Sexual selection leads to more rapid evolution of new species

Uppsala University

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Göran Arnqvist looking at the seed beetle Acanthoscelides obtectus.

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Credit: Mikael Wallerstedt

When males are forced to compete for females, new species form more rapidly. This has been shown in a new study where the researchers compared beetles allowed to mate freely with groups of the same species where competition for mating was restricted. The experiments, which have been going on for 40 years and have followed 200 generations of beetles in direct lineages, explain how important sexual selection is for the emergence of new species.

Species are formed when existing species diverge and become new species. Today, researchers are able to track this divergence process directly from species’ DNA. But identifying exactly which biological factors and processes lead to species formation has proven to be a challenge.

One of the processes proposed is sexual selection. It is a form of natural selection that favours traits that provide a competitive advantage in reproduction with other individuals of the same sex, rather than for survival itself. For example, it is common for males to develop gaudy colours to attract attention or weapons to fight off their rivals. Sexual selection tends to be stronger in groups of animals where one female pairs with multiple different males – which means stronger competition among males for who gets to fertilise their eggs. Sexual selection is weaker where mating only occurs once, such as in mute swans and many mosquito species.

First stage of species formation can be observed in the lab

But species formation takes a long time, making it difficult to directly observe this evolution in animals and plants in real time. A research team from the universities of Uppsala and Belgrade have now succeeded in doing just this in a long-term study of a beetle species – the seed beetle Acanthoscelides obtectus. By comparing groups of beetles that were allowed to mate freely, with other groups where competition for mating was restricted for 200 generations, they were able to observe that the populations evolved in different directions.

“Previous research has suggested that competition between males plays an important role in the formation of new species. The unique thing about our study is that we ‘ve been able to confirm this through experiments in the lab that have been going on since 1986. Although the evolution of new species takes longer than 200 generations, we can clearly observe the signs of the earliest stages of species formation. The populations that evolved under conditions of strong sexual selection ended up being far more different from each other – both genetically and in reproductive characteristics. We have also observed that they evolved in different directions more than twice as rapidly when sexual selection was strong,” says Göran Arnqvist, Professor of Animal Ecology at Uppsala University and the study’s lead author.

Based on almost 40 years of studies of seed beetles

In 1986, the researchers divided a large population of these beetles into two groups of smaller populations, where half were able to evolve under conditions of strong sexual selection, and half under conditions of weak sexual selection for about 200 generations in direct lineages. In one group, the females were able to mate with several different males, which created strong sexual selection. In the second group, the females were allowed to mate only once, which reduced the competition between males. One of the findings was that the males that evolved under conditions of strong sexual selection were larger and mated more often and for longer. They also saw changes in the proteins that affect which sperm fertilise the eggs.

“In animals with internal fertilisation, the male not only transmits sperm during mating, but also a complex cocktail of proteins and peptides. This cocktail is crucial for which sperm gets to fertilise the egg. We observed that the cocktail changed more in the seed beetles that were living under conditions of strong sexual selection. This also applied to the receptors in the female’s bodies,” says Göran Arnqvist.

It is this type of small change that in the long run leads to the formation of new species.

“This protein cocktail, but also the beautiful feathers or plumage that males develop in certain animal species, are all characteristics that have to do with reproductive success and can lead to evolution taking off. 200 generations are not enough, but when we’re talking about 20,000 or 200,000 generations – in that case the populations may become so different that they can no longer breed with each other. Among insects and fish, for example, it’s been observed that there are more species in groups of these animals where the males are brightly coloured or adorned in various ways than in groups where the sexes look more similar,” Arnqvist says.

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Journal

Evolution Letters

DOI

10.1093/evlett/qraf045 

Method of Research

Experimental study

Subject of Research

Animals

Article Title

The effects of sexual selection on functional and molecular reproductive divergence during experimental evolution in seed beetles

 

Crypto hacks: Price drops often outweigh direct losses

An analysis of cyberattacks shows that the funds stolen directly account for only about a quarter of the total damage. The far greater losses arise from subsequent price declines.

Complexity Science Hub

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The researchers calculate the price change of an organization's governance tokens compared to similar assets in six-hour intervals.

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Credit: Complexity Science Hub

[Vienna, 01 December, 2025] – In the crypto world, reports of cyberattacks tend to focus mainly on the funds that vanish immediately. A new study by researchers at the Complexity Science Hub (CSH) now shows that the indirect consequences – such as falling token prices and eroding trust – can multiply the financial impact of such attacks, with investors bearing the brunt.

Over a Billion in Indirect Losses

“We examined 22 major cyberattacks in the crypto sector between 2020 and 2022. In 12 of those cases, the affected tokens experienced subsequent price crashes. While the direct damage in these twelve cases amounted to around 454 million US dollars, the indirect losses due to declining token values reached 1.3 billion US dollars,” explains study author Stefan Kitzler from CSH. On average, the affected tokens lost 14 percent of their value after an attack. In addition, trading volume increased in roughly 68 percent of the cases "as many investors traded actively, either selling quickly to limit losses or buying because they sensed an opportunity for future profits," Kitzler says.

“Reactions to cyberattacks in the DeFi sector closely resemble how traditional financial markets respond to scandals and security incidents – however, on average, we observe larger declines on the one hand, but also counterintuitive price increases on the other,” adds Bernhard Haslhofer, who leads the Digital Currency Ecosystems research group at the CSH.

Isolating the Effects of Attacks

The researchers analyzed price movements 24 hours before and 48 hours after an attack. They also compared the price movements with those of other tokens that had previously performed similarly to ensure that the observed price changes were actually due to the cyberattack and did not reflect general market trends.

No Longer a Niche

Decentralized finance, or DeFi, enables financial transactions with cryptocurrencies directly on the internet – without banks, brokers, or centralized institutions. The technology is built on blockchain, a public digital ledger that transparently records all transactions.

This market for decentralized financial services – such as buying, trading, or lending crypto assets – has seen strong and steady growth. “In Austria, for instance, estimates suggest that at least 300,000 people have invested in crypto. It is therefore no longer a niche,” says Haslhofer. At the same time, the system is increasingly targeted by criminal attacks exploiting technical vulnerabilities, fraud, or market manipulation.

A Parallel to the 'Real' Financial World

The study focuses on the Ethereum network, currently the most important blockchain for DeFi applications. It examines attacks specifically targeting Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) – digital communities in which investors use governance tokens to vote on key decisions, much like shareholders in a company.

“Because DAOs structurally resemble traditional organizations in the real economy, we selected them deliberately,” Kitzler notes. “We wanted to see whether the consequences of an attack on these digital organizations would mirror those observed in conventional financial systems,” adds Haslhofer.

Despite their technological decentralization, markets and investors respond to negative events in very similar ways. “Our analysis shows that the indirect losses resulting from eroded market confidence are often greater than the funds stolen outright,” Kitzler emphasizes. “This highlights the systemic nature of risks in DeFi: an attack affects not only the targeted organizations but the entire ecosystem – and ultimately its investors.”

DeFi projects cannot be viewed in isolation. For investors, developers, and regulators, this means that security, market stability, and trust are deeply interconnected – and must be protected together, the researchers conclude.

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About the Study

The study “The Economic Impact of DeFi Crime Events on Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs)” by S. Kitzler, M. Paquet-Clouston, and B. Haslhofer was published in The Journal of Finance and Data Science (doi: 10.1016/j.jfds.2025.100171).

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About CSH

The Complexity Science Hub (CSH) is Europe’s research center for the study of complex systems. We derive meaning from data from a range of disciplines – economics, medicine, ecology, and the social sciences – as a basis for actionable solutions for a better world. CSH members are Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT), BOKU University, Central European University (CEU), Graz University of Technology, Interdisciplinary Transformation University Austria (IT:U), Medical University of Vienna, TU Wien, University of Continuing Education Krems, Vetmeduni Vienna, Vienna University of Economics and Business, and Austrian Economic Chambers (WKO).

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Journal

The Journal of Finance and Data Science

DOI

10.1016/j.jfds.2025.100171 

Method of Research

Data/statistical analysis

Subject of Research

People

Article Title

The economic impact of DeFi crime events on decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs)

Article Publication Date

8-Nov-2025

COI Statement

The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Co-Author Bernhard Haslhofer is co-founder and research lead of Iknaio Cryptoasset Analytics GmbH and court expert. The other authors declare that they have no competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

 

VIRE: a global data platform to better understand viruses

Researchers release a comprehensive viral genome database covering diverse ecosystems to advance understanding of viral evolution and ecosystem functions

European Molecular Biology Laboratory

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Researchers have developed VIRE, a database that integrates approximately 1.7 million viral genomes derived from more than 100,000 metagenomes worldwide. Metagenomic data is obtained by comprehensively sequencing all DNA present in an environment. This approach enables the recovery of genomic information from microorganisms and viruses that cannot be cultured in the laboratory.

The research was led by Peer Bork, Senior Scientist and Interim Director General at EMBL Heidelberg, and Suguru Nishijima, Project Associate Professor at the Life Science Data Research Center, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, and former Postdoctoral Fellow in the Bork Group. 

Viral Integrated Resource across Ecosystems (VIRE) is the largest and most comprehensive viral resource to date, providing a global foundation for understanding viral diversity across human-associated and environmental ecosystems. This work is expected to greatly advance understanding of the ecological roles of viruses and their interactions with microbial communities.

Although diverse viruses are known to inhabit ecosystems across the planet, the lack of a comprehensive framework has hindered systematic understanding of their global diversity. In particular, many viruses found in environments such as oceans, soils, and the human gut are bacteriophages, which infect bacteria. Because the majority of bacteriophages cannot be easily cultured in the laboratory, their diversity and functions have long remained elusive. 

Using state-of-the-art viral detection technologies, the team comprehensively identified viruses, primarily bacteriophages, across diverse environments such as the human body, oceans, and soils, and predicted their taxonomy, hosts, and gene functions. They also applied advanced computational approaches to detect viral genomes with high accuracy. This enabled them to collect and integrate approximately 1.7 million medium- to high-quality viral genomes, representing a vast expansion beyond existing viral databases.   

Furthermore, for viruses infecting bacteria and archaea, the team utilised the host defense mechanism known as CRISPR spacer sequences to infer host organisms with high precision. These are DNA sequences retained by bacteria and archaea as a record of past viral infections, and by analysing these sequences, it is possible to infer which viruses have previously infected which host organisms. The researchers also clarified the functions of viral genes by integrating annotations from multiple biological databases, such as KEGG and COG, which describe molecular pathways and gene functions.

VIRE is now the world’s largest integrated platform providing viral taxonomy, predicted hosts, and gene functions in a unified framework. It is expected to enable data-driven research across a wide range of fields, including viral ecology, microbial evolution, and environmental sciences. This achievement represents a major step forward in understanding the global diversity of viruses and will contribute to uncovering virus–microbe interactions as well as advancing studies on environmental change, human health, and disease.

Explore VIRE
 

 

 

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Journal

Nucleic Acids Research

DOI

10.1093/nar/gkaf1225 

Article Title

VIRE: a metagenome-derived, planetary-scale virome resource with environmental context.

Article Publication Date

29-Nov-2025

 

Bird-of-paradise inspires darkest fabric ever made

Cornell University

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ITHACA, N.Y. – The color “ultrablack” – defined as reflecting less than 0.5% of the light that hits it – has a variety of uses, including in cameras, solar panels and telescopes, but it’s difficult to produce and can appear less black when viewed at an angle. Now, a Cornell University lab has devised a simple method for making the elusive color.

Taking cues from nature – in particular the striking black of the magnificent riflebird – researchers in the Responsive Apparel Design (RAD) Lab dyed a white merino wool knit fabric with polydopamine, followed by etching of the material in a plasma chamber to create nanofibrils – spiky nanoscale growths. These features were made to mimic the light trapping capabilities found on the riflebird’s ultrablack feathers, which absorb most of the light that hits them.

The researchers’ two-step approach produced the darkest fabric currently reported; it’s also easy to manufacture, scalable, wearable and not angle-dependent. The researchers have applied for patent protectionand hope to form a company around their process, which can be used on natural materials, including wool, silk and cotton.

“From a design perspective, I think it’s exciting because a lot of the ultrablack that exists isn’t really as wearable as ours. And it stays ultrablack even from wider angles,” said Larissa Shepherd, assistant professor in the Department of Human Centered Design.

Shepherd, the RAD Lab’s director, is senior author of “Ultrablack Wool Textiles Inspired by Hierarchical Avian Structure,” which published in Nature Communications.

Their work included analysis of feathers from the riflebird. Its striking black plumage comes from melanin pigment combined with tightly bunched barbules that serve to deflect light inward, absorbing nearly all of it. This renders the bird extraordinarily black, but only when viewed straight on; at an angle, its plumage appears shiny.

This same coloration is evident in other creatures, including fish and butterflies. Shepherd said her group’s choice of polydopamine for their dye was intentional.

“Polydopamine is a synthetic melanin, and melanin is what these creatures have,” she said. “And the riflebird has these really interesting hierarchical structures, the barbules, along with the melanin. So, we wanted to combine those aspects in a textile.”

It wasn’t enough to simply coat the surface of the wool: The researchers had to have the polydopamine penetrate into the fibers of the fabric, so every bit of it became black. That’s because the plasma etching process removes some surface material of the outermost fibers, leaving behind spiky nanofibrils, which are a key component.

Analysis revealed that the group’s fabric had an average total reflectance of 0.13%, making it the darkest fabric yet reported. And it remained ultrablack across a 120-degree angular span, meaning it appears the same at up to a 60-degree angle either side or straight on, superior to currently available commercial materials.

For additional information, see this Cornell Chronicle story.

Cornell University has dedicated television and audio studios available for media interviews.

Media note: Pictures can be viewed and downloaded here: https://cornell.box.com/v/avianinspiredultrablack

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Journal

Nature Communications

DOI

10.1038/s41467-025-65649-4 

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