Spatial sorting may explain evolutionary dynamics of wing polymorphism in pygmy grasshoppers

Wing polymorphism in insects provides a good model system for investigating evolutionary dynamics and population divergence in dispersal-enhancing traits. This study investigates the contribution of divergent selection, trade-offs, behaviour and spatial sorting to the evolutionary dynamics of wing polymorphism in the pygmy grasshopper Tetrix subulata (Tetrigidae: Orthoptera). We use data for > 2800 wild-caught individuals from 13 populations and demonstrate that the incidence of the long-winged (macropterous) morph is higher and changes faster between years in disturbed habitats characterized by succession than in stable habitats. Common garden and mother-offspring resemblance studies indicate that variation among populations and families is genetically determined and not influenced to any important degree by developmental plasticity in response to maternal condition, rearing density or individual growth rate. Performance trials show that only the macropterous morph is capable of flight and that propensity to fly differs according to environment. Mark-recapture data reveal no difference in the distance moved between free-ranging long- and short-winged individuals. There is no consistent difference across populations and years in number of hatchlings produced by long- and shorter-winged females. Our findings suggest that the variable frequency of the long-winged morph among and within pygmy grasshopper populations may reflect evolutionary modifications driven by spatial sorting due to phenotype- and habitat type-dependent emigration and immigration.