Beach mice evolved white fur after colonizing coastal dunes within a few thousand years

Evidence

At some point in the past—possibly as recently as a few thousand years ago—mice spread into open areas along both the Gulf and Atlantic coasts, where they dug their burrows into sand dunes and grassy embankments. Beach mice now raced across a vastly different background than their inland ancestors, and in these new environs dark mice got plucked from the sand. — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 35

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Predation on a new background drove rapid genetic color evolution in mice; Two interacting gene mutations evolved together to produce white fur in beach mice; Two mutated genes drove the mouse population’s shift to white fur — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 36

Related

• Two interacting gene mutations evolved together to produce white fur in beach mice (similarity 0.95)
• Two mutated genes drove the mouse population’s shift to white fur (similarity 0.94)
• Predation on a new background drove rapid genetic color evolution in mice (similarity 0.92)

Broader Connections

• Two mutated genes drove the mouse population’s shift to white fur #expands (0.85) — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 36