2011/03/02 by Niklas Janz · 1 citation
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Environmental Science · #Plant and animal studies #Plant Parasitism and Resistance #Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
paper · doi:10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-102710-145024
openalex publication_date 2011/03/02 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/20
After almost 50 years of scrutiny, the ideas that Ehrlich and Raven presented in their classical paper on the coevolution between butterflies and plants are still very much alive. Much of this interest has involved the potential for codiversification, both in how the interaction itself diversifies and how the interaction affects modes and rates of speciation. Despite high levels of conservatism and specialization, diversification of the interaction appears to be mainly a consequence of host shifts, but this somewhat paradoxical conclusion can be understood by an appreciation of the ecological as well as genetic mechanisms behind host shifts. There are several ways that the interaction can influence speciation, with or without host-plant-based divergent selection on reproductive barriers. One current debate is over the relative importance of radiations following shifts to new adaptive zones and elevated rates of speciation in groups with plastic and diverse host use.