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We investigated associations between Northern Mockingbirds (Mimus polyglottos) and the nest parasite Philornis porteri (Diptera: Muscidae), and how they vary with urbanization in northcentral Florida. Our goal was to ascertain if the 'parasite-release' hypothesis could contribute to high reproductive success of Northern Mockingbirds in urban areas. We collected 26 nests in 2007 and 73 in 2008 that had produced fledglings along an urbanization gradient, and measured the number of nests parasitized and the number of P. porteri in the nests. Habitats differed in prevalence of Philornis parasitism, but not directly in relation to urbanization. Parking lots and wildlife preserves had low levels of parasitism, whereas residential neighborhoods and pastures had significantly higher parasitism prevalence. Parasite prevalence was also significantly and positively affected by nest height and percentage of ground covered by buildings, trees, and open areas in the study site. Our findings do not offer strong support for the 'parasite-release' hypothesis in relation to urbanization, but suggest that vulnerability to parasites is habitat-specific. Received 2 April 2010. Accepted 27 June 2011., Urbanization causes high local extinction rates and replacement of many species by others that survive well in urban areas (McKinney 2002, Blair 2004, Gottschalk et al. 2007), which we refer [...]

Fossilized leaf mines and other traces of phytophagous insects provide a unique window into ecological and evolutionary associations of the past. Leaf-mining flies (Diptera: Agromyzidae) are an important component of the recent leaf-mining fauna, but their fossil record is sparse compared to other mining insect lineages; many putative agromyzid body fossils and traces are dubiously assigned. Agromyzid leaf mines often can be distinguished from those of other insects by the presence of an intermittent, fluidized frass trail that may alternate between the sides of the mine. Here, we describe two new Paleogene leaf mine fossils, Phytomyzites biliapchaensis Winkler, Labandeira and Wilf n. sp. from the early Paleocene of southeastern Montana, USA, occurring in leaves of Platanus raynoldsii (Platanaceae); and Phytomyzites schaarschmidti Wappler n. sp., from the middle Eocene of Messel, Germany, occurring in leaves of Toddalia ovata (Rutaceae). These fossils both exhibit frass trails indicative of an agromyzid origin, and P. biliapchaensis also exhibits associated stereotypical marks identical to damage caused by feeding punctures of extant adult female Agromyzidae prior to oviposition. Phytomyzites biliapchaensis represents the earliest confirmed record of Agromyzidae, and one of the earliest records for the large dipteran clade Schizophora. Plant hosts of both species belong to genera that are no longer hosts of leaf-mining Agromyzidae, suggesting a complex and dynamic history of early host-plant associations and, for the early Paleocene example, an evolutionary, possibly opportunistic colonization in the midst of the ecological chaos following the end-Cretaceous event in North America.

In the antennal lobe of Drosophila, information about odors is transferred from olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs) to projection neurons (PNs), which then send axons to neurons in the lateral horn of the protocerebrum (LHNs) and to Kenyon cells (KCs) in the mushroom body. The transformation from ORN to PN responses can be described by a normalization model similar to what has been used in modeling visually responsive neurons. We study the implications of this transformation for the generation of LHN and KC responses under the hypothesis that LHN responses are highly selective and therefore suitable for driving innate behaviors, whereas KCs provide a more general sparse representation of odors suitable for forming learned behavioral associations. Our results indicate that the transformation from ORN to PN firing rates in the antennal lobe equalizes the magnitudes of and decorrelates responses to different odors through feedforward nonlinearities and lateral suppression within the circuitry of the antennal lobe, and we study how these two components affect LHN and KC responses. antennal lobe | decorrelation | lateral horn | normalization | olfaction doi/ 10.1073/pnas.1005635107

Hessian fly [Mayetiola destructor (Say)] is a major threat to wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production in the eastern United States. Cultivar releases containing major Hessian fly resistance genes have proven effective in minimizing losses caused by this pest. Nevertheless, the ephemeral nature of major gene resistance necessitates the identification of novel sources of resistance. Hessian fly resistance from Aegilops tauschii Coss. (2n = 2x = 14; genome DD) was introgressed into the genetic background of the soft red winter wheat cultivar Saluda during the development of the germplasm line NC09MDD14. Our genetic characterization and linkage mapping studies showed that resistance to Hessian Fly biotype L in NC09MDD14 was monogenic and the most likely order of the linked microsatellite markers was: Xcfd13-4.2 cM- Xcfd42-1.8 cM-Xgdm141-4.9 cM-Xgdm361.5 cM-NC09MDD14 Hf gene/Xcfd132-13.4 cM-Xcfd19. This linkage map situated the NCD09MDD14 Hf gene on the short arm of chromosome 6D, within the same deletion bin as the named gene H13. No recombinants between H13 and the NCD09MDD14 Hf gene were found in an allelism study that included 170 [F.sub.2] individuals from the cross between NCD09MDD14 and Molly (H13). The Hessian fly resistance gene present in the germplasm line NC09MDD14 could be an allele of H13, but unlike H13, the gene in NC09MDD14 provides resistance against biotype vrH13. doi: 10.2135/cropsci2009.05.0278

Bot flies (Diptera: Muscidae: Philornis spp.) are a group of flies comprising mostly species with a Neotropical distribution. Their larvae parasitize several species of birds, living subcutaneously on altricial chicks. We investigated the effect of parasitism by bot flies (P. seguyi) on the reproductive success of Chalk-browed Mockingbirds (Mimus saturninus) in temperate grasslands near the southern limit of bot fly distributions. We analyzed seasonal variation of bot fly prevalence during three consecutive years and how the timing and intensity of bot fly infestation affected growth and survival of Chalk-browed Mockingbird nestlings. Bot fly prevalence was 58.3%, 30.7%, and 45.5% each year, and in all years, it increased with time of breeding. Most of the infested nests fledged no chicks. In these nests, chicks had a lower tarsus growth rate than in noninfested nests and died 3-4 days after parasitism. The average time from hatching of the first chick until infestation was 4.4 days. The age of the chicks at the time of infestation was associated positively with nesting success and negatively with intensity of parasitism. Bot fly parasitism also reduced the survival of Shiny Cowbird (Molothrus bonariensis) chicks present in Chalk-browed Mockingbird nests, but the presence of Shiny Cowbird chicks did not affect timing of infestation or fledging success of Chalk-browed Mockingbird chicks. Our results show that an intermediate prevalence of bot fly parasitism produces an important decrease in the reproductive success of Chalk-browed Mockingbirds and suggest that bot flies may play an important role as selective agents in the evolution of host life-history strategies. Received 14 November 2005, accepted 25 July 2006. Key words: bot fly parasitism, Chalk-browed Mockingbird, host-parasite interactions, Mimus saturninus, nesting success, Philornis seguyi. Philornis es un complejo grupo de moscas que incluye principalmente especies con una distribucion Neotropical. Sus larvas parasitan varias especies de aves, desarrollandose en forma subcutanea en pichones nidicolas. Pocos estudios han analizado el impacto del parasitismo de Philornis sobre el exito reproductivo del hospedador. Estos estudios han diferido en sus resultados, y en la mayoria de los casos fueron realizados en regiones tropicales o subtropicales. Investigamos el impacto del parasitismo de Philornis seguyi sobre el exito reproductivo de Mimus saturninus en pastizales templados cerca del limite sur de la distribucion de Philornis. Analizamos la variacion estacional de la frecuencia de parasitismo en tres anos consecutivos (1999-2001), y como el momento y la intensidad de la infestacion de Philornis afecto el crecimiento y la supervivencia de los pichones de M. saturninus. La frecuencia de parasitismo fue 58.3%, 30.7% y 45.5% cada ano y en los tres anos aumento durante el transcurso de la temporada reproductiva. En la mayoria de los nidos infestados no sobrevivio ningun pichon. En estos nidos, los pichones tuvieron una menor tasa de crecimiento del tarso y murieron 3-4 dias despues de ser parasitados. El tiempo transcurrido desde la eclosion del primer pichon hasta que el nido fue infestado fue en promedio de 4.4 dias. Observamos una asociacion positiva entre el exito del nido y la edad de los pichones al momento de la infestacion, y una asociacion negativa entre la intensidad de parasitismo y la edad de los pichones al momento de la infestacion. El parasitismo de Philornis tambien redujo la supervivencia de los pichones de Molothrus bonariensis presentes en nidos de M. saturninus, pero la presencia de pichones parasitos no afecto la edad a la que los pichones de M. saturninus fueron infestados o su supervivencia. Nuestros resultados muestran que una frecuencia intermedia de parasitismo de Philornis produce una reduccion significativa del exito reproductivo de M. saturninus, similar a la producida por la depredacion de nidos o el parasitismo de cria, y sugieren que Philornis podria jugar un importante rol como agente de seleccion en la evolucion de las estrategias de historia de vida de sus hospedadores.

Abstract: The effect of 33 environmental variables on the distribution of chironomids was studied in 60 lakes of northwestern Quebec (Canada). A detrended canonical correspondence analysis detected linearity in the [...]

Insect parasitoids are a major component of global biodiversity and affect the population dynamics of their hosts. However, identification of insect parasitoids is often difficult, and they are suspected to contain many cryptic species. Here, we ask whether the cytochrome c oxidase I DNA barcode could function as a tool for species identification and discovery for the 20 morphospecies of Belvosia parasitoid flies (Diptera: Tachinidae) that have been reared from caterpillars (Lepidoptera) in Area de Conservacion Guanacaste (ACG), northwestern Costa Rica. Barcoding not only discriminates among all 17 highly host-specific morphospecies of ACG Belvosia, but it also raises the species count to 32 by revealing that each of the three generalist species are actually arrays of highly host-specific cryptic species. We also identified likely hybridization among Belvosia by using a variable internal transcribed spacer region 1 nuclear rDNA sequence as a genetic covariate in addition to the strategy of overlaying barcode clusters with ecological information. If general, these results will increase estimates of global species richness and imply that tropical conservation and host-parasite interactions may be more complex than expected. Area de Conservation Guanacaste | Belvosia | cytochrome c oxidase I | internal transcribed spacer region 1 | species richness

Abstract: During germ line--soma differentiation in early syncytial embryonic development of the chironomid Acricotopus lucidus, a complement of supernumerary chromosomes, the so-called germ line limited chromosomes (Ks), is excluded from [...]

The learned suppression of photopositive tendencies was studied at the individual level in young flies of both sexes. In a T-maze, flies had to choose between an arm leading to a lighted vial associated with an aversive stimulus (i.e., a solution of quinine chlorhydrate deposited on a filter paper in the vial) and another arm leading to a darkened vial free of quinine. The present experiments were carried out to determine the roles of quinine and relative humidity in the maze. The flies avoided the lighted vial containing quinine even if they had no tarsal contact with quinine, and this result was not due to any odor of quinine. Subsequent experiments showed that relative humidity in the lighted vial, and probably in the arm leading to it, was an aversive stimulus, which partly explains why the flies avoided the lighted vial. However, in conditions in which the flies had tarsal contact with water or quinine it was confirmed that flies trained with quinine have higher avoidance scores than those trained with water only. Moreover, individual aversion to humidity was not correlated with the individual avoidance score: At similar levels of motivation (i.e., similar levels of aversion to humidity), some flies learn to avoid the lighted vial containing quinine whereas others do not. All these results show that, in addition to quinine, humidity is an unconditioned aversive stimulus in our paradigm and thus needs to be tightly controlled in experiments of conditioned avoidance.

Alcohol is likely to affect neurons nonselectively, and the understanding of its action in the CNS requires elucidation of underlying neuronal circuits and associated cellular processes. We have identified a Drosophila signaling system, comprising neurons expressing neuropeptide F (NPF, a homolog of mammalian neuropeptide Y) and its receptor, NPFR1, that acutely mediates sensitivity to ethanol sedation. Flies deficient in NPF/NPFR1 signaling showed decreased alcohol sensitivity, whereas those overexpressing NPF exhibited the opposite phenotype. Furthermore, controlled functional disruption of NPF or NPFR1 neurons in adults rapidly confers resistance to ethanol sedation. Finally, the NPF/NPFR1 system selectively mediates sedation by ethanol vapor but not diethyl ether, indicating that the observed NPF/NPFR1 activity reflects a specialized response to alcohol sedation rather than a general response to intoxication by sedative agents. Together, our results provide the molecular and neural basis for the strikingly similar alcohol-responsive behaviors between flies and mammals. acute ethanol response | neuropeptide Y | neuropeptide F receptor

The carcasses of Pacific salmon can be an important food resource for aquatic and terrestrial organisms, depending on where the carcasses are located. We hypothesized that the availability of sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) carcasses to ovipositing flies (Family: Calliphoridae) would be facilitated by brown bears (Ursus arctos) moving salmon from the water to terrestrial environments. We further hypothesized that the proportion of carcasses in terrestrial environments (hence accessible to flies) would vary among streams as a function of stream size. In three small southwestern Alaska streams during 2 y, flies oviposited on about half of the carcasses in terrestrial habitats (44% of those on gravel, 54% in grass and 57% in the forest). Only 28% of the partially submerged carcasses and 0.5% of the fully submerged carcasses were colonized. The proportion of carcasses deposited outside the stream was strongly and positively influenced by the level of bear predation and negatively affected by stream complexity (in deeper more complex streams more carcasses remained in the water). Based on data from the past 12 y on sockeye salmon abundance and predation by bears (averaging about 40% of the salmon), we estimated that on average 204, 551 and 839 carcasses were colonized per km annually in the three streams (12 to 24% of the total number of carcasses). In these sites, where salmon are abundant and highly available to bears, a large fraction of the tissue is not consumed and so is available to flies. Fly maggots, numbering up to 50,000 per carcass, can consume virtually an entire salmon within 5 d. Thus bears as consumers and transporters of carcasses facilitate the scavenging of carcasses by maggots, increasing the transfer marine-derived nutrients from aquatic to riparian habitats.

Mutations in SALL1, the human homolog of the Drosophila spalt gene, result in Townes-Brocks' syndrome, which is characterized by hand/foot, anogenital, renal, and ear anomalies, including sensorineural deafness, spalt genes encode zinc finger transcription factors that are found in animals as diverse as worms, insects, and vertebrates. Here, we examine the effect of losing both of the spalt genes, spalt and spalt-related, in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, and report defects similar to those in humans with Townes-Brocks' syndrome. Loss of both spalt and spalt-related function in flies yields morphological defects in the testes, genitalia, and the antenna. Furthermore, spalt/spalt-related mutant antennae show severe reductions in Johnston's organ, the major auditory organ in Drosophila. Electrophysiological analyses confirm that spalt/spalt-related mutant flies are deaf. These commonalities suggest that there is functional conservation for spalt genes between vertebrates and insects.

The morphology-performance-fitness paradigm is usually explored by determining whether natural or 'phenotypically engineered' variation among individuals in morphology (physiology) or performance covaries with an index of fitness such as survival. Here we study between-line covariation between performance and fitness for 44 lines of flies that had undergone mutation accumulation (in the absence of natural selection) on the second chromosome for 62 generations, plus 13 control lines. These mutation accumulation (MA) lines were known to have reduced competitive fitness and life history scores, and to have positive between-line covariances among life history traits. We measured several performance traits of larvae and adults (and a life history trait), examined covariances among those trait means, and also examined covariances of traits with competitive fitness. MA lines had significantly lower performances than did control lines in most traits. However, because control lines had been unknowingly contaminated, a conclusion that MA reduces performance must be tentative. Correlations among performance traits were highly variable in sign, suggesting that MA does not negatively affect all traits equivalently. Even so, correlation matrices for MA and for control lines were very similar. In bivariate comparisons, only one performance trait (a 'get-a-grip index,' which measures the ability of a falling fly to catch itself on baffles) was positively correlated with competitive fitness. Multivariate analyses again suggested the importance primarily of get-a-grip. Two main patterns emerge from this study. First, MA negatively affects diverse aspects of physiological performance, but does so differentially across traits. Second, except for GAG, MA-induced variation in performance is at best weakly correlated with competitive fitness.

We exposed larvae of several species of the phantom midge Chaoborus to the trace metal cadmium (Cd) to determine whether Cd accumulation rates varied with ambient temperature. Because this predator is known to accumulate its Cd mainly from food rather than from water, we presented the Cd in food, that is, Cd-rich copepods taken from a lake near a metal smelter. Rates of Cd accumulation by larvae of Chaoborus arnericanus, C. flavicans, and C. punctipennis were measured at three temperatures (5, 14, and 22 [degrees] C) covering the seasonal range encountered by these animals. The rates at which all species accumulated Cd increased with temperature. To explain these results, we fit our experimental data to a bioaccumulation model that allowed us to estimate Cd assimilation efficiency, Cd-efflux rate, and larval growth rate. Temperature-related changes in Cd accumulation rates were best explained by changes in the rate at which Chaoborus larvae ingested prey as well as the efficiency with which they assimilated Cd from their food. Neither the rate of larval growth nor the rate at which larvae lost Cd was influenced by temperature. Extrapolations of our laboratory results to the field suggest that our model results provide a realistic representation of the processes involved in Cd accumulation by larvae of this common aquatic insect.

Byline: Yayoi Tosaki (1), Susanne S Renner (2), Hiroshi Takahashi (3) Keywords: Keywords: Bees, Beetles, Chloranthaceae, Flies, Pollination, Sarcandra glabra, Self-compatibility Abstract: was investigated in its natural habitat in Japan. Flowers were protogynous and stigma receptivity dropped off significantly following anther dehiscence. Female-stage and bisexual-stage flowers were visited by beetles, bees, hemiptera, flies, and rarely ants that foraged for pollen and/or small droplets of liquid that occasionally were secreted by the carpels and inflorescence axes. At least the beetles, bees, and hemiptera commonly touched the stigmas and likely effected pollination. Flowers were self-compatible, and automatic selfing sometimes occurred when pollen fell from apical flowers onto the stigmas of lower flowers. Author Affiliation: (1) Laboratory for Plant Natural History, Faculty of Science, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, 920--1192 Japan, JP (2) Department of Biology, University of Missouri-St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63121, U.S.A. , US (3) Department of Biology, Faculty of Education, Gifu University, Gifu, 501--1193 Japan, JP Article note: Received 8 June 2001/ Accepted in revised form 18 September 2001

Results show that neural characters maintain a good record of phylogenetic information in diptera group of insects. However, visual neuropil medulla exhibits stronger phylogenetic signal than those of deeper visual center due to functional contraints.

The possibility that hydracharinid mites choose their hosts, the chironomid midge is considered. In an experiment fewer mites were rejected by hosts if there was a choice of host, indicating that they actively choose which individual to parasitize. Fluctuating asymmetry in wing length was a good indicator of mite infestation in midge species collected in the wild.

Viviparity in animals and plants is a reproductive behavior that has been studied in detail. The study of dipteran viviparity is complex and challenging. An overview of the different forms of viviparity in Diptera is provided, taking into account ecological factors and morphological features, to estimated the evolution of viviparity and its morphological changes.

Wolbachia are cytoplasmically inherited bacteria. They can alter the reproductive biology of hosts in a way that increases their presence in a population. The distribution and reproductive effects of these bacteria have been studied in stalk-eyed flies (Diptera: Diopsidae) and it seems the microbes are associated with greater fly male fertility. Wolbachia do not cause detectable cytoplasmic incompatibility or cut down reproduction in the host.

The timing of eclosion peaks in marine insects on Mediterranean coasts was studied with artificial moonlight. Water temperature during early summer and periods of weather conditions influence the biological activity, particularly the fecundity and hatching of pupal to adult form of the intertidal species of Clunio spp. Both the temporal concentration of mating partners and the synchronization with exposure of the larval habitat played crucial roles in the short adult stage of the insect.

Restriction site analysis was done to study variations in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in Anopheles rangeli and A. trinkae, two neotropical mosquitoes collected from different parts of Latin America. The results showed a higher maternal gene flow and lower divergence in A. trinkae compared to that of A. rangeli. Such findings are thought to be due to either A. trinkae's distinctive matrilineal history or its considerably restricted geographic range along the eastern flank of the Andes.

NMR spectroscopy revealed that the amplitude of Bohr effect is different between HbIII and HbIV monomeric hemoglobins obtained from the larva of the midge Chironomus thummi thummi. The Bohr proton site for both monomers was localized at His94, which at alkaline conditions expels Met136, leading to a series of reorientations that end at Phe65. The only difference found between the two monomers was the residue at position 132, which for HbIII is Ileu and that of HbIV, Val. This difference is proposed to be responsible for the observed discrepancy in the Bohr effect between the two monomers.

Research conducted in Chironomus plumosus midges find that the mating success depends on the fluctuating asymmetry in the male characters, and the success of symmetrical male is due to his improved aerobatic ability. Male Chironomus plumosus, successful at acquiring mates, show lower levels of fluctuating asymmetry in the length of wing than their rivals. Small males are found to be more successful in acquiring mates.

The emergence of an intertial midge was investigated at a site on the coast of the Inland Sea of Japan. The population emerging at this site was drawn from a single species of the genus Clunio, probably C. tsushimensis. Emergence was not synchronized with the day-night cycle, but with the tidal cycle. Moreover, the pattern of synchrony changed with season. A bimodal phase appeared in midwinter; but the pattern of synchrony shifted gradually, during January and February, from morning low tides to afternoon low tides, and a unimodal phase appeared in March. This pattern - i.e., synchrony with afternoon low tides - lasted until early October. In mid-October, the synchrony shifted to the morning low tides. Only a brief bimodal phase appeared in autumn. The phase modality was clearly correlated with the height of tides; i.e., when the low waters in a day were very different in height, emergence was synchronized only with the lower one (April to December). During January and February, the higher low tide, as well as the lower low tide, recedes considerably. The exposure of the larval habitat at the higher low tide may stimulate emergence, resulting in bimodal phases in midwinter. But the unimodal pattern in March cannot be accounted for by a simple synchrony with lower low tide, or with exposure of the larval habitat to the air; the day-night cycle not only would be one of the zeitgebers of the tidal rhythm in every season, but also must participate in the expression of the unimodal phase in spring. Furthermore, the number of midges that emerged each day fluctuated with a semilunar cycle with the season. The phase of this rhythm would be shifted by water temperature., Introduction Tidal and semilunar rhythms of reproductive activity have been reported in many intertidal and estuarine organisms (e.g., see Korringa, 1947; Hauenschild, 1960; DeCoursey, 1983: Pearse, 1990). Marine midges of [...]

Three methods for collection of dipteria insect larvae from the leaves of the northern pitcher plant Sarracenia purpurea were examined. The 'turkey baster' method (Addicott, 1974) proved inadequate for quantitive samples of the larval insects. A modified version of a suction apparatus (Fish anf Hall, 1978) produced samples with errors. Samples obtained with a suction apparatus yielded higher proportions of the culicid population than of the chironomid population. This was due to the difference in location within the pitcher of each species; the chironomids tend to be in the organic matter in the pitcher, while the culicids are generally free-swimming. The only method that consistently yielded reliable quantitative samples of all insects living in the leaves was the removal method, in which whole leaves were taken from the plant and dissected in the laboratory. However, when destructive sampling is precluded, samples obtained with a suction apparatus may yield acceptable results for culicids.

To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2007.02.020 Byline: Yelitza Velasquez Keywords: Coleoptera; Diptera; Forensic entomology; Venezuela Abstract: This is the first report of arthropods associated with carrion in Venezuela, using laboratory bred rats (Rattus norvegicus). Rat carcasses were exposed to colonization by arthropods in neighboring montane savanna and cloud forest habitats in the state of Miranda. The taxonomic composition of the arthropods varied between both ecosystems. Scarabaeidae, Silphidae, Micropezidae, Phoridae, Vespidae and one species of ant, were collected only in the cloud forest. Dermestes maculatus, Chrysomya albiceps, Termitidae and most species of ants, were found only in the savanna. Fourteen species were considered to be of primary forensic importance: D. maculatus, Oxelytrum discicolle, Calliphora sp., Cochliomyia macellaria, Compsomyiops sp., C. albiceps, Phaenicia cuprina, P. sericata, P. eximia, Fannia sp., Puliciphora sp., Megaselia scalaris, Ravina sp. and Sarcophaga sp. Author Affiliation: Laboratorio de Biologia de Organismos, Centro de Ecologia, Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones Cientificas, Apartado Postal 21827, Caracas 1020-A, Venezuela Article History: Received 2 February 2005; Revised 18 February 2007; Accepted 18 February 2007

How Do Flies Land? Anyone who has ever driven a car knows that, when all of a sudden the car in front grows bigger and bigger, it is time to [...]

The ability of sensitive rainforest species to evolve in response to climate change is largely unknown. We show that the Australian tropical rainforest fly Drosophila birchii exhibits clinal variation in [...]