Wing Shape Variation in Drosophila suzukii Associated with Host Plants and Geographic Origin

This study investigates the effects of host plant and geographic origin on wing shape variation in Drosophila suzukii populations from Serbia using geometric morphometrics. A total of 421 left wings, each representing a different adult individual collected across five host plants and multiple localities, were analyzed to assess patterns of phenotypic variation. Principal component analysis revealed substantial overlap among groups, indicating that neither host plant nor geographic origin alone produces distinct morphological clusters. However, canonical variate analysis, deformation grids, and Procrustes distances detected subtle but consistent differences in wing shape. Procrustes ANOVA confirmed significant effects of both host plant and locality, with geographic origin explaining a larger proportion of the variation, and a significant interaction between factors indicating context-dependent morphological responses. Shape changes were primarily concentrated in distal and posterior wing regions, suggesting potential implications for flight performance and dispersal capacity. Our findings indicate that wing shape variation in D. suzukii is associated with host plant and geographic origin, suggesting that multiple ecological factors may contribute to the observed morphological differences. The observed patterns are consistent with the species’ invasion success, reflecting ecological flexibility rather than discrete morphological differentiation. These findings provide a foundation for future studies investigating the mechanisms underlying host- and locality-associated wing shape variation in D. suzukii.