A Shared Genetic Playbook Drives Butterfly and Moth Color for 120 Million Years

Researchers found that distantly related butterflies and a day-flying moth repeatedly rely on the same two genes, ivory and optix, to produce warning coloration. Rather than changing the genes themselves, evolution tweaks regulatory switches that control when and where these genes are active, a pattern conserved across seven butterfly lineages and a moth for over 120 million years. This suggests evolution may be more predictable than previously thought and could help scientists anticipate future adaptations, with findings published in PLoS Biology.