Abstract
Adaptive radiations are rich laboratories for exploring, testing, and
understanding key theories in evolution and ecology because they offer
spectacular displays of speciation and ecological adaptation. Particular
challenges to the study of adaptive radiation include high levels of
species richness, rapid speciation, and gene flow between species. Over
the last decade, high-throughput sequencing technologies and access to
population genomic data have lessened these challenges by enabling the
analysis of samples from many individual organisms at whole-genome
scales. Here we review how population genomic data have facilitated our
knowledge of adaptive radiation in five key areas: 1) phylogenetics, 2)
hybridization, 3) timing and rates of diversification, 4) genomic basis
of trait evolution, and 5) the role of genome structure in divergence.
We review current knowledge in each area, highlight outstanding
questions, and focus on methods that facilitate detection of complex
patterns in population evolutionary demography. Among patterns that
emerge, we particularly note that hybridization—and the
hypothesized processes by which it shapes diversification—and
questions seeking to bridge the divide between microevolutionary and
macroevolutionary processes as rich areas for future study. Overall,
access to population genomic data have facilitated an exciting era in
adaptive radiation research, with implications for deeper understanding
of fundamental evolutionary processes across the tree of life.