 Figure 1 from the paper showing the two species on the left and their distributions on the right. Prionurus punctatus is in blue, while Prionurus laticlavius is in red. Our sampling localities are shown with stars. New publication just out this week in Ecology and Evolution! Many species can easily be distinguished by outward appearances, either by differences in body shape, color, or other patterns. However, outward appearances can be deceiving, and sometimes the old adage "don't judge a book by it's cover" can apply to species as well. This is exactly what we found when we looked more closely at two surgeonfishes in the eastern Pacific. These two species are easily distinguished by the presence or absence of dark spots covering the body. Earlier work that I had published on this group hinted that there was something strange going on with these two species. So, I decided to go back and revisit the eastern Pacific. Working with a great group of collaborators (Moisés Bernal, Eva Salas, Erica Kenworthy, and Prosanta Chakrabarty), we were able to show through a variety of approaches that these two species are in fact, one. What causes some individuals to have dark spots and other to not have the? That's a great question, and one we still don't know the answer to. However, this research does highlight how speciation can (although clearly not always) happen along the coasts of the tropical eastern Pacific. It's an open access article, so go check it out if you're interested!
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