examine this hypothesis in the cosmopolitan painted lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui), whose Southern Hemisphere dynamics remain unexplored. Investigating the genomes of 300 individuals across Africa and Europe, we identify a 9 Mb chromosomal inversion on chromosome 8, which exhibits strong haplotype structure aligned with hemispheric origin, with a few potential heterozygotes near the equator. The inversion harbours 336 genes, including several directly relevant to migration. Notably, one inversion breakpoint intersects the gene encoding the GABA-B receptor, which responds to the neuropeptide \u03b3-aminobutyric acid (GABA), crucial for insect navigation. Our findings provide genomic evidence of a migratory divide in insects and highlight the role of inverted seasonality in the two hemispheres and genomic rearrangements as isolating barriers for highly mobile species.", "doi": "10.1038/s41467-025-67185-7", "pmid": "41469375", "labels": {"National Genomics Infrastructure": "Service", "NGI Stockholm (Genomics Production)": "Service", "NGI Short read": "Service"}, "xrefs": [{"db": "pmc", "key": "PMC12753642"}, {"db": "pii", "key": "10.1038/s41467-025-67185-7"}], "notes": [], "created": "2026-01-07T11:02:45.340Z", "modified": "2026-01-07T11:02:45.758Z"}, {"entity": "publication", "iuid": "96d10598a8c646709a856908160899d8", "links": {"self": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/publication/96d10598a8c646709a856908160899d8.json"}, "display": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/publication/96d10598a8c646709a856908160899d8"}}, "title": "Isotope geolocation and population genomics in Vanessa cardui: Short- and long-distance migrants are genetically undifferentiated.", "authors": [{"family": "Reich", "given": "Megan S", "initials": "MS", "orcid": "0000-0002-0597-4854", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/fe7c3c3a6e8346e4b235a5c6476bc9dc.json"}}, {"family": "Shipilina", "given": "Daria", "initials": "D", "orcid": "0000-0002-1145-9226", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/758a7bdbc6654826ab7f06cf3938b5c3.json"}}, {"family": "Talla", "given": "Venkat", "initials": "V", "orcid": "0000-0003-2653-6770", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/703518ce5a1f4e5ea04719016173a867.json"}}, {"family": "Bahleman", "given": "Farid", "initials": "F"}, {"family": "K\u00e9b\u00e9", "given": "Khadim", "initials": "K", "orcid": "0000-0003-0041-4919", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/e46e3cc21b2949eb9611d101fe31b7dc.json"}}, {"family": "Berger", "given": "Johanna L", "initials": "JL", "orcid": "0000-0003-4847-2413", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/8b1d5d0f9e5e4d39ab429f6dc6905550.json"}}, {"family": "Backstr\u00f6m", "given": "Niclas", "initials": "N", "orcid": "0000-0002-0961-8427", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/674a0756dcf44e79ac6a6a2499b01760.json"}}, {"family": "Talavera", "given": "Gerard", "initials": "G", "orcid": "0000-0003-1112-1345", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/1081486b2353478b8dba3388e819822b.json"}}, {"family": "Bataille", "given": "Cl\u00e9ment P", "initials": "CP", "orcid": "0000-0001-8625-4658", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/70612fa6163b42c6b62ec5aca937421d.json"}}], "type": "journal article", "published": "2025-02-00", "journal": {"title": "PNAS Nexus", "issn": "2752-6542", "volume": "4", "issue": "2", "pages": "pgae586", "issn-l": null}, "abstract": "The painted lady butterfly Vanessa cardui is renowned for its virtually cosmopolitan distribution and the remarkable long-distance migrations as part of its annual, multigenerational migratory cycle. In winter, V. cardui individuals inhabit breeding grounds north and south of the Sahara, suggesting distinct migratory behaviors within the species as individuals migrate southward from Europe in the autumn. However, the evolutionary and ecological factors shaping these differences in migratory behavior remain largely unexplored. Here, we performed whole-genome resequencing and analyzed the hydrogen and strontium isotopes of 40 V. cardui individuals simultaneously collected in the autumn from regions both north and south of the Sahara. Our investigation revealed two main migratory groups: (i) short-distance migrants, journeying from temperate Europe to the circum-Mediterranean region and (ii) long-distance migrants, originating from Europe, crossing the Mediterranean Sea and Sahara, and reaching West Africa, covering up to over 4,000 km. Despite these stark differences in migration distance, a genome-wide analysis revealed that short- and long-distance migrants belong to a single intercontinental panmictic population extending from northern Europe to sub-Saharan Africa. Contrary to common biogeographic patterns, the Sahara is not a catalyst for population structuring in this species. No significant genetic differentiation or signs of adaptation and selection were observed between the two migratory phenotypes. Nonetheless, two individuals, who were early arrivals to West Africa covering longer migration distances, exhibited some genetic differentiation. The lack of genetic structure between short- and long-distance migrants suggests that migration distance in V. cardui is a plastic response to environmental conditions.", "doi": "10.1093/pnasnexus/pgae586", "pmid": "39906311", "labels": {"National Genomics Infrastructure": "Service", "NGI Stockholm (Genomics Production)": "Service", "NGI Short read": "Service"}, "xrefs": [{"db": "pmc", "key": "PMC11792081"}, {"db": "pii", "key": "pgae586"}], "notes": [], "created": "2025-11-21T13:43:02.246Z", "modified": "2025-11-21T13:43:02.809Z"}, {"entity": "publication", "iuid": "c7a01707163a492680ecdd4294d2c2b0", "links": {"self": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/publication/c7a01707163a492680ecdd4294d2c2b0.json"}, "display": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/publication/c7a01707163a492680ecdd4294d2c2b0"}}, "title": "Environmental stress during larval development induces DNA methylation shifts in the migratory painted lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui).", "authors": [{"family": "Boman", "given": "Jesper", "initials": "J", "orcid": "0000-0002-0537-8219", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/669c974e6e284e94bfb6009f49ffc06d.json"}}, {"family": "Zhu", "given": "Yishu", "initials": "Y"}, {"family": "H\u00f6\u00f6k", "given": "Lars", "initials": "L"}, {"family": "Vila", "given": "Roger", "initials": "R", "orcid": "0000-0002-2447-4388", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/12f9f7ce050d463bb9a67d6970b9428a.json"}}, {"family": "Talavera", "given": "Gerard", "initials": "G", "orcid": "0000-0003-1112-1345", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/1081486b2353478b8dba3388e819822b.json"}}, {"family": "Backstr\u00f6m", "given": "Niclas", "initials": "N", "orcid": "0000-0002-0961-8427", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/674a0756dcf44e79ac6a6a2499b01760.json"}}], "type": "journal article", "published": "2023-07-00", "journal": {"title": "Mol. Ecol.", "issn": "1365-294X", "issn-l": "0962-1083", "volume": "32", "issue": "13", "pages": "3513-3523"}, "abstract": "Seasonal environmental fluctuations provide formidable challenges for living organisms, especially small ectotherms such as butterflies. A common strategy to cope with harsh environments is to enter diapause, but some species avoid unsuitable conditions by migrating. Despite a growing understanding of migration in the life cycles of some butterfly species, it remains unknown how individuals register and store environmental cues to determine whether and where to migrate. Here, we explored how competition and host plant availability during larval development affect patterns of DNA methylation in the migratory painted lady (Vanessa cardui) butterfly. We identify a set of potentially functional methylome shifts associated with differences in the environment, indicating that DNA methylation is involved in the response to different conditions during larval development. By analysing the transcriptome for the same samples used for methylation profiling, we also uncovered a non-monotonic relationship between gene body methylation and gene expression. Our results provide a starting point for understanding the interplay between DNA methylation and gene expression in butterflies in general and how differences in environmental conditions during development can trigger unique epigenetic marks that might be important for behavioural decisions in the adult stage.", "doi": "10.1111/mec.16957", "pmid": "37088782", "labels": {"NGI Short read": "Service", "National Genomics Infrastructure": "Service", "NGI Stockholm (Genomics Production)": "Service", "NGI Uppsala (SNP&SEQ Technology Platform)": "Service", "Bioinformatics Support for Computational Resources": "Service"}, "xrefs": [], "notes": [], "created": "2023-10-04T12:44:28.636Z", "modified": "2024-01-16T13:48:33.060Z"}, {"entity": "publication", "iuid": "9257ffe92beb4896a039c75856d3f506", "links": {"self": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/publication/9257ffe92beb4896a039c75856d3f506.json"}, "display": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/publication/9257ffe92beb4896a039c75856d3f506"}}, "title": "Migratory behaviour is positively associated with genetic diversity in butterflies.", "authors": [{"family": "Garc\u00eda-Berro", "given": "Aurora", "initials": "A", "orcid": "0000-0002-2419-2516", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/7fdb6dd337074a89bf36e3b06458f042.json"}}, {"family": "Talla", "given": "Venkat", "initials": "V", "orcid": "0000-0003-2653-6770", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/703518ce5a1f4e5ea04719016173a867.json"}}, {"family": "Vila", "given": "Roger", "initials": "R", "orcid": "0000-0002-2447-4388", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/12f9f7ce050d463bb9a67d6970b9428a.json"}}, {"family": "Wai", "given": "Hong Kar", "initials": "HK", "orcid": "0000-0002-3489-9056", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/7ed472ef61e94c6b819a009dae03d975.json"}}, {"family": "Shipilina", "given": "Daria", "initials": "D", "orcid": "0000-0002-1145-9226", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/758a7bdbc6654826ab7f06cf3938b5c3.json"}}, {"family": "Chan", "given": "Kok Gan", "initials": "KG", "orcid": "0000-0002-1883-1115", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/3bb4e116b64d4fa5bb617a53d1bca336.json"}}, {"family": "Pierce", "given": "Naomi E", "initials": "NE", "orcid": "0000-0003-3366-1625", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/7c1e6c94b58244ada2442e0541168252.json"}}, {"family": "Backstr\u00f6m", "given": "Niclas", "initials": "N", "orcid": "0000-0002-0961-8427", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/674a0756dcf44e79ac6a6a2499b01760.json"}}, {"family": "Talavera", "given": "Gerard", "initials": "G", "orcid": "0000-0003-1112-1345", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications.scilifelab.se/researcher/1081486b2353478b8dba3388e819822b.json"}}], "type": "journal article", "published": "2023-02-00", "journal": {"title": "Mol. Ecol.", "issn": "1365-294X", "issn-l": "0962-1083", "volume": "32", "issue": "3", "pages": "560-574"}, "abstract": "Migration is typically associated with risk and uncertainty at the population level, but little is known about its cost-benefit trade-offs at the species level. Migratory insects in particular often exhibit strong demographic fluctuations due to local bottlenecks and outbreaks. Here, we use genomic data to investigate levels of heterozygosity and long-term population size dynamics in migratory insects, as an alternative to classical local and short-term approaches such as regional field monitoring. We analyse whole-genome sequences from 97 Lepidoptera species and show that individuals of migratory species have significantly higher levels of genome-wide heterozygosity, a proxy for effective population size, than do nonmigratory species. Also, we contribute whole-genome data for one of the most emblematic insect migratory species, the painted lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui), sampled across its worldwide distributional range. This species exhibits one of the highest levels of genomic heterozygosity described in Lepidoptera (2.95 \u00b1 0.15%). Coalescent modelling (PSMC) shows historical demographic stability in V. cardui, and high effective population size estimates of 2-20 million individuals 10,000 years ago. The study reveals that the high risks associated with migration and local environmental fluctuations do not seem to decrease overall genetic diversity and demographic stability in migratory Lepidoptera. We propose a \"compensatory\" demographic model for migratory r-strategist organisms in which local bottlenecks are counterbalanced by reproductive success elsewhere within their typically large distributional ranges. Our findings highlight that the boundaries of populations are substantially different for sedentary and migratory insects, and that, in the latter, local and even regional field monitoring results may not reflect whole population dynamics. Genomic diversity patterns may elucidate key aspects of an insect's migratory nature and population dynamics at large spatiotemporal scales.", "doi": "10.1111/mec.16770", "pmid": "36336800", "labels": {"National Genomics Infrastructure": "Service", "NGI Stockholm (Genomics Production)": "Service", "NGI Short read": "Service", "Bioinformatics Support for Computational Resources": "Service"}, "xrefs": [{"db": "pmc", "key": "PMC10100375"}], "notes": [], "created": "2022-12-19T10:42:50.812Z", "modified": "2024-01-16T13:48:34.019Z"}]}