Thermodynamic Effects on the Evolution of Performance Curves

Models of thermal adaptation assume that warm‐adapted and cold‐adapted organisms can achieve the same fitness, yet recent comparative studies suggest that warm‐adapted organisms outperform cold‐adapted ones. We explored how this thermodynamic effect on performance might influence selective pressures...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The American naturalist 2010-08, Vol.176 (2), p.E40-E49
Main Authors: Asbury, Dee A., Angilletta Jr, Michael J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acclimatization
Animals
Biological Evolution
Body temperature
Body Temperature Regulation
Ecological competition
E‐Note
Fecundity
Genotypes
Mathematical functions
Models, Biological
Natural selection
Physiology
Safety factors
Selection, Genetic
Temperature
Thermodynamics
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Summary:Models of thermal adaptation assume that warm‐adapted and cold‐adapted organisms can achieve the same fitness, yet recent comparative studies suggest that warm‐adapted organisms outperform cold‐adapted ones. We explored how this thermodynamic effect on performance might influence selective pressures on thermal physiology. In the absence of a thermodynamic effect, natural selection favors a thermal optimum for performance that closely matches the mean (or modal) body temperature. When warm‐adapted organisms outperform cold‐adapted organisms, natural selection can favor a thermal optimum that exceeds the mean body temperature. The optimal mismatch between the thermal optimum and the mean temperature increases as does the variation in body temperature within generations. This result holds regardless of whether performance affects fitness through fecundity or survivorship. The selective pressures generated by a thermodynamic effect might explain the substantial mismatch between thermoregulatory behavior and thermal physiology that has been observed in some species.
ISSN:0003-0147
1537-5323
DOI:10.1086/653659