Research on pigeon color reveals mutation hotspot
A University of Texas at Arlington team exploring pigeons as a model for vertebrate evolution has uncovered that mutations and interactions among just three genes create a wide variety of color variations. One of those genes, they also found, may be an example of a “slippery gene” more prone to evolutionary changes. John W. “Trey” Fondon, an assistant professor of biology, is co-author of a study that begins to unravel the molecular basis for the color palette of domestic pigeons breeds known as “fancy pigeons.” Due mostly to organized breeding in Europe and Asia, there are hundreds of