phaidra.vetmeduni.ac.at o:4771 DOI 10.1111/1744-7917.70101 Genetic and phenotypic variation in wood tiger moths from the Caucasus: insights into male warning color variation Online Version of Record before inclusion in an issue Coloration plays a pivotal role in shaping how species adapt to their environment, influencing their interactions with predators, prey, and potential mates. The aposematic wood tiger moth (Arctia plantaginis) is sexually dimorphic. Males are polymorphic in their hindwing coloration across the Holarctic distribution range, while females exhibit continuous variation in their coloration. In the Caucasus region, a striking exception can be found, where both sexes exhibit a continuous orange-red hindwing coloration. Yet, it remains uncertain whether significant color variations exist within the spectrum of male orange-red coloration and whether these differences can be associated with genetic structure or other phenotypic traits such as size. Using population genetics and image analyses methods, we find that males from the Lesser Caucasus have predominantly large red wings and constitute mostly a single genetic population. Males from the Greater Caucasus, in contrast, appear genetically isolated and are relatively small with orange hindwings. We discuss these findings in the context of both contemporary and historical environmental factors that may have influenced male color variation in the region. eng Arctiinae Color Polymorphism Genetic Structure Georgia Lepidoptera Multispectral Imaging 2026-01-21T10:14:41.228Z LOMv1.0 Author BEGIN:VCARD VERSION:3.0 N:Galarza;Juan A.; FN:Juan A. Galarza X-ORCID:https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3938-1798 END:VCARD BEGIN:VCARD VERSION:3.0 N:Ottocento;Cristina; FN:Cristina Ottocento END:VCARD BEGIN:VCARD VERSION:3.0 N:Rojas;Bibiana; FN:Bibiana Rojas X-ORCID:https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6715-7294 END:VCARD BEGIN:VCARD VERSION:3.0 N:Valkonen;Janne K.; FN:Janne K. Valkonen END:VCARD BEGIN:VCARD VERSION:3.0 N:Chunashvili;Tamar; FN:Tamar Chunashvili END:VCARD BEGIN:VCARD VERSION:3.0 N:Tasane;Tõnis; FN:Tõnis Tasane END:VCARD BEGIN:VCARD VERSION:3.0 N:Jiggins;Chris D.; FN:Chris D. Jiggins END:VCARD BEGIN:VCARD VERSION:3.0 N:Mappes;Johanna; FN:Johanna Mappes END:VCARD BEGIN:VCARD VERSION:3.0 N:Nokelainen;Ossi; FN:Ossi Nokelainen END:VCARD BEGIN:VCARD VERSION:3.0 N:Brien;Melanie N.; FN:Melanie N. Brien END:VCARD https://w3id.org/kim/hcrt/scheme https://w3id.org/kim/hcrt/text Textdokument Text LOMv1.0 yes https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 application/pdf 1190808 https://phaidra.vetmeduni.ac.at/o:4771 https://phaidra.vetmeduni.ac.at/api/object/o:4771/thumbnail LOMv1.0 discipline