Reproductive Interference and Niche Partitioning in Aphidophagous Insects

Figure 1

Two models of ecological specialization and niche differentiation in sibling lacewing species. (a) Sympatric speciation model. Disruptive selection within an ancestral population (i.e., ecological adaptation to different habitats) drives reproductive isolation, which leads to genetic differentiation and, subsequently, complete speciation. (b) Reproductive interference model. Reproductive interference drives habitat differentiation between the two species when secondary contact occurs after allopatric speciation.

(a) Sympatric speciation by habitat specialization

(b) Character displacement by reproductive interference