Fruit fly merlin gene (symbol Mer) is located on chromosome 1 and shares 58% similarity to its human homologue.

Other merlin-like genes are known from a wide range of animals, and the derivation of merlin is thought to be in early metazoa.

Drosophila merlin is expressed in embryonic hindgut, salivary glands, and imaginal discs, and has apparently a slightly different role than in vertebrates.

Work in Drosophila identified Merlin as an upstream regulator of the Hippo tumor suppressor pathway,[14] a function that is conserved in mammals.

It is characterized by the development of tumors of the nervous system, most commonly of bilateral vestibular schwannomas (also called acoustic neuromas).