Development in the Wild: Phenotypic Plasticity

2012 ◽  
pp. 321-355 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen Donohue
Keyword(s):  
Phenotypic Plasticity ◽  
In The Wild

scholarly journals Phenotypic plasticity of labile traits in the wild

2013 ◽  
Vol 59 (4) ◽  
pp. 485-505 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon E. Brommer
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Phenotypic Plasticity ◽  
Statistical Approach ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Wild Populations ◽  
Quantitative Genetic ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Quantitative Genetic Parameters

Abstract Individual-based studies allow quantification of phenotypic plasticity in behavioural, life-history and other labile traits. The study of phenotypic plasticity in the wild can shed new light on the ultimate objectives (1) whether plasticity itself can evolve or is constrained by its genetic architecture, and (2) whether plasticity is associated to other traits, including fitness (selection). I describe the main statistical approach for how repeated records of individuals and a description of the environment (E) allow quantification of variation in plasticity across individuals (IxE) and genotypes (GxE) in wild populations. Based on a literature review of life-history and behavioural studies on plasticity in the wild, I discuss the present state of the two objectives listed above. Few studies have quantified GxE of labile traits in wild populations, and it is likely that power to detect statistically significant GxE is lacking. Apart from the issue of whether it is heritable, plasticity tends to correlate with average trait expression (not fully supported by the few genetic estimates available) and may thus be evolutionary constrained in this way. Individual-specific estimates of plasticity tend to be related to other traits of the individual (including fitness), but these analyses may be anti-conservative because they predominantly concern stats-on-stats. Despite the increased interest in plasticity in wild populations, the putative lack of power to detect GxE in such populations hinders achieving general insights. I discuss possible steps to invigorate the field by moving away from simply testing for presence of GxE to analyses that ‘scale up’ to population level processes and by the development of new behavioural theory to identify quantitative genetic parameters which can be estimated.

scholarly journals Phenotypic plasticity in the mandibular morphology of Japanese macaques: captive–wild comparison

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (7) ◽  
pp. 181382
Author(s):  
Siti Norsyuhada Kamaluddin ◽  
Mikiko Tanaka ◽  
Hikaru Wakamori ◽  
Takeshi Nishimura ◽  
Tsuyoshi Ito
Keyword(s):  
Phenotypic Plasticity ◽  
Social Environment ◽  
Shape Change ◽  
Morphological Difference ◽  
Japanese Macaques ◽  
Population Diversity ◽  
High Plasticity ◽  
Skull Morphology ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Population Genetic Variation

Despite the accumulating evidence suggesting the importance of phenotypic plasticity in diversification and adaptation, little is known about plastic variation in primate skulls. The present study evaluated the plastic variation of the mandible in Japanese macaques by comparing wild and captive specimens. The results showed that captive individuals are square-jawed with relatively longer tooth rows than wild individuals. We also found that this shape change resembles the sexual dimorphism, indicating that the mandibles of captive individuals are to some extent masculinized. By contrast, the mandible morphology was not clearly explained by ecogeographical factors. These findings suggest the possibility that perturbations in the social environment in captivity and resulting changes of androgenic hormones may have influenced the development of mandible shape. As the high plasticity of social properties is well known in wild primates, social environment may cause the inter- and intra-population diversity of skull morphology, even in the wild. The captive–wild morphological difference detected in this study, however, can also be possibly formed by other untested sources of variation (e.g. inter-population genetic variation), and therefore this hypothesis should be validated further.

scholarly journals Ancestral genetic variation in phenotypic plasticity underlies rapid evolutionary changes in resurrected populations of waterfleas

2020 ◽  
Vol 117 (51) ◽  
pp. 32535-32544
Author(s):  
J. Alex Landy ◽  
Alixander Oschmann ◽  
Stephan B. Munch ◽  
Matthew R. Walsh
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Phenotypic Plasticity ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Bythotrephes Longimanus ◽  
Environmental Signals ◽  
Evolutionary Changes ◽  
The Face ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Multiple Species ◽  
Changes Over Time

The role of phenotypic plasticity in adaptive evolution has been debated for decades. This is because the strength of natural selection is dependent on the direction and magnitude of phenotypic responses to environmental signals. Therefore, the connection between plasticity and adaptation will depend on the patterns of plasticity harbored by ancestral populations before a change in the environment. Yet few studies have directly assessed ancestral variation in plasticity and tracked phenotypic changes over time. Here we resurrected historic propagules ofDaphniaspanning multiple species and lakes in Wisconsin following the invasion and proliferation of a novel predator (spiny waterflea,Bythotrephes longimanus). This approach revealed extensive genetic variation in predator-induced plasticity in ancestral populations ofDaphnia. It is unlikely that the standing patterns of plasticity shieldedDaphniafrom selection to permit long-term coexistence with a novel predator. Instead, this variation in plasticity provided the raw materials forBythotrephes-mediated selection to drive rapid shifts inDaphniabehavior and life history. Surprisingly, there was little evidence for the evolution of trait plasticity as genetic variation in plasticity was maintained in the face of a novel predator. Such results provide insight into the link between plasticity and adaptation and highlight the importance of quantifying genetic variation in plasticity when evaluating the drivers of evolutionary change in the wild.

scholarly journals Plasticity in secondary sexual characteristics in male freshwater blennies (Salaria fluviatilis)

2014 ◽  
Vol 92 (6) ◽  
pp. 537-543 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Fabre ◽  
F. Oliva ◽  
E. García-Galea ◽  
D. Vinyoles
Keyword(s):  
Phenotypic Plasticity ◽  
Social Cues ◽  
Mediterranean Streams ◽  
Reproductive Tactics ◽  
Secondary Sexual Characteristics ◽  
Sexual Characteristics ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Nest Abundance ◽  
Main Factor ◽  
Secondary Sexual

Alternative reproductive tactics (ARTs) driven by environmental factors are common among fish. However, the flexibility of fish to adopt distinct tactics in response to the characteristics of their environment has received little attention. The aim of the present work was to study phenotypic plasticity in the adoption of dominant behaviour (“bourgeois tactic”) by male freshwater blennies (Salaria fluviatilis (Asso, 1801)). For this purpose, two simultaneous experiments in aquaria were performed to examine the effect of social cues and nest abundance on the acquisition of secondary sexual characteristics (SSCs). Experiments were conducted with small (individuals without SSCs), medium-sized (1-year-old individuals), and large older dominant males (more than 2 years old), all collected in the wild. In experiment 1, the three sizes of males were combined to compare the development of SSCs depending on intrasexual context. In experiment 2, the effect of nest abundance (two nests vs. six nests) was tested for each size of male. Medium-sized males showed phenotypic plasticity in response to the environmental conditions simulated in the two experiments. The absence of larger dominant males was found to be the main factor enhancing SSCs and the onset of parental behaviour. Nest shortage also influenced the degree of cephalic crest development among medium-sized males. This knowledge helps to understand how the population of freshwater blennies still persists when it is reduced to young individuals during the summer droughts in Mediterranean streams.

scholarly journals Phenotypic Convergence in Sea Bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) Escaping From Fish Farms: The Onset of Feralization?

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kilian Toledo-Guedes ◽  
Alberto Brito ◽  
Carlos Garcia de Leaniz
Keyword(s):  
Phenotypic Plasticity ◽  
Body Condition ◽  
Body Shape ◽  
Sea Bass ◽  
Differential Mortality ◽  
Scale Growth ◽  
Fish Farms ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Growth Profiles ◽  
Phenotypic Convergence

The impact of fish escaping from fish farms may depend on the extent to which escapees adapt to the natural environment, resemble wild conspecifics, and become feral. Yet, little is known about the process of feralization in marine fish. We examined phenotypic changes in body shape, body condition, and scale growth profiles of sea bass escaping from fish farms in the Canary Islands and quantified the extent to which escapees had diverged from farmed conspecifics. Most feral sea bass had sizes that overlapped with those of farmed fish, indicating that they had escaped throughout the production cycle. However, 29% of escapees were larger than the maximum size at harvesting, indicating growth in the wild. Analysis of scale growth profiles showed that some escapees had grown in the wild as fast as cultured fish, albeit at more variable growth rates. Feral sea bass tended to converge towards a similar body shape, having more streamlined bodies, lower body condition, and lower hepatosomatic indices (HSI) than fish in cages. Although our study cannot discriminate between phenotypic plasticity and differential mortality of escapees, we interpret phenotypic convergence as the likely result of a period of initial starvation, phenotypic plasticity, and selection against maladapted phenotypes. Our results warn against the risks of rearing sea bass in open-net cages and suggest that sea bass escapees could pose a threat to shallow coastal assemblages, particularly in areas where the species is not naturally found.

Freeze-substituted fungal cells of Nectria haematococca: A comparison of the macroconidial walls of the adhesion-competent wild type with an adhesion-reduced mutant

1990 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 688-689
Author(s):  
Thecan Caesar-Ton That ◽  
Lynn Epstein
Keyword(s):  
Freeze Substitution ◽  
Uranyl Acetate ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Nectria Haematococca ◽  
Fruit Extract ◽  
Dialysis Tubing ◽  
Tube Emergence ◽  
Contrast Microscopy ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Freeze Damage

Nectria haematococca mating population I (anamorph, Fusarium solani) macroconidia attach to its host (squash) and non-host surfaces prior to germ tube emergence. The macroconidia become adhesive after a brief period of protein synthesis. Recently, Hickman et al. (1989) isolated N. haematococca adhesion-reduced mutants. Using freeze substitution, we compared the development of the macroconidial wall in the wild type in comparison to one of the mutants, LEI.Macroconidia were harvested at 1C, washed by centrifugation, resuspended in a dilute zucchini fruit extract and incubated from 0 - 5 h. During the incubation period, wild type macroconidia attached to uncoated dialysis tubing. Mutant macroconidia did not attach and were collected on poly-L-lysine coated dialysis tubing just prior to freezing. Conidia on the tubing were frozen in liquid propane at 191 - 193C, substituted in acetone with 2% OsO4 and 0.05% uranyl acetate, washed with acetone, and flat-embedded in Epon-Araldite. Using phase contrast microscopy at 1000X, cells without freeze damage were selected, remounted, sectioned and post-stained sequentially with 1% Ba(MnO4)2 2% uranyl acetate and Reynold’s lead citrate. At least 30 cells/treatment were examined.

Prey tell: what quillback rockfish early life history traits reveal about their survival in encounters with juvenile coho salmon

2020 ◽  
Vol 650 ◽  
pp. 7-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
HW Fennie ◽  
S Sponaugle ◽  
EA Daly ◽  
RD Brodeur
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Life History Traits ◽  
Direct Evidence ◽  
Coho Salmon ◽  
Larval Fish ◽  
Early Life History ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Otolith Microstructure Analysis ◽  
Pelagic Juvenile

Predation is a major source of mortality in the early life stages of fishes and a driving force in shaping fish populations. Theoretical, modeling, and laboratory studies have generated hypotheses that larval fish size, age, growth rate, and development rate affect their susceptibility to predation. Empirical data on predator selection in the wild are challenging to obtain, and most selective mortality studies must repeatedly sample populations of survivors to indirectly examine survivorship. While valuable on a population scale, these approaches can obscure selection by particular predators. In May 2018, along the coast of Washington, USA, we simultaneously collected juvenile quillback rockfish Sebastes maliger from both the environment and the stomachs of juvenile coho salmon Oncorhynchus kisutch. We used otolith microstructure analysis to examine whether juvenile coho salmon were age-, size-, and/or growth-selective predators of juvenile quillback rockfish. Our results indicate that juvenile rockfish consumed by salmon were significantly smaller, slower growing at capture, and younger than surviving (unconsumed) juvenile rockfish, providing direct evidence that juvenile coho salmon are selective predators on juvenile quillback rockfish. These differences in early life history traits between consumed and surviving rockfish are related to timing of parturition and the environmental conditions larval rockfish experienced, suggesting that maternal effects may substantially influence survival at this stage. Our results demonstrate that variability in timing of parturition and sea surface temperature leads to tradeoffs in early life history traits between growth in the larval stage and survival when encountering predators in the pelagic juvenile stage.

Ecology and biogeography in the introduction to “De bestiis marinis” by Georg Wilhelm Steller

2019 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-74
Author(s):  
Stefano Mattioli
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Phenotypic Plasticity ◽  
Geographical Distribution ◽  
Functional Traits ◽  
Marine Mammals ◽  
Main Part ◽  
Wide Distribution ◽  
Restricted Range ◽  
Direct Influence ◽  
Modern Biology

The rediscovery of the original, unedited Latin manuscript of Georg Wilhelm Steller's “De bestiis marinis” (“On marine mammals”), first published in 1751, calls for a new translation into English. The main part of the treatise contains detailed descriptions of four marine mammals, but the introduction is devoted to more general issues, including innovative speculation on morphology, ecology and biogeography, anticipating arguments and concepts of modern biology. Steller noted early that climate and food have a direct influence on body size, pelage and functional traits of mammals, potentially affecting reversible changes (phenotypic plasticity). Feeding and other behavioural habits have an impact on the geographical distribution of mammals. Species with a broad diet tend to have a wide distribution, whereas animals with a narrow diet more likely have only a restricted range. According to Steller, both sea and land then still concealed countless animals unknown to science.

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