Balbiani rings in Drosophila: the Balbiani ring 1 is a common characteristic in several montium species.

Drosophila bicornuta, D. jambulina, D. biauraria, D. triauraria and D. quadraria, belonging to the montium subgroup of the melanogaster species, have a well-formed Balbiani ring (BR) in their salivary gland chromosomes. The BR has many similarities to the BR1 of D. auraria and D. serrata, two other montium species, indicating that the BR1 is a common characteristic in several species of the montium subgroup. It is suggested that the BR1 structure and its possible function(s), in contrast to the BR2, may have been selected during evolution.