Plant budding speciation predominant by ecological and geographical differentiation: an ‘evolutionary snapshot’ in Iberodes (Boraginaceae)

O_LITraditional classification of speciation modes has focused on physical barriers to gene flow. While allopatry has been viewed as the most common mechanism of speciation, parapatry and sympatry, both entail speciation in the face of ongoing gene flow and thus both are far more difficult to detect and demonstrate. Iberodes (Boraginaceae, NW Europe) with a small number of recently derived species (five) and contrasting morphological traits, habitats and distribution patterns constitutes an ideal system in which to study drivers of lineage divergence and differentiation. C_LIO_LITo reconstruct the evolutionary history of the genus, we undertook an integrative study entailing: (i) phylogenomics based on restriction-site associated DNA sequencing (RAD-seq), (ii) morphometrics, and (iii) climatic niche modelling. C_LIO_LIKey results revealed a history of repeated progenitor-derivative speciation, manifesting in paraphyletic pattern within Iberodes. Climatic niche analyses, together with the morphometric data and species distributions, suggest that ecological and geographical differentiation have interacted to shape the diversity of allopatric and parapatric distributions observed in Iberodes. C_LIO_LIOur integrative study has enabled to overcome previous barriers to understanding parapatric speciation by demonstrating the recurrence of progenitor-derivative speciation in plants with gene flow and ecological differentiation, explaining observed parapatry and paraphyly. C_LI