A Darwinian Laboratory of Multiple Contact Zones

Abstract

Barriers to gene flow between divergent populations result in contact (hybrid) zones. Locations where multiple contact zones overlap can be used in comparative studies asking: what mechanisms maintain barriers; what is the origin of the genetic variation involved; and do differences in life history affect the nature of barriers? In a review of 23 marine species' genetic divergence over a postglacial salinity gradient, many showed steep genetic clines supported by divergent selection and/or temporal or spatial segregation. Contacts were primary or secondary and shaped by ancestral variation sometimes involving inversions. The dispersal potential of species seemed less important in shaping clines. Studies of multispecies contact zones will increase our understanding of speciation, but we need to address the taxonomic bias and focus more on postzygotic isolation.