Invasion strategies in clonal aquatic plants: are phenotypic differences caused by phenotypic plasticity or local adaptation?

Phenotypic plasticity and local adaptation via genetic change are two major mechanisms of response to dynamic environmental conditions. These mechanisms are not mutually exclusive, since genetic change can establish similar phenotypes to plasticity. This connection between both mechanisms raises the question of how much of the variation observed between species or populations is plastic and how much of it is genetic. In this study, we used a structured population of fire salamanders (Salamandra salamandra), in which two subpopulations differ in terms of physiology, genetics, mate-, and habitat preferences. Our goal was to identify candidate genes for differential habitat adaptation in this system, and to explore the degree of plasticity compared to local adaptation. We therefore performed a reciprocal transfer experiment of stream- and pond-originated salamander larvae and analyzed changes in morphology and transcriptomic profile (using species-specific microarrays). We observed that stream- and pond-originated individuals diverge in morphology and gene expression. For instance, pond-originated larvae have larger gills, likely to cope with oxygen-poor ponds. When transferred to streams, pond-originated larvae showed a high degree of plasticity, resembling the morphology and gene expression of stream-originated larvae (reversion); however the same was not found for stream-originated larvae when transferred to ponds, where the expression of genes related to reduction-oxidation processes was increased, possibly to cope with environmental stress. The lack of symmetrical responses between transplanted animals highlights the fact that the adaptations are not fully plastic and that some level of local adaptation has already occurred in this population. This study illuminates the process by which phenotypic plasticity allows local adaptation to new environments and its potential role in the pathway of incipient speciation.

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Phenotypic Plasticity and Local Adaptation in a Wild Hibernator Evaluated through Reciprocal Translocation

The American Naturalist ◽

10.1086/702313 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 194 (4) ◽

pp. 516-528 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Jeffrey E. Lane ◽

Zenon J. Czenze ◽

Rachel Findlay-Robinson ◽

Erin Bayne

Keyword(s):

Phenotypic Plasticity ◽

Local Adaptation ◽

Reciprocal Translocation

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Forests are not immune to plant invasions: phenotypic plasticity and local adaptation allow Prunella vulgaris to colonize a temperate evergreen rainforest

Biological Invasions ◽

10.1007/s10530-010-9919-0 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 13 (7) ◽

pp. 1615-1625 ◽

Cited By ~ 46

Author(s):

Oscar Godoy ◽

Alfredo Saldaña ◽

Nicol Fuentes ◽

Fernando Valladares ◽

Ernesto Gianoli

Keyword(s):

Phenotypic Plasticity ◽

Local Adaptation ◽

Plant Invasions ◽

Prunella Vulgaris

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Evidence of concurrent local adaptation and high phenotypic plasticity in a polar microeukaryote

Environmental Microbiology ◽

10.1111/1462-2920.12571 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 17 (5) ◽

pp. 1510-1519 ◽

Cited By ~ 28

Author(s):

Karin Rengefors ◽

Ramiro Logares ◽

Johanna Laybourn‐Parry ◽

Rebecca J. Gast

Keyword(s):

Phenotypic Plasticity ◽

Local Adaptation

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The importance of phenotypic plasticity and local adaptation in driving intraspecific variability in thermal niches of marine macrophytes

Ecography ◽

10.1111/ecog.03186 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 41 (9) ◽

pp. 1469-1484 ◽

Cited By ~ 29

Author(s):

Nathan G. King ◽

Niall J. McKeown ◽

Dan A. Smale ◽

Pippa J. Moore

Keyword(s):

Phenotypic Plasticity ◽

Local Adaptation ◽

Intraspecific Variability ◽

Marine Macrophytes

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Inducible competitors and adaptive diversification

Current Zoology ◽

10.1093/czoolo/59.4.537 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 59 (4) ◽

pp. 537-552 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Beren W. Robinson ◽

David W. Pfennig

Keyword(s):

Phenotypic Plasticity ◽

Resource Use ◽

Evolutionary Biology ◽

The Other ◽

Competitive Interactions ◽

Adaptive Plasticity ◽

Evolutionary Divergence ◽

Phenotypic Differences ◽

Adaptive Diversification ◽

Divergent Natural Selection

Abstract Identifying the causes of diversification is central to evolutionary biology. The ecological theory of adaptive diversification holds that the evolution of phenotypic differences between populations and species—and the formation of new species—stems from divergent natural selection, often arising from competitive interactions. Although increasing evidence suggests that phenotypic plasticity can facilitate this process, it is not generally appreciated that competitively mediated selection often also provides ideal conditions for phenotypic plasticity to evolve in the first place. Here, we discuss how competition plays at least two key roles in adaptive diversification depending on its pattern. First, heterogenous competition initially generates heterogeneity in resource use that favors adaptive plasticity in the form of “inducible competitors”. Second, once such competitively induced plasticity evolves, its capacity to rapidly generate phenotypic variation and expose phenotypes to alternate selective regimes allows populations to respond readily to selection favoring diversification, as may occur when competition generates steady diversifying selection that permanently drives the evolutionary divergence of populations that use different resources. Thus, competition plays two important roles in adaptive diversification—one well-known and the other only now emerging—mediated through its effect on the evolution of phenotypic plasticity.

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Plasticity of cold hardiness in the eastern spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferana

10.1101/2021.04.02.438273 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Skye Butterson ◽

Amanda D Roe ◽

Katie Elizabeth Marshall

Keyword(s):

Phenotypic Plasticity ◽

Local Adaptation ◽

Cold Hardiness ◽

Choristoneura Fumiferana ◽

Spruce Budworm ◽

Cold Temperatures ◽

Eastern Spruce Budworm ◽

Winter Temperatures ◽

Overwintering Mortality ◽

Overwintering Survival

High latitude insect populations must cope with extreme conditions, particularly cold temperatures. Insects use a variety of cold hardiness mechanisms to withstand this temperature stress, and these can drive geographic distributions through overwintering mortality. The degree of cold hardiness can be altered by two evolved responses: phenotypic plasticity and local adaptation. Phenotypic plasticity can occur within or between generations (transgenerational plasticity; TGP), and local adaptation can evolve through directional selection in response to regional climatic differences. We used the eastern spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferana (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) as a model to explore the role that variable winter temperatures play in inducing two aspects of plasticity in cold hardiness: TGP and local adaptation in phenotypic plasticity. This species is one of the most destructive boreal forest pests in North America, therefore accurately predicting overwintering survival is essential for effective management. While we found no evidence of TGP in cold hardiness, there was a long-term fitness cost to larvae that experienced repeated cold exposures. We also found evidence of local adaptation in both seasonal and short-term plasticity of cold hardiness. These findings provide evidence for the importance of phenotypic plasticity and local adaptation when modelling species distributions.

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