Predator-induced Contemporary Evolution, Phenotypic Plasticity, and the Evolution of Reaction Norms in Guppies
An increasingly large number of studies have demonstrated the ability of populations to undergo contemporary or rapid evolution. Little explored in this regard is the role of phenotypic plasticity, although it can influence eco-evolutionary dynamics and hence evolutionary rates. Here we quantify the evolution of life history and plasticity in Trinidadian guppies transplanted from high to novel low predation environments. Common-garden results show that after only nine years, or 13–27 generations, the introduced guppies have diverged from their ancestral population in both litter size and offspring weight and in the plastic response of both traits to food availability. Given these findings, it is clear that local adaptation includes both changes in mean traits and changes in plasticity.
Litter size differences between all four populations reared under high versus low food diets. Bars indicate standard errors.
Offspring mean dry weights of litter 3 (preserved with mother). Bars indicate standard errors.
Contributor Notes
Associate Editor: D. M. Green.
From “Eco-Evolutionary Dynamics in Cold Blood,” an ASIH-sponsored symposium at the 2016 Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists in New Orleans, Louisiana.