1
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Einum S, Ullern ER, Walsh M, Burton T. Evolution of population dynamics following invasion by a non‐native predator. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e9348. [PMID: 36188513 PMCID: PMC9487876 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9348] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2022] [Revised: 09/06/2022] [Accepted: 09/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Sigurd Einum
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology Norwegian University of Science and Technology Trondheim Norway
| | - Emil R. Ullern
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology Norwegian University of Science and Technology Trondheim Norway
| | - Matthew Walsh
- Department of Biology University of Texas at Arlington Arlington Texas USA
| | - Tim Burton
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology Norwegian University of Science and Technology Trondheim Norway
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research Trondheim Norway
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2
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3
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Faillace CA, Sentis A, Montoya JM. Eco-evolutionary consequences of habitat warming and fragmentation in communities. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2021; 96:1933-1950. [PMID: 33998139 PMCID: PMC7614044 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12732] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2020] [Revised: 04/23/2021] [Accepted: 04/27/2021] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Eco-evolutionary dynamics can mediate species and community responses to habitat warming and fragmentation, two of the largest threats to biodiversity and ecosystems. The eco-evolutionary consequences of warming and fragmentation are typically studied independently, hindering our understanding of their simultaneous impacts. Here, we provide a new perspective rooted in trade-offs among traits for understanding their eco-evolutionary consequences. On the one hand, temperature influences traits related to metabolism, such as resource acquisition and activity levels. Such traits are also likely to have trade-offs with other energetically costly traits, like antipredator defences or dispersal. On the other hand, fragmentation can influence a variety of traits (e.g. dispersal) through its effects on the spatial environment experienced by individuals, as well as properties of populations, such as genetic structure. The combined effects of warming and fragmentation on communities should thus reflect their collective impact on traits of individuals and populations, as well as trade-offs at multiple trophic levels, leading to unexpected dynamics when effects are not additive and when evolutionary responses modulate them. Here, we provide a road map to navigate this complexity. First, we review single-species responses to warming and fragmentation. Second, we focus on consumer-resource interactions, considering how eco-evolutionary dynamics can arise in response to warming, fragmentation, and their interaction. Third, we illustrate our perspective with several example scenarios in which trait trade-offs could result in significant eco-evolutionary dynamics. Specifically, we consider the possible eco-evolutionary consequences of (i) evolution in thermal performance of a species involved in a consumer-resource interaction, (ii) ecological or evolutionary changes to encounter and attack rates of consumers, and (iii) changes to top consumer body size in tri-trophic food chains. In these scenarios, we present a number of novel, sometimes counter-intuitive, potential outcomes. Some of these expectations contrast with those solely based on ecological dynamics, for example, evolutionary responses in unexpected directions for resource species or unanticipated population declines in top consumers. Finally, we identify several unanswered questions about the conditions most likely to yield strong eco-evolutionary dynamics, how better to incorporate the role of trade-offs among traits, and the role of eco-evolutionary dynamics in governing responses to warming in fragmented communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cara A. Faillace
- Theoretical and Experimental Ecology Station, French National Centre of Scientific Research (CNRS), 2 Route du CNRS, Moulis, 09200, France,Address for correspondence (Tel: +33 5 61 04 05 89; )
| | - Arnaud Sentis
- Theoretical and Experimental Ecology Station, French National Centre of Scientific Research (CNRS), 2 Route du CNRS, Moulis, 09200, France,INRAE, Aix Marseille University, UMR RECOVER, 3275 Route de Cézanne- CS 40061, Aix-en-Provence Cedex 5, 13182, France
| | - José M. Montoya
- Theoretical and Experimental Ecology Station, French National Centre of Scientific Research (CNRS), 2 Route du CNRS, Moulis, 09200, France
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4
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McManus LC, Forrest DL, Tekwa EW, Schindler DE, Colton MA, Webster MM, Essington TE, Palumbi SR, Mumby PJ, Pinsky ML. Evolution and connectivity influence the persistence and recovery of coral reefs under climate change in the Caribbean, Southwest Pacific, and Coral Triangle. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2021; 27:4307-4321. [PMID: 34106494 PMCID: PMC8453988 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.15725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2021] [Revised: 05/10/2021] [Accepted: 05/10/2021] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
Corals are experiencing unprecedented decline from climate change-induced mass bleaching events. Dispersal not only contributes to coral reef persistence through demographic rescue but can also hinder or facilitate evolutionary adaptation. Locations of reefs that are likely to survive future warming therefore remain largely unknown, particularly within the context of both ecological and evolutionary processes across complex seascapes that differ in temperature range, strength of connectivity, network size, and other characteristics. Here, we used eco-evolutionary simulations to examine coral adaptation to warming across reef networks in the Caribbean, the Southwest Pacific, and the Coral Triangle. We assessed the factors associated with coral persistence in multiple reef systems to understand which results are general and which are sensitive to particular geographic contexts. We found that evolution can be critical in preventing extinction and facilitating the long-term recovery of coral communities in all regions. Furthermore, the strength of immigration to a reef (destination strength) and current sea surface temperature robustly predicted reef persistence across all reef networks and across temperature projections. However, we found higher initial coral cover, slower recovery, and more evolutionary lag in the Coral Triangle, which has a greater number of reefs and more larval settlement than the other regions. We also found the lowest projected future coral cover in the Caribbean. These findings suggest that coral reef persistence depends on ecology, evolution, and habitat network characteristics, and that, under an emissions stabilization scenario (RCP 4.5), recovery may be possible over multiple centuries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisa C. McManus
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural ResourcesRutgers UniversityNew BrunswickNJUSA
- Hawaiʻi Institute of Marine BiologyUniversity of Hawaiʻi at ManoaKaneʻoheHIUSA
| | - Daniel L. Forrest
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural ResourcesRutgers UniversityNew BrunswickNJUSA
| | - Edward W. Tekwa
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural ResourcesRutgers UniversityNew BrunswickNJUSA
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyPrinceton UniversityPrincetonNJUSA
| | | | | | | | | | - Stephen R. Palumbi
- Department of BiologyHopkins Marine StationStanford UniversityPacific GroveCAUSA
| | - Peter J. Mumby
- Marine Spatial Ecology LaboratorySchool of Biological SciencesThe University of QueenslandSt LuciaQldAustralia
| | - Malin L. Pinsky
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural ResourcesRutgers UniversityNew BrunswickNJUSA
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5
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Govaert L, De Meester L, Rousseaux S, Declerck SAJ, Pantel JH. Measuring the contribution of evolution to community trait structure in freshwater zooplankton. OIKOS 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.07885] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lynn Govaert
- Leibniz Inst. für Gewässerökologie und Binnenfischerei (IGB) Berlin Germany
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation, KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
- Dept of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, Univ. of Zurich Zurich Switzerland
- Swiss Federal Inst. of Aquatic Science and Technology, Dept of Aquatic Ecology Dübendorf Switzerland
- URPP Global Change and Biodiversity, Univ. of Zurich Zurich Switzerland
| | - Luc De Meester
- Leibniz Inst. für Gewässerökologie und Binnenfischerei (IGB) Berlin Germany
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation, KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
- Inst. of Biology, Freie Univ. Berlin Berlin Germany
| | - Sarah Rousseaux
- Leibniz Inst. für Gewässerökologie und Binnenfischerei (IGB) Berlin Germany
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation, KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
- Natuurinvest, Maatschappelijke zetel Brussel, Herman Teirlinckgebouw Brussel Belgium
| | - Steven A. J. Declerck
- Leibniz Inst. für Gewässerökologie und Binnenfischerei (IGB) Berlin Germany
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation, KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
- Dept of Aquatic Ecology, Netherlands Inst. of Ecology (NIOO‐KNAW) Wageningen the Netherlands
| | - Jelena H. Pantel
- Leibniz Inst. für Gewässerökologie und Binnenfischerei (IGB) Berlin Germany
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation, KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
- Dept of Computer Science, Mathematics and Environmental Science, The American Univ. of Paris Paris France
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6
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Emery KA, Dugan JE, Bailey RA, Miller RJ. Species identity drives ecosystem function in a subsidy-dependent coastal ecosystem. Oecologia 2021; 196:1195-1206. [PMID: 34324077 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-021-05002-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2020] [Accepted: 07/21/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Declines in species diversity carry profound implications for ecosystem functioning. Communities of primary producers and consumers interact on evolutionary as well as ecological time scales, shaping complex relationships between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. In subsidized ecosystems, resource inputs are independent of consumer actions, offering a simplified view of the relationship between species diversity and function for higher trophic levels. With food webs supported by substantial but variable inputs of detritus from adjacent marine ecosystems, sandy beaches are classic examples of subsidized ecosystems. We investigated effects of consumer species diversity and identity on a key ecological function, consumption of kelp wrack from nearshore giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) forests. We assessed effects of species richness on kelp consumption by experimentally manipulating richness of six common species of invertebrate detritivores in laboratory mesocosms and conducting field assays of kelp consumption on beaches. Consumer richness had no effect on kelp consumption in the field and a slight negative effect in laboratory experiments. Kelp consumption was most strongly affected by the species composition of the detritivore community. Species identity and body size of intertidal detritivores drove variation in kelp consumption rates in both experiments and field assays. Our results provide further evidence that species traits, rather than richness per se, influence ecosystem function most, particularly in detrital-based food webs with high functional redundancy across species. On sandy beaches, where biodiversity is threatened by rising sea levels and expanding development, our findings suggest that loss of large-bodied consumer species could disproportionally impact ecosystem function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyle A Emery
- Marine Science Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA.
| | - Jenifer E Dugan
- Marine Science Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - R A Bailey
- School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, KY16 9SS, Fife, UK
| | - Robert J Miller
- Marine Science Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
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7
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Hulthén K, Hill JS, Jenkins MR, Langerhans RB. Predation and Resource Availability Interact to Drive Life-History Evolution in an Adaptive Radiation of Livebearing Fish. Front Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.619277] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Predation risk and resource availability are two primary factors predicted by theory to drive the evolution of life histories. Yet, disentangling their roles in life-history evolution in the wild is challenging because (1) the two factors often co-vary across environments, and (2) environmental effects on phenotypes can mask patterns of genotypic evolution. Here, we use the model system of the post-Pleistocene radiation of Bahamas mosquitofish (Gambusia hubbsi) inhabiting blue holes to provide a strong test of the roles of predation and resources in life-history evolution, as the two factors do not co-vary in this system and we attempted to minimize environmental effects by raising eight populations under common laboratory conditions. We tested a priori predictions of predation- and resource-driven evolution in five life-history traits. We found that life-history evolution in Bahamas mosquitofish largely reflected complex interactions in the effects of predation and resource availability. High predation risk has driven the evolution of higher fecundity, smaller offspring size, more frequent reproduction, and slower growth rate—but this predation-driven divergence primarily occurred in environments with relatively high resource availability, and the effects of resources on life-history evolution was generally greater within environments having high predation risk. This implies that resource-driven selection on life histories overrides selection from predators when resources are particularly scarce. While several results matched a priori predictions, with the added nuance of interdependence among selective agents, some did not. For instance, only resource levels, not predation risk, explained evolutionary change in male age at maturity, with more rapid sexual maturation in higher-resource environments. We also found faster (not slower) juvenile growth rates within low-resource and low-predation environments, probably caused by selection in these high-competition scenarios favoring greater growth efficiency. Our approach, using common-garden experiments with a natural system of low- and high-predation populations that span a continuum of resource availability, provides a powerful way to deepen our understanding of life-history evolution. Overall, it appears that life-history evolution in this adaptive radiation has resulted from a complex interplay between predation and resources, underscoring the need for increased attention on more sophisticated interactions among selective agents in driving phenotypic diversification.
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8
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Symons CC, Schulhof MA, Cavalheri HB, Shurin JB. Legacy effects of fish but not elevation influence lake ecosystem response to environmental change. J Anim Ecol 2020; 90:662-672. [PMID: 33251623 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13398] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2020] [Accepted: 11/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
How communities reorganize during climate change depends on the distribution of diversity within ecosystems and across landscapes. Understanding how environmental and evolutionary history constrain community resilience is critical to predicting shifts in future ecosystem function. The goal of our study was to understand how communities with different histories respond to environmental change with regard to shifts in elevation (temperature, nutrients) and introduced predators. We hypothesized that community responses to the environment would differ in ways consistent with local adaptation and initial trait structure. We transplanted plankton communities from lakes at different elevations with and without fish in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California to mesocosms at different elevations with and without fish. We examined the relative importance of the historical and experimental environment on functional (size structure, effects on lower trophic levels), community (zooplankton composition, abundance and biomass) and population (individual species abundance and biomass) responses. Communities originating from different elevations produced similar biomass at each elevation despite differences in species composition; that is, the experimental elevation, but not the elevation of origin, had a strong effect on biomass. Conversely, we detected a legacy effect of predators on plankton in the fishless environment. Daphnia pulicaria that historically coexisted with fish reached greater biomass under fishless conditions than those from fishless lakes, resulting in greater zooplankton community biomass and larger average size. Therefore, trait variation among lake populations determined the top-down effects of fish predators. In contrast, phenotypic plasticity and local diversity were sufficient to maintain food web structure in response to changing environmental conditions associated with elevation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Celia C Symons
- Department of Biological Sciences, Ecology Behavior and Evolution Section, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Marika A Schulhof
- Department of Biological Sciences, Ecology Behavior and Evolution Section, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Hamanda B Cavalheri
- Department of Biological Sciences, Ecology Behavior and Evolution Section, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Jonathan B Shurin
- Department of Biological Sciences, Ecology Behavior and Evolution Section, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
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9
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Perälä T, Kuparinen A. Eco-evolutionary dynamics driven by fishing: From single species models to dynamic evolution within complex food webs. Evol Appl 2020; 13:2507-2520. [PMID: 33294005 PMCID: PMC7691468 DOI: 10.1111/eva.13058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2020] [Revised: 06/16/2020] [Accepted: 06/23/2020] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Evidence of contemporary evolution across ecological time scales stimulated research on the eco-evolutionary dynamics of natural populations. Aquatic systems provide a good setting to study eco-evolutionary dynamics owing to a wealth of long-term monitoring data and the detected trends in fish life-history traits across intensively harvested marine and freshwater systems. In the present study, we focus on modelling approaches to simulate eco-evolutionary dynamics of fishes and their ecosystems. Firstly, we review the development of modelling from single species to multispecies approaches. Secondly, we advance the current state-of-the-art methodology by implementing evolution of life-history traits of a top predator into the context of complex food web dynamics as described by the allometric trophic network (ATN) framework. The functioning of our newly developed eco-evolutionary ATNE framework is illustrated using a well-studied lake food web. Our simulations show how both natural selection arising from feeding interactions and size-selective fishing cause evolutionary changes in the top predator and how those feed back to its prey species and further cascade down to lower trophic levels. Finally, we discuss future directions, particularly the need to integrate genomic discoveries into eco-evolutionary projections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tommi Perälä
- Department of Biological and Environmental SciencesUniversity of JyväskyläJyväskyläFinland
| | - Anna Kuparinen
- Department of Biological and Environmental SciencesUniversity of JyväskyläJyväskyläFinland
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10
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Alberti M, Palkovacs E, Roches S, Meester L, Brans K, Govaert L, Grimm NB, Harris NC, Hendry AP, Schell CJ, Szulkin M, Munshi-South J, Urban MC, Verrelli BC. The Complexity of Urban Eco-evolutionary Dynamics. Bioscience 2020. [DOI: 10.1093/biosci/biaa079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Urbanization is changing Earth's ecosystems by altering the interactions and feedbacks between the fundamental ecological and evolutionary processes that maintain life. Humans in cities alter the eco-evolutionary play by simultaneously changing both the actors and the stage on which the eco-evolutionary play takes place. Urbanization modifies land surfaces, microclimates, habitat connectivity, ecological networks, food webs, species diversity, and species composition. These environmental changes can lead to changes in phenotypic, genetic, and cultural makeup of wild populations that have important consequences for ecosystem function and the essential services that nature provides to human society, such as nutrient cycling, pollination, seed dispersal, food production, and water and air purification. Understanding and monitoring urbanization-induced evolutionary changes is important to inform strategies to achieve sustainability. In the present article, we propose that understanding these dynamics requires rigorous characterization of urbanizing regions as rapidly evolving, tightly coupled human–natural systems. We explore how the emergent properties of urbanization affect eco-evolutionary dynamics across space and time. We identify five key urban drivers of change—habitat modification, connectivity, heterogeneity, novel disturbances, and biotic interactions—and highlight the direct consequences of urbanization-driven eco-evolutionary change for nature's contributions to people. Then, we explore five emerging complexities—landscape complexity, urban discontinuities, socio-ecological heterogeneity, cross-scale interactions, legacies and time lags—that need to be tackled in future research. We propose that the evolving metacommunity concept provides a powerful framework to study urban eco-evolutionary dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Alberti
- Department of Urban Design and Planning, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
| | - Eric P Palkovacs
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology,University of California, Santa Cruz, California
| | | | - Luc De Meester
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology Evolution, and Conservation, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Leibniz Institut für Gewässerökologie und Binnenfischerei, Berlin, Germany, and with the Institute of Biology at Freie Universität Berlin, also in Berlin, Germany
| | - Kristien I Brans
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology Evolution, and Conservation, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Lynn Govaert
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; with the Department of Aquatic Ecology, in the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, in Dübendorf, Switzerland; and with the University Research Priority Programme on Global Change and Biodiversity at the University of Zurich, in Zurich, Switzerland
| | | | - Nyeema C Harris
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan
| | - Andrew P Hendry
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Christopher J Schell
- Department of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, University of Washington Tacoma, Tacoma, Washington
| | | | - Jason Munshi-South
- Louis Calder Center Biological Field Station, Fordham University, Armonk, New York
| | - Mark C Urban
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut
| | - Brian C Verrelli
- Center for Life Sciences Education, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia
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11
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Abstract
Historically, many biologists assumed that evolution and ecology acted independently because evolution occurred over distances too great to influence most ecological patterns. Today, evidence indicates that evolution can operate over a range of spatial scales, including fine spatial scales. Thus, evolutionary divergence across space might frequently interact with the mechanisms that also determine spatial ecological patterns. Here, we synthesize insights from 500 eco-evolutionary studies and develop a predictive framework that seeks to understand whether and when evolution amplifies, dampens, or creates ecological patterns. We demonstrate that local adaptation can alter everything from spatial variation in population abundances to ecosystem properties. We uncover 14 mechanisms that can mediate the outcome of evolution on spatial ecological patterns. Sometimes, evolution amplifies environmental variation, especially when selection enhances resource uptake or patch selection. The local evolution of foundation or keystone species can create ecological patterns where none existed originally. However, most often, we find that evolution dampens existing environmental gradients, because local adaptation evens out fitness across environments and thus counteracts the variation in associated ecological patterns. Consequently, evolution generally smooths out the underlying heterogeneity in nature, making the world appear less ragged than it would be in the absence of evolution. We end by highlighting the future research needed to inform a fully integrated and predictive biology that accounts for eco-evolutionary interactions in both space and time.
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12
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Reid K, Carlos Garza J, Gephard SR, Caccone A, Post DM, Palkovacs EP. Restoration-mediated secondary contact leads to introgression of alewife ecotypes separated by a colonial-era dam. Evol Appl 2020; 13:652-664. [PMID: 32211058 PMCID: PMC7086056 DOI: 10.1111/eva.12890] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2019] [Revised: 08/30/2019] [Accepted: 10/02/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Secondary contact may have important implications for ecological and evolutionary processes; however, few studies have tracked the outcomes of secondary contact from its onset in natural ecosystems. We evaluated an anadromous alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus ) reintroduction project in Rogers Lake (Connecticut, USA), which contains a landlocked alewife population that was isolated as a result of colonial-era damming. After access to the ocean was restored, adult anadromous alewife were stocked into the lake. We assessed anadromous juvenile production, the magnitude and direction of introgression, and the potential for competition between ecotypes. We obtained fin clips from all adult alewife stocked into the lake during the restoration and a sample of juveniles produced in the lake two years after the stocking began. We assessed the ancestry of juveniles using categorical assignment and pedigree reconstruction with newly developed microhaplotype genetic markers. Anadromous alewives successfully spawned in the lake and hybridized with the landlocked population. Parentage assignments revealed that male and female anadromous fish contributed equally to juvenile F1 hybrids. The presence of landlocked backcrosses shows that some hybrids were produced within the first two years of secondary contact, matured in the lake, and reproduced. Therefore, introgression appears directional, from anadromous into landlocked, in the lake environment. Differences in estimated abundance of juveniles of different ecotypes in different habitats were also detected, which may reduce competition between ecotypes as the restoration continues. Our results illustrate the utility of restoration projects to study the outcomes of secondary contact in real ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kerry Reid
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of CaliforniaSanta CruzCAUSA
- Southwest Fisheries Science CenterNational Marine Fisheries ServiceSanta CruzCAUSA
| | - John Carlos Garza
- Southwest Fisheries Science CenterNational Marine Fisheries ServiceSanta CruzCAUSA
- Department of Ocean SciencesUniversity of CaliforniaSanta CruzCAUSA
| | - Steven R. Gephard
- Fisheries DivisionConnecticut Department of Energy and Environmental ProtectionOld LymeCTUSA
| | - Adalgisa Caccone
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyYale UniversityNew HavenCTUSA
| | - David M. Post
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyYale UniversityNew HavenCTUSA
| | - Eric P. Palkovacs
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of CaliforniaSanta CruzCAUSA
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13
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Wood ZT, Fryxell DC, Moffett ER, Kinnison MT, Simon KS, Palkovacs EP. Prey adaptation along a competition-defense tradeoff cryptically shifts trophic cascades from density- to trait-mediated. Oecologia 2020; 192:767-778. [PMID: 31989320 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-020-04610-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2019] [Accepted: 01/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Trophic cascades have become a dominant paradigm in ecology, yet considerable debate remains about the relative strength of density- (consumptive) and trait-mediated (non-consumptive) effects in trophic cascades. This debate may, in part, be resolved by considering prey experience, which shapes prey traits (through genetic and plastic change) and influences prey survival (and therefore density). Here, we investigate the cascading role of prey experience through the addition of mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) from predator-experienced or predator-naïve sources to mesocosms containing piscivorous largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), zooplankton, and phytoplankton. These two sources were positioned along a competition-defense tradeoff. Results show that predator-naïve mosquitofish suffered higher depredation rates, which drove a density-mediated cascade, whereas predator-experienced mosquitofish exhibited higher survival but fed less, which drove a trait-mediated cascade. Both cascades were similar in strength, leading to indistinguishable top-down effects on lower trophic levels. Therefore, the accumulation of prey experience with predators can cryptically shift cascade mechanisms from density- to trait-mediated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zachary T Wood
- School of Biology and Ecology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences Program, University of Maine, Orono, ME, 04469, USA.
| | - David C Fryxell
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064, USA
- School of Environment, University of Auckland, Auckland, 1142, New Zealand
| | - Emma R Moffett
- School of Environment, University of Auckland, Auckland, 1142, New Zealand
| | - Michael T Kinnison
- School of Biology and Ecology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences Program, University of Maine, Orono, ME, 04469, USA
| | - Kevin S Simon
- School of Environment, University of Auckland, Auckland, 1142, New Zealand
| | - Eric P Palkovacs
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064, USA
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14
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Skúlason S, Parsons KJ, Svanbäck R, Räsänen K, Ferguson MM, Adams CE, Amundsen P, Bartels P, Bean CW, Boughman JW, Englund G, Guðbrandsson J, Hooker OE, Hudson AG, Kahilainen KK, Knudsen R, Kristjánsson BK, Leblanc CA, Jónsson Z, Öhlund G, Smith C, Snorrason SS. A way forward with eco evo devo: an extended theory of resource polymorphism with postglacial fishes as model systems. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2019; 94:1786-1808. [PMID: 31215138 PMCID: PMC6852119 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12534] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2018] [Revised: 05/12/2019] [Accepted: 05/20/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
A major goal of evolutionary science is to understand how biological diversity is generated and altered. Despite considerable advances, we still have limited insight into how phenotypic variation arises and is sorted by natural selection. Here we argue that an integrated view, which merges ecology, evolution and developmental biology (eco evo devo) on an equal footing, is needed to understand the multifaceted role of the environment in simultaneously determining the development of the phenotype and the nature of the selective environment, and how organisms in turn affect the environment through eco evo and eco devo feedbacks. To illustrate the usefulness of an integrated eco evo devo perspective, we connect it with the theory of resource polymorphism (i.e. the phenotypic and genetic diversification that occurs in response to variation in available resources). In so doing, we highlight fishes from recently glaciated freshwater systems as exceptionally well-suited model systems for testing predictions of an eco evo devo framework in studies of diversification. Studies on these fishes show that intraspecific diversity can evolve rapidly, and that this process is jointly facilitated by (i) the availability of diverse environments promoting divergent natural selection; (ii) dynamic developmental processes sensitive to environmental and genetic signals; and (iii) eco evo and eco devo feedbacks influencing the selective and developmental environments of the phenotype. We highlight empirical examples and present a conceptual model for the generation of resource polymorphism - emphasizing eco evo devo, and identify current gaps in knowledge.
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Affiliation(s)
- Skúli Skúlason
- Department of Aquaculture and Fish BiologyHólar UniversitySauðárkrókur, 551Iceland
- Icelandic Museum of Natural History, Brynjólfsgata 5ReykjavíkIS‐107Iceland
| | - Kevin J. Parsons
- Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health & Comparative MedicineUniversity of GlasgowGlasgow, G12 8QQU.K.
| | - Richard Svanbäck
- Animal Ecology, Department of Ecology and Genetics, Science for Life LaboratoryUppsala University, Norbyvägen 18DUppsala, SE‐752 36Sweden
| | - Katja Räsänen
- Department of Aquatic EcologyEAWAG, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, and Institute of Integrative Biology, ETH‐Zurich, Ueberlandstrasse 133CH‐8600DübendorfSwitzerland
| | - Moira M. Ferguson
- Department of Integrative BiologyUniversity of GuelphGuelph, Ontario N1G 2W1Canada
| | - Colin E. Adams
- Scottish Centre for Ecology and the Natural Environment, IBAHCMUniversity of GlasgowGlasgow G12 8QQU.K.
| | - Per‐Arne Amundsen
- Freshwater Ecology Group, Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, Faculty of Biosciences, Fisheries and EconomicsUniversity of TromsöTromsö, N‐9037Norway
| | - Pia Bartels
- Department of Ecology and Environmental ScienceUmeå UniversityUmeå, SE‐90187Sweden
| | - Colin W. Bean
- Scottish Natural Heritage, Caspian House, Mariner Court, Clydebank Business ParkClydebank, G81 2NRU.K.
| | - Janette W. Boughman
- Department of Integrative BiologyMichigan State UniversityEast Lansing, MI 48824U.S.A.
| | - Göran Englund
- Department of Ecology and Environmental ScienceUmeå UniversityUmeå, SE‐90187Sweden
| | - Jóhannes Guðbrandsson
- Institute of Life and Environmental SciencesUniversity of IcelandReykjavik, 101Iceland
| | | | - Alan G. Hudson
- Department of Ecology and Environmental ScienceUmeå UniversityUmeå, SE‐90187Sweden
| | - Kimmo K. Kahilainen
- Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences, Department of Forestry and Wildlife Management, Campus Evenstad, Anne Evenstadvei 80Koppang, NO‐2480Norway
| | - Rune Knudsen
- Freshwater Ecology Group, Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, Faculty of Biosciences, Fisheries and EconomicsUniversity of TromsöTromsö, N‐9037Norway
| | | | - Camille A‐L. Leblanc
- Department of Aquaculture and Fish BiologyHólar UniversitySauðárkrókur, 551Iceland
| | - Zophonías Jónsson
- Institute of Life and Environmental SciencesUniversity of IcelandReykjavik, 101Iceland
| | - Gunnar Öhlund
- Department of Ecology and Environmental ScienceUmeå UniversityUmeå, SE‐90187Sweden
| | - Carl Smith
- School of BiologyUniversity of St Andrews, St. AndrewsFife, KY16 9AJU.K.
| | - Sigurður S. Snorrason
- Institute of Life and Environmental SciencesUniversity of IcelandReykjavik, 101Iceland
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15
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King GE, Howeth JG. Propagule pressure and native community connectivity interact to influence invasion success in metacommunities. OIKOS 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.06354] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Gabrielle E. King
- Dept of Biological Sciences, Univ. of Alabama, 1106 Bevill Building, Box 870344 Tuscaloosa AL 35487 USA
| | - Jennifer G. Howeth
- Dept of Biological Sciences, Univ. of Alabama, 1106 Bevill Building, Box 870344 Tuscaloosa AL 35487 USA
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16
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Chislock MF, Sarnelle O, Jernigan LM, Anderson VR, Abebe A, Wilson AE. Consumer adaptation mediates top-down regulation across a productivity gradient. Oecologia 2019; 190:195-205. [PMID: 30989361 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-019-04401-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2018] [Accepted: 04/08/2019] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
Humans have artificially enhanced the productivity of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems on a global scale by increasing nutrient loading. While the consequences of eutrophication are well known (e.g., harmful algal blooms and toxic cyanobacteria), most studies tend to examine short-term responses relative to the time scales of heritable adaptive change. Thus, the potential role of adaptation by organisms in stabilizing the response of ecological systems to such perturbations is largely unknown. We tested the hypothesis that adaptation by a generalist consumer (Daphnia pulicaria) to toxic prey (cyanobacteria) mediates the response of plankton communities to nutrient enrichment. Overall, the strength of Daphnia's top-down effect on primary producer biomass increased with productivity. However, these effects were contingent on prey traits (e.g., rare vs. common toxic cyanobacteria) and consumer genotype (i.e., tolerant vs sensitive to toxic cyanobacteria). Tolerant Daphnia strongly suppressed toxic cyanobacteria in nutrient-rich ponds, but sensitive Daphnia did not. In contrast, both tolerant and sensitive Daphnia genotypes had comparable effects on producer biomass when toxic cyanobacteria were absent. Our results demonstrate that organismal adaptation is critical for understanding and predicting ecosystem-level consequences of anthropogenic environmental perturbations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael F Chislock
- School of Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Aquatic Sciences, 203 Swingle Hall, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, 36849, USA.,Department of Environmental Science and Ecology, The College at Brockport, State University of New York, Brockport, NY, 14420, USA
| | - Orlando Sarnelle
- Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824, USA
| | - Lauren M Jernigan
- School of Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Aquatic Sciences, 203 Swingle Hall, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, 36849, USA
| | - Vernon R Anderson
- School of Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Aquatic Sciences, 203 Swingle Hall, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, 36849, USA
| | - Ash Abebe
- Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, 36849, USA
| | - Alan E Wilson
- School of Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Aquatic Sciences, 203 Swingle Hall, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, 36849, USA.
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17
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Beston SM, Dudycha JL, Post DM, Walsh MR. The evolution of eye size in response to increased fish predation in Daphnia. Evolution 2019; 73:792-802. [PMID: 30843603 DOI: 10.1111/evo.13717] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2018] [Revised: 02/05/2019] [Accepted: 02/13/2019] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Variation in eye size is ubiquitous across taxa. Increased eye size is correlated with improved vision and increased fitness via shifts in behavior. Tests of the drivers of eye size evolution have focused on macroevolutionary studies evaluating the importance of light availability. Predator-induced mortality has recently been identified as a potential driver of eye size variation. Here, we tested the influence of increased predation by the fish predator, the alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) on eye size evolution in waterfleas (Daphnia ambigua) from lakes in Connecticut. We quantified the relative eye size of Daphnia from lakes with and without alewife using wild-caught and third-generation laboratory reared specimens. This includes comparisons between lakes where alewife are present seasonally (anadromous) or permanently (landlocked). Wild-caught specimens did not differ in eye size across all lakes. However, third-generation lab reared Daphnia from lakes with alewife, irrespective of the form of alewife predation, exhibited significantly larger eyes than Daphnia from lakes without alewife. This genetically based increase in eye size may enhance the ability of Daphnia to detect predators. Alternatively, such shifts in eye size may be an indirect response to Daphnia aggregating at the bottom of lakes. To test these mechanisms, we collected Daphnia as a function of depth and found that eye size differed in Daphnia found at the surface versus the bottom of the water column between anadromous alewife and no alewife lakes. However, we found no evidence of Daphnia aggregating at the bottom of lakes. Such results indicate that the evolution of a larger eye may be explained by a connection between eyes and enhanced survival. We discuss the cause of the lack of concordance in eye size variation between our phenotypic and genetic specimens and the ultimate drivers of eye size.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shannon M Beston
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, Texas, 76019
| | - Jeffry L Dudycha
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, 29208
| | - David M Post
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, 06520
| | - Matthew R Walsh
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, Texas, 76019
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18
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Kremer CT, Fey SB, Arellano AA, Vasseur DA. Gradual plasticity alters population dynamics in variable environments: thermal acclimation in the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhartdii. Proc Biol Sci 2019; 285:rspb.2017.1942. [PMID: 29321297 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.1942] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2017] [Accepted: 12/04/2017] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Environmental variability is ubiquitous, but its effects on populations are not fully understood or predictable. Recent attention has focused on how rapid evolution can impact ecological dynamics via adaptive trait change. However, the impact of trait change arising from plastic responses has received less attention, and is often assumed to optimize performance and unfold on a separate, faster timescale than ecological dynamics. Challenging these assumptions, we propose that gradual plasticity is important for ecological dynamics, and present a study of the plastic responses of the freshwater green algae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii as it acclimates to temperature changes. First, we show that C. reinhardtii's gradual acclimation responses can both enhance and suppress its performance after a perturbation, depending on its prior thermal history. Second, we demonstrate that where conventional approaches fail to predict the population dynamics of C. reinhardtii exposed to temperature fluctuations, a new model of gradual acclimation succeeds. Finally, using high-resolution data, we show that phytoplankton in lake ecosystems can experience thermal variation sufficient to make acclimation relevant. These results challenge prevailing assumptions about plasticity's interactions with ecological dynamics. Amidst the current emphasis on rapid evolution, it is critical that we also develop predictive methods accounting for plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Colin T Kremer
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, 165 Prospect Street, New Haven, CT 06520, USA .,W.K. Kellogg Biological Station, Michigan State University, Hickory Corners, MI 49060, USA
| | - Samuel B Fey
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, 165 Prospect Street, New Haven, CT 06520, USA .,Department of Biology, Reed College, Portland, OR 97202, USA
| | - Aldo A Arellano
- Department of Biological Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - David A Vasseur
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, 165 Prospect Street, New Haven, CT 06520, USA
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19
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De Meester L, Brans KI, Govaert L, Souffreau C, Mukherjee S, Vanvelk H, Korzeniowski K, Kilsdonk L, Decaestecker E, Stoks R, Urban MC. Analysing eco‐evolutionary dynamics—The challenging complexity of the real world. Funct Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Luc De Meester
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Kristien I. Brans
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Lynn Govaert
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
- Department of Aquatic Ecology Eawag: Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology Dübendorf Switzerland
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies University of Zurich Zürich Switzerland
| | - Caroline Souffreau
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Shinjini Mukherjee
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Héléne Vanvelk
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Konrad Korzeniowski
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Laurens Kilsdonk
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Ellen Decaestecker
- Laboratory of Aquatic Biology, IRF Life Sciences, KULAK KU Leuven Kortrijk Belgium
| | - Robby Stoks
- Laboratory or Evolutionary Stress Ecology and Ecotoxicology KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Mark C. Urban
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Risk University of Connecticut Storrs Connecticut
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20
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Boel M, Brodersen J, Koed A, Baktoft H, Post DM. Incidence and phenotypic variation in alewife alter the ontogenetic trajectory of young-of-the-year largemouth bass. OIKOS 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.05556] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Mikkel Boel
- Section for Freshwater Fisheries and Ecology, Technical Univ. of Denmark; Silkeborg Denmark
| | - Jakob Brodersen
- Dept of Fish Ecology and Evolution, EAWAG Swiss Federal Inst. of Aquatic Science and Technology, Center of Ecology, Evolution and Biochemistry; Kastanienbaum Switzerland
- Div. of Aquatic Ecology and Evolution, Inst. of Ecology and Evolution, Univ. of Bern; Bern Switzerland
| | - Anders Koed
- Section for Freshwater Fisheries and Ecology, Technical Univ. of Denmark; Silkeborg Denmark
| | - Henrik Baktoft
- Section for Freshwater Fisheries and Ecology, Technical Univ. of Denmark; Silkeborg Denmark
| | - David M. Post
- Dept of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale Univ; New Haven CT 6520-8106 USA
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21
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Raffard A, Santoul F, Cucherousset J, Blanchet S. The community and ecosystem consequences of intraspecific diversity: a meta-analysis. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2018; 94:648-661. [PMID: 30294844 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12472] [Citation(s) in RCA: 108] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2018] [Revised: 09/12/2018] [Accepted: 09/14/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Understanding the relationships between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning has major implications. Biodiversity-ecosystem functioning relationships are generally investigated at the interspecific level, although intraspecific diversity (i.e. within-species diversity) is increasingly perceived as an important ecological facet of biodiversity. Here, we provide a quantitative and integrative synthesis testing, across diverse plant and animal species, whether intraspecific diversity is a major driver of community dynamics and ecosystem functioning. We specifically tested (i) whether the number of genotypes/phenotypes (i.e. intraspecific richness) or the specific identity of genotypes/phenotypes (i.e. intraspecific variation) in populations modulate the structure of communities and the functioning of ecosystems, (ii) whether the ecological effects of intraspecific richness and variation are strong in magnitude, and (iii) whether these effects vary among taxonomic groups and ecological responses. We found a non-linear relationship between intraspecific richness and community and ecosystem dynamics that follows a saturating curve shape, as observed for biodiversity-function relationships measured at the interspecific level. Importantly, intraspecific richness modulated ecological dynamics with a magnitude that was equal to that previously reported for interspecific richness. Our results further confirm, based on a database containing more than 50 species, that intraspecific variation also has substantial effects on ecological dynamics. We demonstrated that the effects of intraspecific variation are twice as high as expected by chance, and that they might have been underestimated previously. Finally, we found that the ecological effects of intraspecific variation are not homogeneous and are actually stronger when intraspecific variation is manipulated in primary producers than in consumer species, and when they are measured at the ecosystem rather than at the community level. Overall, we demonstrated that the two facets of intraspecific diversity (richness and variation) can both strongly affect community and ecosystem dynamics, which reveals the pivotal role of within-species biodiversity for understanding ecological dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Allan Raffard
- CNRS, Station d'Écologie Théorique et Expérimentale du CNRS à Moulis UMR-5321, Université Toulouse III Paul Sabatier, 2 route du CNRS, F-09200, Moulis, France.,EcoLab, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, INPT, UPS, 31062 Toulouse, France
| | - Frédéric Santoul
- EcoLab, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, INPT, UPS, 31062 Toulouse, France
| | - Julien Cucherousset
- CNRS, IRD, UPS, Laboratoire Évolution et Diversité Biologique (EDB UMR 5174), Université de Toulouse, 118 route de Narbonne, Toulouse 31062, France
| | - Simon Blanchet
- CNRS, Station d'Écologie Théorique et Expérimentale du CNRS à Moulis UMR-5321, Université Toulouse III Paul Sabatier, 2 route du CNRS, F-09200, Moulis, France.,CNRS, IRD, UPS, Laboratoire Évolution et Diversité Biologique (EDB UMR 5174), Université de Toulouse, 118 route de Narbonne, Toulouse 31062, France
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22
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Gillis MK, Walsh MR. Rapid evolution mitigates the ecological consequences of an invasive species ( Bythotrephes longimanus) in lakes in Wisconsin. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 284:rspb.2017.0814. [PMID: 28679729 PMCID: PMC5524501 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.0814] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2017] [Accepted: 05/31/2017] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Invasive species have extensive negative consequences for biodiversity and ecosystem health. Novel species also drive contemporary evolution in many native populations, which could mitigate or amplify their impacts on ecosystems. The predatory zooplankton Bythotrephes longimanus invaded lakes in Wisconsin, USA, in 2009. This invasion caused precipitous declines in zooplankton prey (Daphnia pulicaria), with cascading impacts on ecosystem services (water clarity). Here, we tested the link between Bythotrephes invasion, evolution in Daphnia and post-invasion ecological dynamics using 15 years of long-term data in conjunction with comparative experiments. Invasion by Bythotrephes is associated with rapid increases in the body size of Daphnia. Laboratory experiments revealed that such shifts have a genetic component; third-generation laboratory-reared Daphnia from ‘invaded’ lakes are significantly larger and exhibit greater reproductive effort than individuals from ‘uninvaded’ lakes. This trajectory of evolution should accelerate Daphnia population growth and enhance population persistence. We tested this prediction by comparing analyses of long-term data with laboratory-based simulations, and show that rapid evolution in Daphnia is associated with increased population growth in invaded lakes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael K Gillis
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
| | - Matthew R Walsh
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
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23
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Park JS, Post DM. Evolutionary history of Daphnia drives divergence in grazing selectivity and alters temporal community dynamics of producers. Ecol Evol 2017; 8:859-865. [PMID: 29375760 PMCID: PMC5773292 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3678] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2017] [Revised: 10/26/2017] [Accepted: 11/03/2017] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Consumers with different seasonal life histories encounter different communities of producers during specific seasonal phases. If consumers evolve to prefer the producers that they encounter, then consumers may reciprocally influence the temporal composition of producer communities. Here, we study the keystone consumer Daphnia ambigua, whose seasonal life history has diverged due to intraspecific predator divergence across lakes of New England. We ask whether grazing preferences of Daphnia have diverged also and test whether any grazing differences influence temporal composition patterns of producers. We reared clonal populations of Daphnia from natural populations representing the two diverged life history types for multiple generations. We conducted short‐term (24 hr) and long‐term (27 days) grazing experiments in equal polycultures consisting of three diatom and two green algae species, treated with no consumer, Daphnia from lakes with anadromous alewife, or from lakes with landlocked alewife. After 24 hr, life history and grazing preference divergence in Daphnia ambigua drove significant differences in producer composition. However, those differences disappeared at the end of the 27‐day experiment. Our results illustrate that, despite potentially more complex long‐term dynamics, a multitrophic cascade of evolutionary divergence from a predator can influence temporal community dynamics at the producer level.
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Affiliation(s)
- John S Park
- Committee on Evolutionary Biology University of Chicago Chicago IL USA
| | - David M Post
- Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Yale University New Haven CT USA
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24
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The ecological importance of intraspecific variation. Nat Ecol Evol 2017; 2:57-64. [PMID: 29203921 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-017-0402-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 331] [Impact Index Per Article: 47.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2017] [Accepted: 11/02/2017] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Human activity is causing wild populations to experience rapid trait change and local extirpation. The resulting effects on intraspecific variation could have substantial consequences for ecological processes and ecosystem services. Although researchers have long acknowledged that variation among species influences the surrounding environment, only recently has evidence accumulated for the ecological importance of variation within species. We conducted a meta-analysis comparing the ecological effects of variation within a species (intraspecific effects) with the effects of replacement or removal of that species (species effects). We evaluated direct and indirect ecological responses, including changes in abundance (or biomass), rates of ecological processes and changes in community composition. Our results show that intraspecific effects are often comparable to, and sometimes stronger than, species effects. Species effects tend to be larger for direct ecological responses (for example, through consumption), whereas intraspecific effects and species effects tend to be similar for indirect responses (for example, through trophic cascades). Intraspecific effects are especially strong when indirect interactions alter community composition. Our results summarize data from the first generation of studies examining the relative ecological effects of intraspecific variation. Our conclusions can help inform the design of future experiments and the formulation of strategies to quantify and conserve biodiversity.
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25
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Goitom E, Kilsdonk LJ, Brans K, Jansen M, Lemmens P, De Meester L. Rapid evolution leads to differential population dynamics and top-down control in resurrected Daphnia populations. Evol Appl 2017; 11:96-111. [PMID: 29302275 PMCID: PMC5748522 DOI: 10.1111/eva.12567] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2017] [Accepted: 10/13/2017] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
There is growing evidence of rapid genetic adaptation of natural populations to environmental change, opening the perspective that evolutionary trait change may subsequently impact ecological processes such as population dynamics, community composition, and ecosystem functioning. To study such eco‐evolutionary feedbacks in natural populations, however, requires samples across time. Here, we capitalize on a resurrection ecology study that documented rapid and adaptive evolution in a natural population of the water flea Daphnia magna in response to strong changes in predation pressure by fish, and carry out a follow‐up mesocosm experiment to test whether the observed genetic changes influence population dynamics and top‐down control of phytoplankton. We inoculated populations of the water flea D. magna derived from three time periods of the same natural population known to have genetically adapted to changes in predation pressure in replicate mesocosms and monitored both Daphnia population densities and phytoplankton biomass in the presence and absence of fish. Our results revealed differences in population dynamics and top‐down control of algae between mesocosms harboring populations from the time period before, during, and after a peak in fish predation pressure caused by human fish stocking. The differences, however, deviated from our a priori expectations. An S‐map approach on time series revealed that the interactions between adults and juveniles strongly impacted the dynamics of populations and their top‐down control on algae in the mesocosms, and that the strength of these interactions was modulated by rapid evolution as it occurred in nature. Our study provides an example of an evolutionary response that fundamentally alters the processes structuring population dynamics and impacts ecosystem features.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eyerusalem Goitom
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Laurens J Kilsdonk
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Kristien Brans
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Mieke Jansen
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Pieter Lemmens
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Luc De Meester
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
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26
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Brodersen J, Post DM, Seehausen O. Upward Adaptive Radiation Cascades: Predator Diversification Induced by Prey Diversification. Trends Ecol Evol 2017; 33:59-70. [PMID: 29096889 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2017.09.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2017] [Revised: 09/24/2017] [Accepted: 09/26/2017] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
The value of biodiversity is widely appreciated, but we are only beginning to understand the interplay of processes that generate biodiversity and their consequences for coevolutionary interactions. Whereas predator-prey coevolution is most often analyzed in the context of evolutionary arms races, much less has been written about how predators are affected by, and respond to, evolutionary diversification in their prey. We hypothesize here that adaptive radiation of prey may lead to diversification and potentially speciation in predators, a process that we call an upwards adaptive radiation cascade. In this paper we lay out the conceptual basis for upwards adaptive radiation cascades, explore evidence for such cascades, and finally advocate for intensified research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jakob Brodersen
- Department of Fish Ecology and Evolution, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (EAWAG), Center for Ecology, Evolution and Biogeochemistry, Seestrasse 79, CH-6047 Kastanienbaum, Switzerland.
| | - David M Post
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8105, USA
| | - Ole Seehausen
- Department of Fish Ecology and Evolution, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (EAWAG), Center for Ecology, Evolution and Biogeochemistry, Seestrasse 79, CH-6047 Kastanienbaum, Switzerland; Aquatic Ecology and Evolution, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Baltzerstrasse 6, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland
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27
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El-Sabaawi RW. How Fishes Can Help Us Answer Important Questions about the Ecological Consequences of Evolution. COPEIA 2017. [DOI: 10.1643/ot-16-530] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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28
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Rapid evolution of hosts begets species diversity at the cost of intraspecific diversity. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2017; 114:11193-11198. [PMID: 28973943 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1701845114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Ecosystems are complex food webs in which multiple species interact and ecological and evolutionary processes continuously shape populations and communities. Previous studies on eco-evolutionary dynamics have shown that the presence of intraspecific diversity affects community structure and function, and that eco-evolutionary feedback dynamics can be an important driver for its maintenance. Within communities, feedbacks are, however, often indirect, and they can feed back over many generations. Here, we studied eco-evolutionary feedbacks in evolving communities over many generations and compared two-species systems (virus-host and prey-predator) with a more complex three-species system (virus-host-predator). Both indirect density- and trait-mediated effects drove the dynamics in the complex system, where host-virus coevolution facilitated coexistence of predator and virus, and where coexistence, in return, lowered intraspecific diversity of the host population. Furthermore, ecological and evolutionary dynamics were significantly altered in the three-species system compared with the two-species systems. We found that the predator slowed host-virus coevolution in the complex system and that the virus' effect on the overall population dynamics was negligible when the three species coexisted. Overall, we show that a detailed understanding of the mechanism driving eco-evolutionary feedback dynamics is necessary for explaining trait and species diversity in communities, even in communities with only three species.
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Howeth JG. Native species dispersal reduces community invasibility by increasing species richness and biotic resistance. J Anim Ecol 2017; 86:1380-1393. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12733] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2017] [Accepted: 07/05/2017] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer G. Howeth
- Department of Biological Sciences University of Alabama Tuscaloosa AL USA
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30
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DeLong JP. Ecological Pleiotropy Suppresses the Dynamic Feedback Generated by a Rapidly Changing Trait. Am Nat 2017; 189:592-597. [PMID: 28410029 DOI: 10.1086/691100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Population dynamics may carry a signature of an ecology-evolution-ecology feedback, known as eco-evolutionary dynamics, when functionally important traits change. Given current theory, the absence of a feedback from a trait with strong links to species interactions should not occur. In a previous study with the Didinium-Paramecium predator-prey system, however, rapid and large-magnitude changes in predator cell volume occurred without any noticeable effect on the population dynamics. Here I resolve this theory-data conflict by showing that ecological pleiotropy-when a trait has more than one functional effect on an ecological process-suppresses shifts in dynamics that would arise, given the links between cell volume and the species interaction. Whether eco-evolutionary dynamics arise, therefore, depends not just on the ecology-evolution feedback but on the net effect that a trait has on different parts of the underlying interaction.
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31
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Packer M, Walsh MR. Predator-induced plasticity does not alter the pathway from evolution to ecology among locally adapted populations of Daphnia. Evol Ecol 2017. [DOI: 10.1007/s10682-017-9891-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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32
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33
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LaRue EA, Chambers SM, Emery NC. Eco-evolutionary dynamics in restored communities and ecosystems. Restor Ecol 2016. [DOI: 10.1111/rec.12458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth A. LaRue
- Department of Biological Sciences; Purdue University; 915 West State Street West Lafayette IN 47907 U.S.A
| | - Sally M. Chambers
- Department of Biology; University of Florida; 527 Bartram Hall Gainesville FL 32611 U.S.A
| | - Nancy C. Emery
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; University of Colorado; Campus Box 334 Boulder CO 80309-0334 U.S.A
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34
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Walsh MR, Castoe T, Holmes J, Packer M, Biles K, Walsh M, Munch SB, Post DM. Local adaptation in transgenerational responses to predators. Proc Biol Sci 2016; 283:rspb.2015.2271. [PMID: 26817775 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2015.2271] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Environmental signals can induce phenotypic changes that span multiple generations. Along with phenotypic responses that occur during development (i.e. 'within-generation' plasticity), such 'transgenerational plasticity' (TGP) has been documented in a diverse array of taxa spanning many environmental perturbations. New theory predicts that temporal stability is a key driver of the evolution of TGP. We tested this prediction using natural populations of zooplankton from lakes in Connecticut that span a large gradient in the temporal dynamics of predator-induced mortality. We reared more than 120 clones of Daphnia ambigua from nine lakes for multiple generations in the presence/absence of predator cues. We found that temporal variation in mortality selects for within-generation plasticity while consistently strong (or weak) mortality selects for increased TGP. Such results provide us the first evidence for local adaptation in TGP and argue that divergent ecological conditions select for phenotypic responses within and across generations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew R Walsh
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
| | - Todd Castoe
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
| | - Julian Holmes
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
| | - Michelle Packer
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
| | - Kelsey Biles
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
| | - Melissa Walsh
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
| | - Stephan B Munch
- National Marine Fisheries Service, 110 Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA
| | - David M Post
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA
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35
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Govaert L, Pantel JH, De Meester L. Eco-evolutionary partitioning metrics: assessing the importance of ecological and evolutionary contributions to population and community change. Ecol Lett 2016; 19:839-53. [DOI: 10.1111/ele.12632] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2016] [Revised: 04/28/2016] [Accepted: 05/15/2016] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Lynn Govaert
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation; KU Leuven, Ch. Deberiotstraat 32 B-3000 Leuven Belgium
| | - Jelena H. Pantel
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation; KU Leuven, Ch. Deberiotstraat 32 B-3000 Leuven Belgium
- Centre d'Ecologie fonctionelle et Evolutive; UMR 5175 CNRS Université de Montpellier EPHE; Campus CNRS; 1919 route de Mende 34293 Montpellier Cedex 5 France
| | - Luc De Meester
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution and Conservation; KU Leuven, Ch. Deberiotstraat 32 B-3000 Leuven Belgium
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36
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Yashchenko V, Fossen EI, Kielland ØN, Einum S. Negative relationships between population density and metabolic rates are not general. J Anim Ecol 2016; 85:1070-7. [PMID: 26970102 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12515] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2015] [Accepted: 02/26/2016] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Population density has recently been suggested to be an important factor influencing metabolic rates and to represent an important 'third axis' explaining variation beyond that explained by body mass and temperature. In situations where population density influences food consumption, the immediate effect on metabolism acting through specific dynamic action (SDA), and downregulation due to fasting over longer periods, is well understood. However, according to a recent review, previous studies suggest a more general effect of population density per se, even in the absence of such effects. It has been hypothesized that this results from animals performing anticipatory responses (i.e. reduced activity) to expected declines in food availability. Here, we test the generality of this finding by measuring density effects on metabolic rates in 10 clones from two different species of the zooplankton Daphnia (Daphnia pulex Leydig and D. magna Straus). Using fluorescence-based respirometry, we obtain high-precision measures of metabolism. We also identify additional studies on this topic that were not included in the previous review, compare the results and evaluate the potential for measurement bias in all previous studies. We demonstrate significant variation in mass-specific metabolism among clones within both species. However, we find no evidence for a negative relationship between population density and mass-specific metabolism. The previously reported pattern also disappeared when we extended the set of studies analysed. We discuss potential reasons for the discrepancy among studies, including two main sources of potential bias (microbial respiration and declining oxygen consumption due to reduced oxygen availability). Only one of the previous studies gives sufficient information to conclude the absence of such biases, and consistent with our results, no effect of density on metabolism was found. We conclude that population density per se does not have a general effect on mass-specific metabolic rate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Varvara Yashchenko
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, NTNU, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Realfagbygget, NO-7491, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Erlend Ignacio Fossen
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, NTNU, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Realfagbygget, NO-7491, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Øystein Nordeide Kielland
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, NTNU, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Realfagbygget, NO-7491, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Sigurd Einum
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, NTNU, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Realfagbygget, NO-7491, Trondheim, Norway
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37
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DeLong JP, Forbes VE, Galic N, Gibert JP, Laport RG, Phillips JS, Vavra JM. How fast is fast? Eco-evolutionary dynamics and rates of change in populations and phenotypes. Ecol Evol 2016; 6:573-81. [PMID: 26843940 PMCID: PMC4729258 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.1899] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2015] [Revised: 11/23/2015] [Accepted: 11/24/2015] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
It is increasingly recognized that evolution may occur in ecological time. It is not clear, however, how fast evolution – or phenotypic change more generally – may be in comparison with the associated ecology, or whether systems with fast ecological dynamics generally have relatively fast rates of phenotypic change. We developed a new dataset on standardized rates of change in population size and phenotypic traits for a wide range of species and taxonomic groups. We show that rates of change in phenotypes are generally no more than 2/3, and on average about 1/4, the concurrent rates of change in population size. There was no relationship between rates of population change and rates of phenotypic change across systems. We also found that the variance of both phenotypic and ecological rates increased with the mean across studies following a power law with an exponent of two, while temporal variation in phenotypic rates was lower than in ecological rates. Our results are consistent with the view that ecology and evolution may occur at similar time scales, but clarify that only rarely do populations change as fast in traits as they do in abundance.
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Affiliation(s)
- John P DeLong
- School of Biological Sciences University of Nebraska - Lincoln Lincoln Nebraska 68588
| | - Valery E Forbes
- School of Biological Sciences University of Nebraska - Lincoln Lincoln Nebraska 68588
| | - Nika Galic
- School of Biological Sciences University of Nebraska - Lincoln Lincoln Nebraska 68588
| | - Jean P Gibert
- School of Biological Sciences University of Nebraska - Lincoln Lincoln Nebraska 68588
| | - Robert G Laport
- School of Biological Sciences University of Nebraska - Lincoln Lincoln Nebraska 68588
| | - Joseph S Phillips
- School of Biological Sciences University of Nebraska - Lincoln Lincoln Nebraska 68588
| | - Janna M Vavra
- School of Biological Sciences University of Nebraska - Lincoln Lincoln Nebraska 68588
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38
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Brodersen J, Howeth JG, Post DM. Emergence of a novel prey life history promotes contemporary sympatric diversification in a top predator. Nat Commun 2015; 6:8115. [DOI: 10.1038/ncomms9115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2014] [Accepted: 07/21/2015] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
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39
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Hughes AR, Hanley TC, Orozco NP, Zerebecki RA. Consumer trait variation influences tritrophic interactions in salt marsh communities. Ecol Evol 2015; 5:2659-72. [PMID: 26257878 PMCID: PMC4523361 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.1564] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2015] [Revised: 05/15/2015] [Accepted: 05/20/2015] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
The importance of intraspecific variation has emerged as a key question in community ecology, helping to bridge the gap between ecology and evolution. Although much of this work has focused on plant species, recent syntheses have highlighted the prevalence and potential importance of morphological, behavioral, and life history variation within animals for ecological and evolutionary processes. Many small-bodied consumers live on the plant that they consume, often resulting in host plant-associated trait variation within and across consumer species. Given the central position of consumer species within tritrophic food webs, such consumer trait variation may play a particularly important role in mediating trophic dynamics, including trophic cascades. In this study, we used a series of field surveys and laboratory experiments to document intraspecific trait variation in a key consumer species, the marsh periwinkle Littoraria irrorata, based on its host plant species (Spartina alterniflora or Juncus roemerianus) in a mixed species assemblage. We then conducted a 12-week mesocosm experiment to examine the effects of Littoraria trait variation on plant community structure and dynamics in a tritrophic salt marsh food web. Littoraria from different host plant species varied across a suite of morphological and behavioral traits. These consumer trait differences interacted with plant community composition and predator presence to affect overall plant stem height, as well as differentially alter the density and biomass of the two key plant species in this system. Whether due to genetic differences or phenotypic plasticity, trait differences between consumer types had significant ecological consequences for the tritrophic marsh food web over seasonal time scales. By altering the cascading effects of the top predator on plant community structure and dynamics, consumer differences may generate a feedback over longer time scales, which in turn influences the degree of trait divergence in subsequent consumer populations.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Torrance C Hanley
- Marine Science Center, Northeastern University Nahant, Massachusetts
| | - Nohelia P Orozco
- Coastal and Marine Laboratory, Florida State University St. Teresa, Florida
| | - Robyn A Zerebecki
- Marine Science Center, Northeastern University Nahant, Massachusetts
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40
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Pantel JH, Duvivier C, Meester LD. Rapid local adaptation mediates zooplankton community assembly in experimental mesocosms. Ecol Lett 2015; 18:992-1000. [DOI: 10.1111/ele.12480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2015] [Revised: 03/23/2015] [Accepted: 06/29/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jelena H. Pantel
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation; KU Leuven; University of Leuven; Charles Deberiotstraat 32 3000 Leuven Belgium
- Centre d'Ecologie fonctionnelle et Evolutive; UMR 5175 CNRS - Université de Montpellier - EPHE; Campus CNRS; 1919 route de Mende 34293 Montpellier, Cedex 05 France
| | - Cathy Duvivier
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation; KU Leuven; University of Leuven; Charles Deberiotstraat 32 3000 Leuven Belgium
| | - Luc De Meester
- Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation; KU Leuven; University of Leuven; Charles Deberiotstraat 32 3000 Leuven Belgium
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41
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Walsh MR, Cooley F, Biles K, Munch SB. Predator-induced phenotypic plasticity within- and across-generations: a challenge for theory? Proc Biol Sci 2015; 282:20142205. [PMID: 25392477 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2014.2205] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Much work has shown that the environment can induce non-genetic changes in phenotype that span multiple generations. Theory predicts that predictable environmental variation selects for both increased within- and across-generation responses. Yet, to the best of our knowledge, there are no empirical tests of this prediction. We explored the relationship between within- versus across-generation plasticity by evaluating the influence of predator cues on the life-history traits of Daphnia ambigua. We measured the duration of predator-induced transgenerational effects, determined when transgenerational responses are induced, and quantified the cues that activate transgenerational plasticity. We show that predator exposure during embryonic development causes earlier maturation and increased reproductive output. Such effects are detectable two generations removed from predator exposure and are similar in magnitude in response to exposure to cues emitted by injured conspecifics. Moreover, all experimental contexts and traits yielded a negative correlation between within- versus across-generation responses. That is, responses to predator cues within- and across-generations were opposite in sign and magnitude. Although many models address transgenerational plasticity, none of them explain this apparent negative relationship between within- and across-generation plasticities. Our results highlight the need to refine the theory of transgenerational plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew R Walsh
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
| | - Frank Cooley
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
| | - Kelsey Biles
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
| | - Stephan B Munch
- National Marine Fisheries Service, 110 Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA
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42
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Eco-evolutionary dynamics in an urbanizing planet. Trends Ecol Evol 2015; 30:114-26. [PMID: 25498964 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2014.11.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 188] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2014] [Revised: 11/11/2014] [Accepted: 11/14/2014] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
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43
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Lundsgaard-Hansen B, Matthews B, Seehausen O. Ecological speciation and phenotypic plasticity affect ecosystems. Ecology 2014. [DOI: 10.1890/13-2338.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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44
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Mitteldorf J, Martins ACR. Programmed Life Span in the Context of Evolvability. Am Nat 2014; 184:289-302. [DOI: 10.1086/677387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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45
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terHorst CP, Lennon JT, Lau JA. The relative importance of rapid evolution for plant-microbe interactions depends on ecological context. Proc Biol Sci 2014; 281:20140028. [PMID: 24789894 PMCID: PMC4024285 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2014.0028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2014] [Accepted: 04/02/2014] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Evolution can occur on ecological time-scales, affecting community and ecosystem processes. However, the importance of evolutionary change relative to ecological processes remains largely unknown. Here, we analyse data from a long-term experiment in which we allowed plant populations to evolve for three generations in dry or wet soils and used a reciprocal transplant to compare the ecological effect of drought and the effect of plant evolutionary responses to drought on soil microbial communities and nutrient availability. Plants that evolved under drought tended to support higher bacterial and fungal richness, and increased fungal : bacterial ratios in the soil. Overall, the magnitudes of ecological and evolutionary effects on microbial communities were similar; however, the strength and direction of these effects depended on the context in which they were measured. For example, plants that evolved in dry environments increased bacterial abundance in dry contemporary environments, but decreased bacterial abundance in wet contemporary environments. Our results suggest that interactions between recent evolutionary history and ecological context affect both the direction and magnitude of plant effects on soil microbes. Consequently, an eco-evolutionary perspective is required to fully understand plant-microbe interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Casey P. terHorst
- Department of Biology, California State University, Northridge, CA, USA
| | - Jay T. Lennon
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Jennifer A. Lau
- Kellogg Biological Station and Department of Plant Biology, Michigan State University, Hickory Corners, MI, USA
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46
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Thermal Transgenerational Plasticity in Natural Populations of Daphnia. Integr Comp Biol 2014; 54:822-9. [DOI: 10.1093/icb/icu078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
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47
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Huss M, Howeth JG, Osterman JI, Post DM. Intraspecific phenotypic variation among alewife populations drives parallel phenotypic shifts in bluegill. Proc Biol Sci 2014; 281:rspb.2014.0275. [PMID: 24920478 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2014.0275] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Evolutionary diversification within consumer species may generate selection on local ecological communities, affecting prey community structure. However, the extent to which this niche construction can propagate across food webs and shape trait variation in competing species is unknown. Here, we tested whether niche construction by different life-history variants of the planktivorous fish alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) can drive phenotypic divergence and resource use in the competing species bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus). Using a combination of common garden experiments and a comparative field study, we found that bluegill from landlocked alewife lakes grew relatively better when fed small than large zooplankton, had gill rakers better adapted for feeding on small-bodied prey and selected smaller zooplankton compared with bluegill from lakes with anadromous or no alewife. Observed shifts in bluegill foraging traits in lakes with landlocked alewife parallel those in alewife, suggesting interspecific competition leading to parallel phenotypic changes rather than to divergence (which is commonly predicted). Our findings suggest that species may be locally adapted to prey communities structured by different life-history variants of a competing dominant species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Magnus Huss
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA
| | - Jennifer G Howeth
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA
| | - Julia I Osterman
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA
| | - David M Post
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA
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48
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Walsh MR, Whittington D, Walsh MJ. Does variation in the intensity and duration of predation drive evolutionary changes in senescence? J Anim Ecol 2014; 83:1279-88. [PMID: 24810960 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2013] [Accepted: 04/17/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The evolutionary theory of senescence predicts that increased rates of extrinsic mortality select for faster declines in fertility and survival with age. One predicted mechanism is that increased mortality favours alleles that enhance fitness early in life at the expense of survival or reproduction later in life (antagonistic pleiotropy). We tested these predictions in natural populations of Daphnia ambigua from lakes that vary in the severity and duration of fish predation. Daphnia are found in lakes with (i) anadromous alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) that migrate between marine and freshwater, (ii) permanent landlocked alewife and (iii) no alewife. Daphnia are rare year-round in 'landlocked lakes' and are seasonally eliminated from the water column in 'anadromous lakes' due to the very strong predatory impact of anadromous alewife on populations of zooplankton. Previous work has also shown that intense seasonal bouts of predation by anadromous alewife has selected for increased allocation towards growth and reproduction in Daphnia found in lakes with anadromous alewife. Such variation in the risk of mortality and the expression of life-history traits early in life provides the raw materials to test the evolutionary theory of ageing. We reared replicate populations of Daphnia from all three lake types and quantified lifetime rates of offspring production and intrinsic survival. We found no differences in age-related declines in fertility or survival. Daphnia from anadromous lakes produced significantly more offspring throughout their lifetime despite no differences in life span or in the number of reproductive bouts compared with Daphnia from lakes with landlocked and no alewife. The lack of divergence in ageing contradicts the prediction that elevated mortality rates drive evolutionary shifts in ageing. We reconcile these results by considering the predictions of theoretical frameworks that incorporate feedbacks associated with increased mortality such as density- and condition-dependent processes. Our results, which are better explained by a consideration of these processes, thus call for a greater consideration of models that more explicitly consider the ecology of focal organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew R Walsh
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX, 76019, USA
| | - Deirdre Whittington
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX, 76019, USA
| | - Melissa J Walsh
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX, 76019, USA
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49
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Koch H, Frickel J, Valiadi M, Becks L. Why rapid, adaptive evolution matters for community dynamics. Front Ecol Evol 2014. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2014.00017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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50
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Matthews B, De Meester L, Jones CG, Ibelings BW, Bouma TJ, Nuutinen V, de Koppel JV, Odling-Smee J. Under niche construction: an operational bridge between ecology, evolution, and ecosystem science. ECOL MONOGR 2014. [DOI: 10.1890/13-0953.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 124] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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