Invasive species often encounter novel selective pressures in their invaded range, and understanding their potential for rapid evolution is critical for developing effective management strategies. is an invasive drosophilid native to Africa that reached Florida in 2005 and likely re-establishes temperate North American populations each year. We addressed two evolutionary questions in this system: first, do populations evolve phenotypic changes in the generations immediately following colonization of temperate environments? Second, does evolve directional phenotypic changes along a latitudinal cline? We established isofemale lines from wild collections across space and time and measured twelve ecologically relevant phenotypes, using a reference population as a control.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe African fig fly, Zaprionus indianus (Gupta), is a generalist fruit fly that typically breeds in decaying fruits from over 70 plant species. The species has spread globally from its native range in tropical Africa, becoming an invasive pest on ripening figs in Brazil. First reported in the United States in 2005 in Florida, Z.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe African fig fly, (Gupta), has spread globally from its native range in tropical Africa, becoming an invasive crop pest in select areas such as Brazil. was first reported in the United States in 2005 and has since been documented as far north as Canada. As a tropical species, is expected to have low cold tolerance, likely limiting its ability to persist at northern latitudes.
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