Population Genetics of Heliconius Butterflies Using RAD Sequencing Technology

The great diversification of organisms on this planet is brought about through changes in alleles at particular loci throughout the genome. Evolutionary biologists strive to identify the genes involved in adaptation and to understand how these genes promote diversification. Different species of Heliconius butterflies show convergence upon the same color patterns within a given area; yet individual species exhibit an assortment of color patterns across their geographic range. These color pattern “races” within a species sometimes interbreed, or hybridize, in locations where two races meet. Here, I consider the population genomics in a hybrid zone of co-mimetic Heliconius erato and H. melpomene in Peru to characterize the relation between hybridizing species and to identify candidate genes which may be involved in race variation. I used restriction-site-associated DNA (RAD) sequencing to explore allelic variation across the whole Heliconius genomes. Samples were sequenced with Illumina HiSeq. We are currently analyzing this sequenced data. We expect to find differences in previously described color pattern loci between races within a hybrid zone; this will confirm the reliability of our observed sequence variation. This data will then highlight new candidate genes and genomic regions varying between races with disperse color patterns.