Polymorphism and Sexual Selection Dynamics in Insect Populations
Summary
Polymorphism in insects encompasses the coexistence of multiple phenotypes—often colour morphs or behavioural forms—within a single population. Such diversity arises and is maintained through interactions between genetic architecture and selective pressures, notably sexual selection. Male–male competition, female mate choice and sexual conflict over mating rates can drive the evolution of discrete morphs, with females frequently exhibiting colour variants that reduce harassment or mimic males. Balancing selection, including negative frequency-dependent selection, underpins the persistence of rare morphs by conferring fitness advantages when a form becomes less common. Advances in genomics have revealed how structural variants, regulatory changes and transposable elements generate novel morphs and influence their distribution across species boundaries. Understanding these dynamics has practical implications for conservation of polymorphic species, sustainable pest management and the study of rapid adaptive responses to environmental change.
Research from Nature Portfolio
Recent studies have elucidated the genomic underpinnings of female-limited polymorphisms in damselflies. Researchers have identified structural variants of several hundred kilobases on sex-linked chromosomes that give rise to male-mimic morphs and inter-sexual mimics. These novel genomic segments appear to have been mobilised by transposable elements and are partly shared between closely related species, indicating trans-species polymorphism. Population genomic analyses provide evidence that balancing selection maintains these morphs in the wild, with rarer forms experiencing reduced harassment and enhanced reproductive success. This work highlights how a handful of regulatory changes can generate complex phenotypic diversity subject to sexual selection and conflict.
Polymorphism and Sexual Selection Dynamics in Insect Populations publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in polymorphism and sexual selection dynamics in insect populations across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Polymorphism: The occurrence of two or more distinct phenotypes within a population.
Sexual selection: A form of selection wherein differential mating success arises from competition for mates or mate preferences.
Balancing selection: Selective forces that maintain genetic variation, including mechanisms like heterozygote advantage and frequency-dependent selection.
Negative frequency-dependent selection: A regime in which the fitness of a phenotype increases when it becomes rarer in the population.
Structural variant: A large-scale genomic alteration—such as an insertion, deletion or rearrangement—affecting gene content or regulation.
References
- The genomics and evolution of inter-sexual mimicry and female-limited polymorphisms in damselflies. Nature Ecology & Evolution (2023).
- Alternative reproductive strategies and the maintenance of female color polymorphism in damselflies. Ecology and Evolution (2017).
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