"The project on ‘structural variation and adaptation of the stickleback genome’ is aiming to characterise structural variation (SV) such as deletions, insertions, duplications, translocations, and inversions within and between five geographically distinct lake-river population comparisons of the three-spined stickleback. Evaluating multiple parallel adaptations will infer the influence of SV on local adaptation and divergence in this prime study system for ecological speciation, adaptive radiation, and ecological genomics. Aim of this project is to develop a computational approach for the detection of SV from whole genome short read paired-end sequencing data. The computational approach will be further assessed in the laboratory. After building a comprehensive map of SV within and between stickleback populations, the role of SV for ecological speciation will be evaluated. Therefore molecular evolution and linkage pattern in the genomic regions affected by SV will be considered. Aim of the project is to contribute to the discussion about the adaptive role of SV of the genome."