Artificial selection on reproductive timing in hatchery salmon drives a phenological shift and potential maladaptation to climate change

Information on the phenological shift of plants can be used to detect climate change and predict changes in the ecosystem. In this study, the changes in first flowering dates (FFDs) of the plum tree (Prunus mume), Korean forsythia (Forsythia koreana), Korean rosebay (Rhododendron mucronulatum), cherry tree (Prunus yedoensis), and peach tree (Prunus persica) in Korea during 1920–2019 were investigated. In addition, the changes in the climatic factors (temperature and precipitation) and their relationship with the FFDs were analyzed. The changes in the temperature and precipitation during the January–February–March period and the phenological shifts of all research species during 1920–2019 indicate that warm and dry spring weather advances the FFDs. Moreover, the temperature has a greater impact on this phenological shift than precipitation. Earlier flowering species are more likely to advance their FFDs than later flowering species. Hence, the temporal asynchrony among plant species will become worse with climate change. In addition, the FFDs in 2100 were predicted based on representative concentration pathway (RCP) scenarios. The difference between the predicted FFDs of the RCP 4.5 and RCP 6.0 for 2100 was significant; the effectiveness of greenhouse gas policies will presumably determine the degree of the plant phenological shift in the future. Furthermore, we presented the predicted FFDs for 2100.

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Climate change correlates with rapid delays and advancements in reproductive timing in an amphibian community

Proceedings of The Royal Society B Biological Sciences ◽

10.1098/rspb.2010.1768 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 278 (1715) ◽

pp. 2191-2197 ◽

Cited By ~ 81

Author(s):

Brian D. Todd ◽

David E. Scott ◽

Joseph H. K. Pechmann ◽

J. Whitfield Gibbons

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

South Carolina ◽

Community Dynamics ◽

Niche Overlap ◽

Reproductive Timing ◽

Amphibian Species ◽

Larval Amphibians ◽

Amphibian Larvae ◽

Air Temperatures ◽

And Migration

Climate change has had a significant impact globally on the timing of ecological events such as reproduction and migration in many species. Here, we examined the phenology of reproductive migrations in 10 amphibian species at a wetland in South Carolina, USA using a 30 year dataset. We show for the first time that two autumn-breeding amphibians are breeding increasingly later in recent years, coincident with an estimated 1.2°C increase in local overnight air temperatures during the September through February pre-breeding and breeding periods. Additionally, two winter-breeding species in the same community are breeding increasingly earlier. Four of the 10 species studied have shifted their reproductive timing an estimated 15.3 to 76.4 days in the past 30 years. This has resulted in rates of phenological change that range from 5.9 to 37.2 days per decade, providing examples of some of the greatest rates of changing phenology in ecological events reported to date. Owing to the opposing direction of the shifts in reproductive timing, our results suggest an alteration in the degree of temporal niche overlap experienced by amphibian larvae in this community. Reproductive timing can drive community dynamics in larval amphibians and our results identify an important pathway by which climate change may affect amphibian communities.

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Plasticity in female timing may explain current shifts in breeding phenology of a North American songbird

10.1101/2021.09.29.462407 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Abigail A. Kimmitt ◽

Daniel J. Becker ◽

Sara N. Diller ◽

Nicole M. Gerlach ◽

Kimberly A. Rosvall ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Relative Fitness ◽

List Type ◽

Reproductive Timing ◽

Breeding Phenology ◽

Term Survival ◽

Bird Populations ◽

Sedentary Population ◽

Phenological Shifts ◽

Over Time

AbstractClimate change has driven changes in breeding phenology. Identifying the magnitude of phenological shifts and whether selection in response to climate change drives these shifts is key for determining species’ reproductive success and persistence in a changing world.We investigated reproductive timing in a primarily sedentary population of the dark-eyed junco (Junco hyemalis) over 32 years. We predicted that juncos would breed earlier in warmer springs in response to selection favouring earlier breeding.To test this prediction, we compared the annual median date for reproductive onset (i.e., egg one date) to monthly spring temperatures and examined evidence for selection favouring earlier breeding and for plasticity in timing.Egg one dates occurred earlier over time, with the timing of breeding advancing up to 24 days over the 32-year period. Breeding timing also strongly covaried with maximum April temperature. We found significant overall selection favouring earlier breeding (i.e., higher relative fitness with earlier egg one dates) that became stronger over time, but strength of selection was not predicted by temperature. Lastly, individual females exhibited plastic responses to temperature across years.Our findings provide further evidence that phenotypic plasticity plays a crucial role in driving phenological shifts in response to climate change. For multi-brooded bird populations, a warming climate might extend the breeding season and provide more opportunities to re-nest rather than drive earlier breeding in response to potential phenological mismatches. However, as plasticity will likely be insufficient for long-term survival in the face of climate change, further research in understanding the mechanisms of female reproductive timing will be essential for forecasting the effects of climate change on population persistence.

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Effect of elevated temperature on fecundity and reproductive timing in the coral Acropora digitifera

Zygote ◽

10.1017/s0967199415000477 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 24 (4) ◽

pp. 511-516 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Camille W. Paxton ◽

Maria Vanessa B. Baria ◽

Virginia M. Weis ◽

Saki Harii

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Elevated Temperature ◽

Physiological Stress ◽

Seawater Temperature ◽

Reproductive Timing ◽

Acropora Digitifera ◽

Field Patterns ◽

Short Period ◽

Spawning Time ◽

Spawning Synchrony

SummaryThe synchrony of spawning is of paramount importance to successful coral reproduction. The precise timing of spawning is thought to be controlled by a set of interacting environmental factors, including regional wind field patterns, timing of the sunset, and sea surface temperatures (SST). Climate change is resulting in increased SST, which is causing physiological stress in corals and could also be altering spawning synchrony and timing. In this study, we examined the effect of increasing seawater temperature by 2°C for 1 month prior to the predicted spawning time on reproduction in the coral Acropora digitifera. This short period of elevated temperature caused spawning to advance by 1 day. In animals incubated at elevated temperature, egg number per egg bundle did not change, however, egg volume significantly decreased as did sperm number. Our results indicate that temperature is acting both as a proximate cue to accelerate timing and as a stressor on gametogenesis to reduce fecundity. This finding suggests that increasing SSTs could play a dramatic role in altering reproductive timing and the success of corals in an era of climate change.

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A phenological shift in the time of recruitment of the shipworm,Teredo navalisL., mirrors marine climate change

Ecology and Evolution ◽

10.1002/ece3.2126 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 6 (12) ◽

pp. 3862-3870 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Christin Appelqvist ◽

Jonathan N Havenhand

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Marine Climate ◽

Phenological Shift

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Reproductive Timing and Climate Change

Philosophies ◽

10.3390/philosophies6020047 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 6 (2) ◽

pp. 47

Author(s):

Olle Torpman

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

Reproductive Timing ◽

Gas Emissions ◽

Reproductive Choices ◽

Climate Ethics ◽

Related Aspect

It has been argued that the most impactful choice an individual could make, with respect to mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, is to have fewer children. This paper brings up a related aspect of individuals’ reproductive choices that has been neglected in the climate ethics literature: the timing aspect. It is argued that, from a climate change perspective, it does not matter only how many children people bring into existence, but also when they are brought into existence. The reason is that the age at which parents choose to procreate affects the number of people that will live simultaneously on the planet, which is in turn relevant for climate change. This provides individuals another means by which they can decrease their emissions.

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Averting robo-bees: why free-flying robotic bees are a bad idea

Emerging Topics in Life Sciences ◽

10.1042/etls20190063 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 3 (6) ◽

pp. 723-729

Author(s):

Roslyn Gleadow ◽

Jim Hanan ◽

Alan Dorin

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Computer Simulation ◽

Food Security ◽

European Countries ◽

Plant Interactions ◽

Plant Insect Interactions ◽

Native Habitat ◽

Insect Pollinators ◽

Insect Interactions

Food security and the sustainability of native ecosystems depends on plant-insect interactions in countless ways. Recently reported rapid and immense declines in insect numbers due to climate change, the use of pesticides and herbicides, the introduction of agricultural monocultures, and the destruction of insect native habitat, are all potential contributors to this grave situation. Some researchers are working towards a future where natural insect pollinators might be replaced with free-flying robotic bees, an ecologically problematic proposal. We argue instead that creating environments that are friendly to bees and exploring the use of other species for pollination and bio-control, particularly in non-European countries, are more ecologically sound approaches. The computer simulation of insect-plant interactions is a far more measured application of technology that may assist in managing, or averting, ‘Insect Armageddon' from both practical and ethical viewpoints.

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Modelling ecosystem adaptation and dangerous rates of global warming

Emerging Topics in Life Sciences ◽

10.1042/etls20180113 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 3 (2) ◽

pp. 221-231 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Rebecca Millington ◽

Peter M. Cox ◽

Jonathan R. Moore ◽

Gabriel Yvon-Durocher

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Global Warming ◽

Diffusion Rate ◽

Individual Species ◽

Genetic Evolution ◽

Rates Of Change ◽

Rapid Climate Change ◽

Warming Climate ◽

Intraspecies Competition ◽

High Trait

Abstract We are in a period of relatively rapid climate change. This poses challenges for individual species and threatens the ecosystem services that humanity relies upon. Temperature is a key stressor. In a warming climate, individual organisms may be able to shift their thermal optima through phenotypic plasticity. However, such plasticity is unlikely to be sufficient over the coming centuries. Resilience to warming will also depend on how fast the distribution of traits that define a species can adapt through other methods, in particular through redistribution of the abundance of variants within the population and through genetic evolution. In this paper, we use a simple theoretical ‘trait diffusion’ model to explore how the resilience of a given species to climate change depends on the initial trait diversity (biodiversity), the trait diffusion rate (mutation rate), and the lifetime of the organism. We estimate theoretical dangerous rates of continuous global warming that would exceed the ability of a species to adapt through trait diffusion, and therefore lead to a collapse in the overall productivity of the species. As the rate of adaptation through intraspecies competition and genetic evolution decreases with species lifetime, we find critical rates of change that also depend fundamentally on lifetime. Dangerous rates of warming vary from 1°C per lifetime (at low trait diffusion rate) to 8°C per lifetime (at high trait diffusion rate). We conclude that rapid climate change is liable to favour short-lived organisms (e.g. microbes) rather than longer-lived organisms (e.g. trees).

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