Highlights•Supergenes frequently control complex phenotypic polymorphisms in insects.•De
novo structural variants must be favored when rare but not reach fixation to become …

Butterfly color patterns provide visible and biodiverse phenotypic readouts of the patterning
processes. Although the secreted ligand WntA has been shown to instruct the color pattern …

The development of complex phenotypes requires the coordinated action of many genes
across space and time, yet many species have evolved the ability to develop multiple …

The evolution of sexual secondary characteristics necessitates regulatory factors that confer
sexual identity to differentiating tissues and cells. In Colias eurytheme butterflies, males …

The intricate wing patterns of butterflies are thought to derive from a morphological ground
plan that anchors homology relationships between individual color pattern elements and …

Biological systems present immense robustness to environmental, genetic and stochastic
variation, within which butterfly wings emerge as a prime model. Void of complexities during …