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Speciation of Cichlid Fishes by Sensory Drive

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From Genes to Animal Behavior

Part of the book series: Primatology Monographs ((PrimMono))

Abstract

What is the mechanism that drives speciation? This question is a major issue for Darwinian evolution and remains to be solved. Recently, a small teleost fish has provided an opportunity to study speciation. The lakes of East Africa harbor more than 1,000 closely related cichlid fishes. These populations are an ideal model system for understanding vertebrate speciation. In particular, the cichlid fish of Lake Victoria provide a unique opportunity to understand the molecular basis of speciation. Studies on these cichlids have led researchers to propose that the long-wavelength-sensitive opsin (LWS) gene was a strong candidate gene that has been responsible for speciation. Further analyses of the LWS gene and breeding coloration showed speciation by sensory drive in which adaptation of the sensory system for a particular environment drives the divergence of mating signals and leads to reproductive isolation. Therefore, sensory drive speciation may be one of the key mechanisms underlying the diversification of African cichlids. Moreover, we discuss the possibility of reproductive isolation by other sensors.

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Notes

  1. 1.

     Clines consist of forms of species that exhibit gradual phenotypic differences over a geographic area as a result of environmental heterogeneity.

  2. 2.

    Adaptive radiation is rapid evolutionary radiation characterized by an increase in the morphological and ecological diversity of a single lineage.

  3. 3.

    Polygyny is a form of mating in which a male mates with two or more females.

  4. 4.

    Sexual dimorphism is the systematic difference in form between individuals of different sex in the same species.

  5. 5.

    Agonistic display is the combative or territorial behavior of an animal that feels threatened by another animal of the same species.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate School of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 4259 Nagatsuta-cho, Midori-ku, Yokohama, 226-8501, Japan

    Yohey Terai

  2. Graduate School of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 4259 Nagatsuta-cho, Midori-ku, Yokohama, 226-8501, Japan

    Norihiro Okada

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  1. Yohey Terai
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Correspondence to Yohey Terai .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, 2-24 Tanakasekiden-cho, Sakyo-ku Kyoto, Kyoto, 606-8203, Japan

    Miho Inoue-Murayama Ph.D. (Professor) (Professor)

  2. Department of Integrated Biosciences Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Seimeitou 502, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8562, Japan

    Shoji Kawamura Ph.D. (Professor) (Professor)

  3. Psychology School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, 7 George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, UK

    Alexander Weiss Ph.D. (Senior Lecturer) (Senior Lecturer)

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Terai, Y., Okada, N. (2011). Speciation of Cichlid Fishes by Sensory Drive. In: Inoue-Murayama, M., Kawamura, S., Weiss, A. (eds) From Genes to Animal Behavior. Primatology Monographs. Springer, Tokyo. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-4-431-53892-9_15

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