Avian Population Genomics Taking Off: Latest Findings and Future Prospects

Birds are one of the most recognizable and diverse groups of organisms on earth. This group has played an important role in many fields, including the development of methods in behavioral ecology and evolutionary theory. The use of population genomics took off following the advent of high-throughput sequencing in various taxa. Several features of avian genomes make them particularly amenable for work in this field, including their nucleated red blood cells permitting easy DNA extraction and small, compact genomes. We review the latest findings in the population genomics of birds here, emphasizing questions related to behavior, ecology, evolution, and conservation. Additionally, we include insights in trait mapping and the ability to obtain accurate estimates of important summary statistics for conservation (e.g., genetic diversity and inbreeding). We highlight roadblocks that will need to be overcome in order to advance work on the population genomics of birds and prospects for future work. Roadblocks include the assembly of more contiguous reference genomes using long-reads and optical mapping. Prospects include the integration of population genomics with additional fields (e.g., landscape genetics, phylogeography, and genomic mapping) along with studies beyond genetic variants (e.g., epigenetics).