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Background: Evolutionary processes can cause strong spatial genetic signatures, such as local loss of genetic diversity, or conflicting histories from mitochondrial versus nuclear markers. Investigating these genetic patterns is important, as they may reveal obscured processes and players. The maternally inherited bacterium Wolbachia is among the most widespread symbionts in insects. Wolbachia typically spreads within host species by conferring direct fitness benefits, and/or by manipulating its host reproduction to favour infected over uninfected females. Under sufficient selective advantage, the mitochondrial haplotype associated with the favoured maternally-inherited symbiotic strains will spread (i.e. hitchhike), resulting in low mitochondrial genetic variation across the host species range. Method: The common bluetail damselfly (Ischnura elegans: van der Linden, 1820) has recently emerged as a model organism for genetics and genomic signatures of range expansion during climate change. Although there is accumulating data on the consequences of such expansion on the genetics of I. elegans, no study has screened for Wolbachia in the damselfly genus Ischnura. Here, we present the biogeographic variation in Wolbachia prevalence and penetrance across Europe and Japan (including samples from 17 populations), and from close relatives in the Mediterranean area (i.e. I. genei: Rambur, 1842; and I. saharensis: Aguesse, 1958). Results: Our data reveal (a) multiple Wolbachia-strains, (b) potential transfer of the symbiont through hybridization, (c) higher infection rates at higher latitudes, and (d) reduced mitochondrial diversity in the north-west populations, indicative of hitchhiking associated with the selective sweep of the most common strain. We found low mitochondrial haplotype diversity in the Wolbachia-infected north-western European populations (Sweden, Scotland, the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Italy) of I. elegans, and, conversely, higher mitochondrial diver

Recent studies on parallel evolution have focused on the relative role of selection and historical contingency during adaptive divergence. Here, we study geographically separate and genetically independent lake populations of a freshwater isopod (Asellus aquaticus) in southern Sweden. In two of these lakes, a novel habitat was rapidly colonized by isopods from a source habitat. Rapid phenotypic changes in pigmentation, size and sexual behaviour have occurred, presumably in response to different predatory regimes. We partitioned the phenotypic variation arising from habitat (selection: 81-94%), lake (history: 0.1-6%) and lake x habitat interaction (unique diversification: 0.4-13%) for several traits. There was a limited role for historical contingency but a strong signature of selection. We also found higher phenotypic variation in the source populations. Phenotype sorting during colonization and strong divergent selection might have contributed to these rapid changes. Consequently, phenotypic divergence was only weakly influenced by historical contingency.