Correlated evolution of conspicuous coloration and burrowing in crayfish

Abstract

Conspicuous colors have fascinated biologists for centuries, leading to much research on the evolution and functional significance of color traits. However, some authors have critiqued the adaptationist dogma amongst color researchers. When investigating a color trait, researchers often exclusively consider the alternative hypotheses--they assume color is adaptive. The null hypothesis of animal color--that coloration is non-adaptive or evolutionary neutral, is rarely considered. Here, we use phylogenetic comparative methods to investigate color evolution throughout freshwater crayfishes. Within the taxa we analyzed, conspicuous colors have evolved independently over 50 times. The intuitive, but not evolutionary-justified assumption when presented these results is to assume that these colors are an adaptation. But contrary to this intuition, our work might support the hypothesis that coloration in crayfish is neutral; because we show that conspicuous colors are evolutionary correlated to a semi-terrestrial burrowing lifestyle. Conspicuous coloration being common in semi-terrestrial burrowers is paradoxical, because these species are nocturnal, and rarely leave their burrows. Overall, our work brings into question to traditional view of animal coloration as a perfectly adapted phenotype.