image: Wing size differences between two Nasonia wasp species are the result of genetic changes in regulatory DNA. These DNA changes alter the expression pattern of a growth gene ("Unpaired like") in space and in time as the wing grows. The diversity of size and shape differences between other animal species might have similar origins. This image relates to a paper that appeared in the Feb. 24, 2012, issue of Science, published by AAAS. The paper, by David Loehlin and John Werren at the University of Rochester in Rochester, N.Y., and colleagues was titled, "Evolution of Shape by Multiple Regulatory Changes to a Growth Gene." view more
Credit: Image courtesy of David Loehlin