Dr. Lily Durkee
NSF Postdoctoral Fellow CSU
Date: April ,10 2026
Time: 12:00pm – 1:00pm
Location: North Classroom 1003
Gene Flow and Adaptation to Environmental Change
In a rapidly changing world, the persistence of populations often depends on their ability to adapt to novel environments. My research explores gene flow – the movement of genetic material between populations – as a mechanism that impacts adaptation across biological scales. Gene flow in this context can constrain adaptation by swamping adaptive alleles, or it can promote adaptation by introducing beneficial genetic variation. In experimental microcosms with red flour beetles, I found that gene flow between distinct lineages led to rapid adaptation under novel life-cycle constraints; conversely, gene flow from naive individuals in a challenging habitat slowed adaptation. Transitioning to natural systems, I used population genomics in Colias butterflies to show that signals of adaptation can persist even in the presence of high gene flow across the Rocky Mountains. My current work investigates how interspecific gene flow, or hybridization, in oak forests impacts host plant adaptation and overall community diversity in parasitic gall wasps.