Timing-dependent effects of elevated temperature on reproductive traits in the European corn borer moth

Elevated temperature often has life stage-specific effects on ectotherms because thermal tolerance varies throughout ontogeny. Impacts of elevated temperature may extend beyond the exposed life stage if developmental plasticity causes early exposure to carry-over or if exposure at multiple life stages cumulatively produces effects. Reproductive traits may be sensitive to different thermal environments experienced during development, but such effects have not been comprehensively measured in Lepidoptera. In this study, we investigate how elevated temperature at different life stages alters reproduction in the European corn borer moth, Ostrinia nubilalis. We tested effects of exposure to elevated temperature (28 °C) separately or additively during larval, pupal, and adult life stages compared to control temperatures (23 °C). We found that exposure to elevated pupal and adult temperature decreased the number of egg clusters produced, but exposure limited to a single stage did not significantly impact reproductive output. Furthermore, elevated temperature during the pupal stage led to a faster transition to the adult stage and elevated larval temperature altered synchrony of adult eclosion, either by itself or combined with pupal temperature exposure. These results suggest that exposure to elevated temperature during development alters reproduction in corn borers in multiple ways, including through carry-over and additive effects. Additive effects of temperature across life stages are thought to be less common than stage-specific or carry-over effects, but our results suggest thermal environments experienced at all life stages need to be considered when predicting reproductive responses of insects to heatwaves.

Crowd-sourced observations of a polyphagous moth reveal evidence of allochronic speciation varying along a latitudinal gradient

Allochronic speciation, where reproductive isolation between populations of a species is facilitated by a difference in reproductive timing, depends on abiotic factors such as seasonality and biotic factors such as diapause intensity. These factors are strongly influenced by latitudinal trends in climate, so we hypothesized that there is a relationship between latitude and divergence among populations separated by life history timing. Hyphantria cunea (the fall webworm), a lepidopteran defoliator with red and black colour morphs, is hypothesized to be experiencing an incipient allochronic speciation. However, given their broad geographic range, the strength of allochronic speciation may vary across latitude. We annotated >11,000 crowd-sourced observations of fall webworm to model geographic distribution, phenology, and differences in colour phenotype between morphs across North America. We found that red and black morph life history timing differs across North America, and the phenology of morphs diverges more in warmer climates at lower latitudes. We also found some evidence that the colour phenotype of morphs also diverges at lower latitudes, suggesting reduced gene flow between colour morphs. Our results demonstrate that seasonality in lower latitudes may increase the strength of allochronic speciation in insects, and that the strength of sympatric speciation can vary along a latitudinal gradient. This has implications for our understanding of broad-scale speciation events and trends in global biodiversity.

Divergence in cell cycle progression is associated with shifted phenology in a multivoltine moth: the European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis

Evolutionary change in diapause timing can be an adaptive response to changing seasonality, and even result in ecological speciation. However, the molecular and cellular mechanisms regulating shifts in diapause timing remain poorly understood. One of the hallmarks of diapause is a massive slowdown in the cell cycle of target organs such as the brain and primordial imaginal structures, and resumption of cell cycle proliferation is an indication of diapause termination and resumption of development. Characterizing cell cycle parameters between lineages differing in diapause life history timing may help identify molecular mechanisms associated with alterations of diapause timing. We tested the extent to which progression of the cell cycle differs across diapause between two genetically distinct European corn borer strains that differ in their seasonal diapause timing. We show the cell cycle slows down during larval diapause with a significant decrease in the proportion of cells in S phase. Brain-subesophageal complex cells slow primarily in G0/G1 phase whereas most wing disc cells are in G2 phase. Diapausing larvae of the earlier emerging, bivoltine E-strain (BE) suppressed cell cycle progression less than the later emerging, univoltine Z-strain (UZ) individuals, with a greater proportion of cells in S phase across both tissues during diapause. Additionally, resumption of cell cycle proliferation occurred earlier in the BE strain than in the UZ strain after exposure to diapause-terminating conditions. We propose that regulation of cell cycle progression rates ultimately drives differences in larval diapause termination, and adult emergence timing, between early- and late-emerging European corn borer strains.

Elevated temperature increases reproductive investment in less preferred mates in the invasive European corn borer moth

Rapidly changing environments may weaken sexual selection and lead to indiscriminate mating by interfering with the reception of mating signals or by increasing the costs associated with mate choice. If temperature alters sexual selection, it may impact population response and adaptation to climate change. Here, we examine how differences in temperature of the mating environment influence reproductive investment in the European corn borer moth (Ostrinia nubilalis). Mate preference in this species is known to be related to pheromone usage, with assortative mating occurring between genetically distinct E and Z strains that differ in the composition of female and male pheromones. We compared egg production within and between corn borer lines derived from four different populations that vary in pheromone composition and other traits. Pairs of adults were placed in a mating environment that matched the pupal environment (ambient temperature) or at elevated temperature (5°C above the pupal environment). At ambient temperature, we found that within-line pairs produced eggs sooner and produced more egg clusters than between-line pairs. However, at elevated temperature, between-line pairs produced the same number of egg clusters as within-line pairs. These results suggest that elevated temperature increased investment in matings with typically less preferred, between-line mates. This increased investment could result in changes in gene flow among corn borer populations in warming environments.

Influence of voltine ecotype and geographic distance on genetic and haplotype variation in the Asian corn borer

Diapause is an adaptive dormancy strategy by which arthropods endure extended periods of adverse climatic conditions. Seasonal variation in larval diapause initiation and duration in Ostrinia furnacalis may influence adult mating generation number (voltinism) across different local environments. The degree to which voltine ecotype, geographic distance, or other ecological factors influence O. furnacalis population genetic structure remains uncertain. Genetic differentiation was estimated between voltine ecotypes collected from 8 locations. Mitochondrial haplotypes were significantly different between historically allopatric univoltine and bivoltine locations, but confounded by a strong correlation with geographic distance. In contrast, single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotypes show low but significant levels of variation and a lack of influence of geographic distance between allopatric voltine locations. Regardless, 11 of 257 SNP loci were predicted to be under selection, suggesting population genetic homogenization except at loci proximal to factors putatively under selection. These findings provide evidence of haplotype divergent voltine ecotypes that may be maintained in allopatric and sympatric areas despite relatively high rates of nuclear gene flow, yet influence of voltinism on maintenance of observed haplotype divergence remains unresolved.

Assessing ecological and physiological costs of melanism in North American Papilio glaucus females: two decades of dark morph frequency declines

Polymorphisms for melanic form of insects may provide various selective advantages. However, melanic alleles may have significant/subtle pleiotrophic "costs." Several potential pleiotrophic effects of the W (=Y)-linked melanism gene in Papilio glaucus L. (Lepidoptera) showed no costs for melanic versus yellow in adult size, oviposition preferences, fecundity, egg viability, larval survival/growth rates, cold stress tolerance, or postdiapause emergence times. Sexual selection (males choosing yellow rather than mimetic dark females) had been suggested to provide a balanced polymorphism in P. glaucus, but spermatophore counts in wild females and direct field tethering studies of size-matched pairs of virgin females (dark and yellow), show that male preferences are random or frequency-dependent from Florida to Michigan, providing no yellow counter-advantages. Recent frequency declines of dark (melanic/mimetic) females in P. glaucus populations are shown in several major populations from Florida (27.3°N latitude) to Ohio (38.5° N). Summer temperatures have increased significantly at all these locations during this time (1999-2018), but whether dark morphs may be more vulnerable (in any stage) to such climate warming remains to be determined. Additional potential reasons for the frequency declines in mimetic females are discussed: (i) genetic introgression of Z-linked melanism suppressor genes from P. canadensis (R & J) and the hybrid species, P. appalachiensis (Pavulaan & Wright), (ii) differential developmental incompatibilities, or Haldane effects, known to occur in hybrids, (iii) selection against intermediately melanic ("dusty") females (with the W-linked melanic gene, b+) which higher temperatures can cause.

Phenology-dependent cold exposure and thermal performance of Ostrinia nubilalis ecotypes

Background

Understanding adaptation involves establishing connections between selective agents and beneficial population responses. However, relatively little attention has been paid to seasonal adaptation, in part, because it requires complex and integrative knowledge about seasonally fluctuating environmental factors, the effects of variable phenology on exposure to those factors, and evidence for temporal specialization. In the European corn borer moth, Ostrinia nubilalis, sympatric pheromone strains exploit the same host plant (Zea mays) but may genetically differ in phenology and be reproductively “isolated by time.” Z strain populations in eastern North America have been shown to have a prolonged larval diapause and produce one annual mating flight (July), whereas E strain populations complete an earlier (June) and a later (August) mating flight by shortening diapause duration. Here, we find evidence consistent with seasonal “adaptation by time” between these ecotypes.

Results

We use 12 years of field observation of adult seasonal abundance to estimate phenology of ecotype life cycles and to quantify life-stage specific climatic conditions. We find that the observed reduction of diapause duration in the E strain leads their non-diapausing, active life stages to experience a ~ 4 °C colder environment compared to the equivalent life stages in the Z strain. For a representative pair of populations under controlled laboratory conditions, we compare life-stage specific cold tolerance and find non-diapausing, active life stages in the E strain have as much as a 60% greater capacity to survive rapid cold shock. Enhanced cold hardiness appears unrelated to life-stage specific changes in the temperature at which tissues freeze.

Conclusions

Our results suggest that isolation by time and adaptation by time may both contribute to population divergence, and they argue for expanded study in this species of allochronic populations in nature experiencing the full spectrum of seasonal environments. Cyclical selective pressures are inherent properties of seasonal habitats. Diverse fluctuating selective agents across each year (temperature, predation, competition, precipitation, etc.) may therefore be underappreciated drivers of biological diversity.

Eco-evolutionary causes and consequences of temporal changes in intratumoural blood flow

Temporal changes in blood flow are commonly observed in malignant tumours, but the evolutionary causes and consequences are rarely considered. We propose that stochastic temporal variations in blood flow and microenvironmental conditions arise from the eco-evolutionary dynamics of tumour angiogenesis in which cancer cells, as individual units of selection, can influence and respond only to local environmental conditions. This leads to new vessels arising from the closest available vascular structure regardless of the size or capacity of this parental vessel. These dynamics produce unstable vascular networks with unpredictable spatial and temporal variations in blood flow and microenvironmental conditions. Adaptations of evolving populations to temporally varying environments in nature include increased diversity, greater motility and invasiveness, and highly plastic phenotypes, allowing for broad metabolic adaptability and rapid shifts to high rates of proliferation and profound quiescence. These adaptive strategies, when adopted in cancer cells, promote many commonly observed phenotypic properties including those found in the stem phenotype and in epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. Temporal variations in intratumoural blood flow, which occur through the promotion of cancer cell phenotypes that facilitate both metastatic spread and resistance to therapy, may have substantial clinical consequences.

Keeping time without a spine: what can the insect clock teach us about seasonal adaptation?

Seasonal change in daylength (photoperiod) is widely used by insects to regulate temporal patterns of development and behaviour, including the timing of diapause (dormancy) and migration. Flexibility of the photoperiodic response is critical for rapid shifts to new hosts, survival in the face of global climate change and to reproductive isolation. At the same time, the daily circadian clock is also essential for development, diapause and multiple behaviours, including correct flight orientation during long-distance migration. Although studied for decades, how these two critical biological timing mechanisms are integrated is poorly understood, in part because the core circadian clock genes are all transcription factors or regulators that are able to exert multiple effects throughout the genome. In this chapter, we discuss clocks in the wild from the perspective of diverse insect groups across eco-geographic contexts from the Antarctic to the tropical regions of Earth. Application of the expanding tool box of molecular techniques will lead us to distinguish universal from unique mechanisms underlying the evolution of circadian and photoperiodic timing, and their interaction across taxonomic and ecological contexts represented by insects.This article is part of the themed issue 'Wild clocks: integrating chronobiology and ecology to understand timekeeping in free-living animals'.

Non-Pleiotropic Coupling of Daily and Seasonal Temporal Isolation in the European Corn Borer

Speciation often involves the coupling of multiple isolating barriers to produce reproductive isolation, but how coupling is generated among different premating barriers is unknown. We measure the degree of coupling between the daily mating time and seasonal mating time between strains of European corn borer (Ostrinia nubilalis) and evaluate the hypothesis that the coupling of different forms of allochrony is due to a shared genetic architecture, involving genes with pleiotropic effects on both timing phenotypes. We measure differences in gene expression at peak mating times and compare these genes to previously identified candidates that are associated with changes in seasonal mating time between the corn borer strains. We find that the E strain, which mates earlier in the season, also mates 2.7 h earlier in the night than the Z strain. Earlier daily mating is correlated with the differences in expression of the circadian clock genes cycle, slimb, and vrille. However, different circadian clock genes associate with daily and seasonal timing, suggesting that the coupling of timing traits is maintained by natural selection rather than pleiotropy. Juvenile hormone gene expression was associated with both types of timing, suggesting that circadian genes activate common downstream modules that may impose constraint on future evolution of these traits.

Experimental evidence for heritable reproductive time in 2 allochronic populations of pine processionary moth

Phenology allows organisms to overcome seasonally variable conditions through life-cycle adjustment. Changes in phenology can drastically modify the evolutionary trajectory of a population, while a shift in the reproductive time may cause allochronic differentiation. The hypothesis of heritable reproductive time was experimentally tested, by studying a unique population of the pine processionary moth Thaumetopoea pityocampa (Den. & Schiff.) which has a shifted phenology, and however co-occurs with the typical population following the classical life cycle. When populations of both types were reared under controlled conditions, the reproductive time was maintained asynchronous, as observed in the field. The shifted population was manipulated in the laboratory to reproduce later than usual, yet the offspring emerged in the next year at the expected dates thus "coming back" to the usual cycle. Hybrids from crosses performed between the 2 populations showed an intermediate phenology. From the emergence times of parents and offspring, a high heritability of the reproductive time (h = 0.76) was observed. The offspring obtained from each type of cross was genetically characterized using microsatellite markers. Bayesian clustering analysis confirmed that hybrids can be successfully identified and separated from the parental genetic classes by genotyping. Findings support the hypothesis that, for this particular population, incipient allochronic speciation is due to a heritable shift in the reproductive time that further causes assortative mating and might eventually cause ecological adaptation/maladaptation in response to environmental changes.

A combination of sexual and ecological divergence contributes to rearrangement spread during initial stages of speciation

Chromosomal rearrangements between sympatric species often contain multiple loci contributing to assortative mating, local adaptation and hybrid sterility. When and how these associations arise during the process of speciation remains a subject of debate. Here, we address the relative roles of local adaptation and assortative mating on the dynamics of rearrangement evolution by studying how a rearrangement covaries with sexual and ecological trait divergence within a species. Previously, a chromosomal rearrangement that suppresses recombination on the Z (sex) chromosome was identified in European corn borer moths (Ostrinia nubilalis). We further characterize this recombination suppressor and explore its association with variation in sex pheromone communication and seasonal ecological adaptation in pairs of populations that are divergent in one or both of these characteristics. Direct estimates of recombination suppression in pedigree mapping families indicated that more than 39% of the Z chromosome (encompassing up to ~10 megabases and ~300 genes) resides within a nonrecombining unit, including pheromone olfactory receptor genes and a major quantitative trait locus that contributes to ecotype differences (Pdd). Combining direct and indirect estimates of recombination suppression, we found that the rearrangement was occasionally present between sexually isolated strains (E vs. Z) and between divergent ecotypes (univoltine vs. bivoltine). However, it was only consistently present when populations differed in both sexual and ecological traits. Our results suggest that independent of the forces that drove the initial establishment of the rearrangement, a combination of sexual and ecological divergence is required for rearrangement spread during speciation.

Rapid and repeatable shifts in life-history timing of Rhagoletis pomonella (Diptera: Tephritidae) following colonization of novel host plants in the Pacific Northwestern United States

Host shifts of phytophagous insect specialists to novel plants can result in divergent ecological adaptation, generating reproductive isolation and potentially new species. Rhagoletis pomonella fruit flies in eastern North America underwent a host shift ~160 ya from native downy hawthorn (Crataegus mollis) to introduced, domesticated apple (Malus domestica). Divergent selection on diapause phenology related to the earlier fruiting time of apples versus downy hawthorns resulted in partial allochronic reproductive isolation between the fly races. Here, we test for how rapid and repeatable shifts in life‐history timing are driving ecological divergence of R. pomonella in the Pacific Northwestern USA. The fly was introduced into the region via larval‐infested apples 40–65 ya and now attacks native black hawthorn (Crataegus douglasii) and introduced ornamental hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), in addition to early‐ and late‐maturing apple varieties in the region. To investigate the life‐history timing hypothesis, we used a field‐based experiment to characterize the host‐associated eclosion and flight activity patterns of adults, and the feeding times of larvae at a field site in Vancouver, Washington. We also assessed the degree to which differences in host‐fruiting time generate allochronic isolation among apple‐, black hawthorn‐, and ornamental hawthorn‐associated fly populations. We conclude that host‐associated fly populations are temporally offset 24.4% to 92.6% in their seasonal distributions. Our results imply that R. pomonella possesses the capacity for rapid and repeatable shifts in diapause life history to match host‐fruiting phenology, which can generate ecologically based reproductive isolation, and potentially biodiversity in the process.

Effect of winter cold duration on spring phenology of the orange tip butterfly, Anthocharis cardamines

The effect of spring temperature on spring phenology is well understood in a wide range of taxa. However, studies on how winter conditions may affect spring phenology are underrepresented. Previous work on Anthocharis cardamines (orange tip butterfly) has shown population‐specific reaction norms of spring development in relation to spring temperature and a speeding up of post‐winter development with longer winter durations. In this experiment, we examined the effects of a greater and ecologically relevant range of winter durations on post‐winter pupal development of A. cardamines of two populations from the United Kingdom and two from Sweden. By analyzing pupal weight loss and metabolic rate, we were able to separate the overall post‐winter pupal development into diapause duration and post‐diapause development. We found differences in the duration of cold needed to break diapause among populations, with the southern UK population requiring a shorter duration than the other populations. We also found that the overall post‐winter pupal development time, following removal from winter cold, was negatively related to cold duration, through a combined effect of cold duration on diapause duration and on post‐diapause development time. Longer cold durations also lead to higher population synchrony in hatching. For current winter durations in the field, the A. cardamines population of southern UK could have a reduced development rate and lower synchrony in emergence because of short winters. With future climate change, this might become an issue also for other populations. Differences in winter conditions in the field among these four populations are large enough to have driven local adaptation of characteristics controlling spring phenology in response to winter duration. The observed phenology of these populations depends on a combination of winter and spring temperatures; thus, both must be taken into account for accurate predictions of phenology.

A recombination suppressor contributes to ecological speciation in OSTRINIA moths

Despite unparalleled access to species' genomes in our post-genomic age, we often lack adequate biological explanations for a major hallmark of the speciation process-genetic divergence. In the presence of gene flow, chromosomal rearrangements such as inversions are thought to promote divergence and facilitate speciation by suppressing recombination. Using a combination of genetic crosses, phenotyping of a trait underlying ecological isolation, and population genetic analysis of wild populations, we set out to determine whether evidence supports a role for recombination suppressors during speciation between the Z and E strains of European corn borer moth (Ostrinia nubilalis). Our results are consistent with the presence of an inversion that has contributed to accumulation of ecologically adaptive alleles and genetic differentiation across roughly 20% of the Ostrinia sex chromosome (~4 Mb). Patterns in Ostrinia suggest that chromosomal divergence may involve two separate phases-one driving its transient origin through local adaptation and one determining its stable persistence through differential introgression. As the evolutionary rate of rearrangements in lepidopteran genomes appears to be one of the fastest among eukaryotes, structural mutations may have had a disproportionate role during adaptive divergence and speciation in Ostrinia and in other moths and butterflies.

Transcriptome profiling reveals mechanisms for the evolution of insect seasonality

Rapid evolutionary change in seasonal timing can facilitate ecological speciation and resilience to climate warming. However, the molecular mechanisms behind shifts in animal seasonality are still unclear. Evolved differences in seasonality occur in the European corn borer moth (Ostrinia nubilalis), in which early summer emergence in E-strain adults and later summer emergence in Z-strain adults is explained by a shift in the length of the termination phase of larval diapause. Here, we sample from the developmental time course of diapause in both strains and use transcriptome sequencing to profile regulatory and amino acid changes associated with timing divergence. Within a previously defined QTL, we nominate 48 candidate genes including several in the insulin signaling and circadian rhythm pathways. Genome-wide transcriptional activity is negligible during the extended Z-strain termination, whereas shorter E-strain termination is characterized by a rapid burst of regulatory changes involved in resumption of the cell cycle, hormone production, and stress response. Although gene expression during diapause termination in Ostrinia is similar to that found previously in flies, nominated genes for shifts in timing are species-specific. Hence, across distant relatives the evolution of insect seasonality appears to involve unique genetic switches that direct organisms into distinct phases of the diapause pathway through wholesale restructuring of conserved gene regulatory networks

Variation in two phases of post-winter development of a butterfly

The temporal aspects of life cycle characteristics, such as diapause development, are under strong selection in seasonal environments. Fine-tuning of the life cycle may be particularly important to match the phenology of potential mates and resources as well as for optimizing abiotic conditions at eclosion. Here, we experimentally study the spring phenology of the orange tip butterfly, Anthocharis cardamines, by analysing post-winter pupal development in three populations along a latitudinal cline in each of Sweden and the United Kingdom. These countries differ substantially in their seasonal temperature profile. By repeatedly recording pupal weights, we established that post-winter development has two separate phases, with a more rapid weight loss in the second phase than in the first, likely corresponding to a ramping up of the rate of development. Variation in the duration of the first phase contributed more strongly than the second phase to the differences in phenology between the localities and sexes. We found that insects from Sweden had a faster overall rate of development than those from the United Kingdom, which is consistent with countergradient variation, as Sweden is colder during the spring than the United Kingdom. Similar trends were not observed at the within-country scale, however. A cogradient pattern was found within Sweden, with populations from the north developing more slowly, and there was no clear latitudinal trend within the United Kingdom. In all localities, males developed faster than females. Our results point to the importance of variation in the progression of post-winter development for spring phenology.

Adaptations to "Thermal Time" Constraints in Papilio: Latitudinal and Local Size Clines Differ in Response to Regional Climate Change

Adaptations to "thermal time" (=Degree-day) constraints on developmental rates and voltinism for North American tiger swallowtail butterflies involve most life stages, and at higher latitudes include: smaller pupae/adults; larger eggs; oviposition on most nutritious larval host plants; earlier spring adult emergences; faster larval growth and shorter molting durations at lower temperatures. Here we report on forewing sizes through 30 years for both the northern univoltine P. canadensis (with obligate diapause) from the Great Lakes historical hybrid zone northward to central Alaska (65° N latitude), and the multivoltine, P. glaucus from this hybrid zone southward to central Florida (27° N latitude). Despite recent climate warming, no increases in mean forewing lengths of P. glaucus were observed at any major collection location (FL to MI) from the 1980s to 2013 across this long latitudinal transect (which reflects the "converse of Bergmann's size Rule", with smaller females at higher latitudes). Unlike lower latitudes, the Alaska, Ontonogon, and Chippewa/Mackinac locations (for P. canadensis) showed no significant increases in D-day accumulations, which could explain lack of size change in these northernmost locations. As a result of 3-4 decades of empirical data from major collection sites across these latitudinal clines of North America, a general "voltinism/size/D-day" model is presented, which more closely predicts female size based on D-day accumulations, than does latitude. However, local "climatic cold pockets" in northern Michigan and Wisconsin historically appeared to exert especially strong size constraints on female forewing lengths, but forewing lengths quickly increased with local summer warming during the recent decade, especially near the warming edges of the cold pockets. Results of fine-scale analyses of these "cold pockets" are in contrast to non-significant changes for other Papilio populations seen across the latitudinal transect for P. glaucus and P. canadensis in general, highlighting the importance of scale in adaptations to climate change. Furthermore, we also show that rapid size increases in cold pocket P. canadensis females with recent summer warming are more likely to result from phenotypic plasticity than genotypic introgression from P. glaucus, which does increase size in late-flight hybrids and P. appalachiensis.

Climate-Driven Reshuffling of Species and Genes: Potential Conservation Roles for Species Translocations and Recombinant Hybrid Genotypes

Comprising 50%-75% of the world's fauna, insects are a prominent part of biodiversity in communities and ecosystems globally. Biodiversity across all levels of biological classifications is fundamentally based on genetic diversity. However, the integration of genomics and phylogenetics into conservation management may not be as rapid as climate change. The genetics of hybrid introgression as a source of novel variation for ecological divergence and evolutionary speciation (and resilience) may generate adaptive potential and diversity fast enough to respond to locally-altered environmental conditions. Major plant and herbivore hybrid zones with associated communities deserve conservation consideration. This review addresses functional genetics across multi-trophic-level interactions including "invasive species" in various ecosystems as they may become disrupted in different ways by rapid climate change. "Invasive genes" (into new species and populations) need to be recognized for their positive creative potential and addressed in conservation programs. "Genetic rescue" via hybrid translocations may provide needed adaptive flexibility for rapid adaptation to environmental change. While concerns persist for some conservationists, this review emphasizes the positive aspects of hybrids and hybridization. Specific implications of natural genetic introgression are addressed with a few examples from butterflies, including transgressive phenotypes and climate-driven homoploid recombinant hybrid speciation. Some specific examples illustrate these points using the swallowtail butterflies (Papilionidae) with their long-term historical data base (phylogeographical diversity changes) and recent (3-decade) climate-driven temporal and genetic divergence in recombinant homoploid hybrids and relatively recent hybrid speciation of Papilio appalachiensis in North America. Climate-induced "reshuffling" (recombinations) of species composition, genotypes, and genomes may become increasingly ecologically and evolutionarily predictable, but future conservation management programs are more likely to remain constrained by human behavior than by lack of academic knowledge.