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MORPHOLOGICAL EVOLUTION OF THE DROSOPHILA VIRILIS SPECIES GROUP AS ASSESSED BY RATE TESTS FOR NATURAL SELECTION ON QUANTITATIVE CHARACTERS
Author(s) -
Spicer Greg S.
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
evolution
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.84
H-Index - 199
eISSN - 1558-5646
pISSN - 0014-3820
DOI - 10.1111/j.1558-5646.1993.tb02150.x
Subject(s) - biology , drosophila virilis , selection (genetic algorithm) , context (archaeology) , natural selection , rate of evolution , evolutionary biology , phylogenetic tree , mutation rate , heritability , drosophila (subgenus) , genetics , gene , machine learning , computer science , paleontology
Two rate tests for assessing natural selection on quantitative traits are discussed for their usefulness in macroevolutionary and adaptational studies. The underlying assumptions and parameter estimation for the constant‐heritability (CH) and mutation‐drift‐equilibrium (MDE) models, which are the bases for these tests, are discussed. The purpose of these rate tests is to determine whether morphological change has occurred either too fast to be explained by neutral drift, which suggests directional selection, or too slow, which suggests stabilizing selection. Previous formulations of these rate tests have ignored the phylogenetic component. Several models of evolution are considered to help account for phylogeny in the context of rate tests. The MDE rate test for stabilizing selection was performed on nine morphological characters among several species of the Drosophila virilis species group. These tests can be interpreted to suggest that stabilizing selection has probably been a major factor in producing the observed similarity among the Drosophila species examined.