Changes in selection regime cause loss of phenotypic plasticity in planktonic freshwater copepods

Rapid phenotypic adaptation is critical for populations facing environmental changes and can be facilitated by phenotypic plasticity in the selected traits. Whereas recurrent environmental fluctuations can favour the maintenance or de novo evolution of plasticity, strong selection is hypothesized to...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PloS one 2014-02, Vol.9 (2), p.e90010-e90010
Main Authors: Sereda, Sergej Vital'evič, Wilke, Thomas, Schultheiß, Roland
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acanthodiaptomus denticornis
Adaptation
Adaptation, Physiological - radiation effects
Animals
Assimilation
Behavior, Animal - radiation effects
Biology
Carotenoids
Copepoda
Copepoda - physiology
Copepoda - radiation effects
Copepods
Daphnia
Ecology
Ecosystem
Environmental changes
Evolution & development
Evolution, Molecular
Foraging behavior
Gender differences
Habitats
Lakes
Migration
Phenotype
Phenotypic plasticity
Plankton
Plankton - physiology
Plankton - radiation effects
Plastic properties
Plasticity
Population
Populations
Predation
Selection, Genetic
Sex Characteristics
Stress, Physiological - radiation effects
Survival Analysis
Sustainable development
Ultraviolet Rays
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Summary:Rapid phenotypic adaptation is critical for populations facing environmental changes and can be facilitated by phenotypic plasticity in the selected traits. Whereas recurrent environmental fluctuations can favour the maintenance or de novo evolution of plasticity, strong selection is hypothesized to decrease plasticity or even fix the trait (genetic assimilation). Despite advances in the theoretical understanding of the impact of plasticity on diversification processes, comparatively little empirical data of populations undergoing diversification mediated by plasticity are available. Here we use the planktonic freshwater copepod Acanthodiaptomus denticornis from two lakes as model system to study UV stress responses of two phenotypically different populations under laboratory conditions. Our study reveals heritable lake- and sex-specific differences of behaviour, physiological plasticity, and mortality. We discuss specific selective scenarios causing these differences and argue that phenotypic plasticity will be higher when selection pressure is moderate, but will decrease or even be lost under stronger pressure.
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0090010