Insect evolution: How the fruit fly changed (some of) its spots

Animals display a wide variety of markings and patterns, from the stripes of zebras to the spots on the wings of butterflies. The significance and genesis of these spots and stripes have long been the subject of speculation. Evolutionary biologists have suggested many possible reasons why species exhibit such patterns, including mimicry, mate recognition and aposematism (where the pattern acts as a signal to potential predators that the carrier is distasteful or poisonous). Similarly, theoretical biologists, starting with Turing [1] and more recently Goodwin [2] and Stewart [3], have postulated reaction–diffusion models to explain how the pigmentation patterns are generated. While these models can be highly predictive of the patterns observed in vertebrates, their potential role in insect pigmentation remains unclear.