Why are there so many different butterflies?
How did they evolve?
Is climate change affecting them?
How do butterflies colonize islands?
Are there species that look the same?
These are some of the questions we try to answer in our research.
Above all, we are passionate about butterflies, exploration & science!
Join our lab!
News:
Welcome to 
Roger Vila’s Lab
Highlighted Papers:

Are you a student or researcher and would like to join us in our adventures? Do not hesitate to send me an e-mail (roger.vila@csic.es).

New video following the extraordinary trip of the butterfly Vanessa cardui from Northern Europe to the tropical savannah!

Spanish and Catalan version

Would you like to know how we work?

See the video and find it out!

Vila, R., Stefanescu, C. & Sesma, J.M. (2018) Guia de les papallones diürnes de Catalunya. Lynx Edicions, Bellaterra, 508 pages. 

Check out our new website of the Worldwide Painted Lady Migration Project.

Follow us on

Talavera G, Lukhtanov V, Pierce NE, Vila R (2022) DNA barcodes combined with multi-locus data of representative taxa can generate reliable higher-level phylogenies. Systematic Biology71(2): 382-395. DOI: 10.1093/sysbio/syab038    

Check out the new cover at Systematic Biology! A great photo by our colleague Vlad Dinca

Mackintosh A, Vila R, Laetsch DR, Hayward A, Martin SH, Lohse K (2023) Chromosome fissions and fusions act as barriers to gene flow between Brenthis fritillary butterflies. Molecular Biology and Evolution 40(39): msad043. https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msad043 

2022 was a great year for butterfly genomics! We have contributed 9 new reference genomes. 

Thanks to Konrad Lohse’s Lab, Alex Hayward, Wellcome Sanger Institute, Darwin Tree of Life and other colleagues for the great collaboration!

Hinojosa JC, Montiel-Pantoja C, Sanjurjo-Franch M, Martínez-Pérez I, Lee KM, Mutanen M, Vila R (2023) Diversification linked to larval host plant in the butterfly Eumedonia eumedon. Molecular Ecology 32, 182-197. https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.16728 (Featured in the journal cover)

TalaveraG, Garcia-BerroA, TallaVNK, Ng’iruI, BahlemanF, KébéK, NzalaKM, PlasenciaD, MarafiMAJ, KassieA, GoudegnonE, KikiM, BenyaminiD, ReichMS, López-MañasR, BenetelloF, CollinsS, BatailleCP, PierceNE, MartinsDJ, SuchanT, MenchettiM, Vila R (2023) The Afrotropical breeding grounds of the Palearctic-African migratory Painted Lady butterflies (Vanessa cardui). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 120 (16): e2218280120. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2218280120 

We have contributed to the most complete butterfly phylogeny done so far! Kawahara AY, Storer C, Carvalho APS, Plotkin DM, (…) Talavera G, Vila R (75/88), (…) Pierce NE, Lohman DJ (2023) A comprehensive phylogeny of butterflies reveals their ancestral hostplant and biogeographic origin. Nature Ecology and Evolution 7: 903-913. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-023-02041-9

Menchetti M, Schifani E, Alicata A, Cardador L, Sbrega E, Toro-Delgado E, Vila R (2023). The fire ant Solenopsis invicta is established in Europe. Current Biology. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2023.07.036

Eric Toro obtained FPU scholarship for his thesis project “Occurrence and Effects of Wolbachia in Butterflies”.

Pep Lancho obtained PRE2023 scholarship and started his PhD on the project “Investigating butterfly diversity and adaptation through genomics”.

Marques V, Hinojosa JC, Dapporto L, Talavera G, Stefanescu C, Gutiérrez D, Vila R (2024) The opposed forces of differentiation and admixture across glacial cycles in the butterfly Aglais urticae. Molecular Ecology 00, e17304. https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.17304

Dapporto L, Menchetti M, Dincă V, Talavera G, Garcia-Berro A, D'Ercole J, Hebert PDN, Vila R (2024) The genetic legacy of the Quaternary ice ages for West Palearctic butterflies. Science Advances 10, eadm8596. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adm8596

Suchan T, Bataille CP, Reich MS, Toro-Delgado E, Vila R, Pierce NE, Talavera G (2024) A trans-oceanic flight of over 4,200 km by painted lady butterflies. Nature Communications 15: 5205. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-49079-2

de-Dios T, Fontsere C, Renom P, Stiller J, Llovera L, Uliano-Silva M, Sánchez-Gracia A, Wright C, Lizano E, Caballero B, Navarro A, Civit S, Robbins RK, Blaxter M, Marquès-Bonet T, Vila R, Lalueza-Fox C (2024) Whole-genomes from the extinct Xerces Blue butterfly can help identify declining insect species. eLife 12: RP87928. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.87928.3

 

Address

Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-UPF)

Pg. Marítim de la Barceloneta 37

08003 Barcelona, Spain

Tel: (+34) 93 230 96 46

Fax: (+34) 93 221 10 11

e-mail: roger.vila@csic.es

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