After millions of years of stable gene expression and evenly distributed variations, the Mediterranean wall lizard is exhibiting a rapid flattening of traits, ScienceDaily reported.
Podarcis muralis, often known simply as the common wall lizard, typically showed one of three distinctive color markings, or morphs: orange, white, and yellow. Each has strengths and weaknesses, presenting "a classic example of [ecological] balance."
A recent study published in the journal Science examined the rapid evolutionary displacement of each of the three color morphs in favor of a newcomer to the species — a larger, more aggressive morph nicknamed "hulk" lizards by the authors.
While the hulk lizards are bigger and more combative than their orange-, white-, and yellow-colored cousins, the researchers were still shocked at how quickly their spread in Europe altered the broader makeup of the species.
"We are seeing how the coexistence of several different color morphs, something that has been stable for millions of years, is being lost over a very short evolutionary time scale," said co-author Tobias Uller.
According to ScienceDaily, hulk lizards are identifiable through their "striking appearance," but their impact on ancient populations is also striking — in some areas, lizards with yellow or orange markings have vanished, leaving only white-throated wall lizards and hulk lizards.
However, the study's findings had broader implications for ecosystems and biodiversity amid rising temperatures and rapidly changing conditions for wildlife and humans alike, as an analysis from the University of Tasmania observed.
"The findings show how fragile even long-standing evolutionary systems can be. Diversity that appears stable over deep time can vanish quickly," it warned.
Research into broader populations of Mediterranean lizards has shown that environmental stressors such as wildfires and extreme heat have forced them to adapt quickly to survive as their habitats and food sources dwindle or disappear entirely.
A post on Reddit's r/InterstellarKinetics linked to an article about the study, and a user echoed the authors' concerns about hulk lizards in layman's terms.
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"Evolution can move a lot faster than people think when the right pressure shows up," they wrote.
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