Statistical method for testing the neutral mutation hypothesis by DNA polymorphism.

I. the origin of species by means of natural selection

Evolutionary adaptation can be rapid and potentially help species counter stressful conditions or realize ecological opportunities arising from climate change. The challenges are to understand when evolution will occur and to identify potential evolutionary winners as well as losers, such as species lacking adaptive capacity living near physiological limits. Evolutionary processes also need to be incorporated into management programmes designed to minimize biodiversity loss under rapid climate change. These challenges can be met through realistic models of evolutionary change linked to experimental data across a range of taxa.

http://www.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/files/climate%20change_1.pdf

Climate change and evolutionary adaptation

Much as Rachel Carson's \"Silent Spring\" was a call to action against the pesticides that were devastating bird populations, Charles S. Elton's classic \"The Ecology of Invasions by Animals and Plants\" sounded an early warning about an environmental catastrophe that has become all too familiar today-the invasion of nonnative species. From kudzu to zebra mussels to Asian long-horned beetles, nonnative species are colonizing new habitats around the world at an alarming rate thanks to accidental and intentional human intervention. One of the leading causes of extinctions of native animals and plants, invasive species also wreak severe economic havoc, causing $79 billion worth of damage in the United States alone. Elton explains the devastating effects that invasive species can have on local ecosystems in clear, concise language and with numerous examples. The first book on invasion biology, and still the most cited, Elton's masterpiece provides an accessible, engaging introduction to one of the most important environmental crises of our time. Charles S. Elton was one of the founders of ecology, who also established and led Oxford University's Bureau of Animal Population. His work has influenced generations of ecologists and zoologists, and his publications remain central to the literature in modern biology. \"History has caught up with Charles Elton's foresight, and \"The Ecology of Invasions\" can now be seen as one of the central scientific books of our century.\"-David Quammen, from the Foreword to \"Killer Algae: The True Tale of a Biological Invasion\

The Ecology of Invasions by Animals and Plants

It is increasingly important to improve our understanding of the genetic basis of local adaptation because of its relevance to climate change, crop and animal production, and conservation of genetic resources Phenotypic patterns that are generated by spatially varying selection have long been observed, and both genetic mapping and field experiments provided initial insights into the genetic architecture of adaptive traits Genomic tools are now allowing genome-wide studies, and recent theoretical advances can help to design research strategies that combine genomics and field experiments to examine the genetics of local adaptation These advances are also allowing research in non-model species, the adaptation patterns of which may differ from those of traditional model species

Ecological genomics of local adaptation

Humans challenge the phenotypic, genetic, and cultural makeup of species by affecting the fitness landscapes on which they evolve. Recent studies show that cities might play a major role in contemporary evolution by accelerating phenotypic changes in wildlife, including animals, plants, fungi, and other organisms. Many studies of ecoevolutionary change have focused on anthropogenic drivers, but none of these studies has specifically examined the role that urbanization plays in ecoevolution or explicitly examined its mechanisms. This paper presents evidence on the mechanisms linking urban development patterns to rapid evolutionary changes for species that play important functional roles in communities and ecosystems. Through a metaanalysis of experimental and observational studies reporting more than 1,600 phenotypic changes in species across multiple regions, we ask whether we can discriminate an urban signature of phenotypic change beyond the established natural baselines and other anthropogenic signals. We then assess the relative impact of five types of urban disturbances including habitat modifications, biotic interactions, habitat heterogeneity, novel disturbances, and social interactions. Our study shows a clear urban signal; rates of phenotypic change are greater in urbanizing systems compared with natural and nonurban anthropogenic systems. By explicitly linking urban development to traits that affect ecosystem function, we can map potential ecoevolutionary implications of emerging patterns of urban agglomerations and uncover insights for maintaining key ecosystem functions upon which the sustainability of human well-being depends.

https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/114/34/8951.full.pdf

Global urban signatures of phenotypic change in animal and plant populations.

Human-induced trait change has been documented in freshwater, marine, and terrestrial ecosystems worldwide. These trait changes are driven by phenotypic plasticity and contemporary evolution. While efforts to manage human-induced trait change are beginning to receive some attention, managing its ecological consequences has received virtually none. Recent work suggests that contemporary trait change can have important effects on the dynamics of populations, communities, and ecosystems. Therefore, trait changes caused by human activity may be shaping ecological dynamics on a global scale. We present evidence for important ecological effects associated with human-induced trait change in a variety of study systems. These effects can occur over large spatial scales and impact system-wide processes such as trophic cascades. Importantly, the magnitude of these effects can be on par with those of traditional ecological drivers such as species presence. However, phenotypic change is not always an agent of ecological change; it can also buffer ecosystems against change. Determining the conditions under which phenotypic change may promote vs prevent ecological change should be a top research priority.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1752-4571.2011.00212.x

Fates beyond traits: ecological consequences of human-induced trait change

En este articulo revisamos relaciones funcionales y evolutivas entre los sistemas de apareamiento de camarones carideos, y caracteristicas especificas tales como biologia/ecologia general, sistemas sexuales, conducta y morfologia. Basados en reportes bibliograficos se describio cuatro sistemas de apareamiento, y un quinto fue reconocido pero la informacion disponible fue insuficiente para describirlo en detalle. `Monogamia' ocurre en muchas especies que habitan en refugios monopolizables o huespedes, especialmente cuando las condiciones ambientales restringen la probabilidad de encuentros entre conespecificos. En contraste, las especies de vida libre experimentan encuentros mas frecuentes y los machos pueden dominar o buscar: En el sistema de apareamiento `dominancia vecinal' los machos mas grandes rinden mayor exito reproductivo porque son los que tienen el mejor desempeno en la competencia agresiva por las hembras receptivas. En el sistema `pura busqueda' son los machos pequenos los que lo hacen mejor porque su agilidad les permite buscar pareja eficazmente entre la poblacion. El cuarto sistema de apareamiento es `busqueda & compania' que ocurre en simbiontes solitarios que experimentan condiciones demograficas y ecologicas variables: dependiendo de las condiciones ambientales y del estado ontogenetico, puede ser conveniente para los machos buscar o permanecer en huespedes con hembras sexualmente atractivas. Los sistemas sexuales de los carideos se caracterizan por su diversidad y plasticidad intraespecifica, habiendo especies gonocoricas, otras con diferentes formas de hermafroditismo protandrico e incluso hermafroditas simultaneas. Los sistemas de apareamiento identificados parcialmente explican esta diversidad: en especies monogamas las bajas tasas de encuentro y la falta de dimorfismo sexual, favorecen el hermafroditismo simultaneo pero la gonocoria normalmente domina posiblemente porque las parejas no son estrictamente fieles. Especies con dominancia vecinal son gonocoricas porque ambos sexos se benefician con ser grandes. Las especies con pura busqueda tienen una amplia oportunidad para la evolucion de protandria ya que los mas beneficiados son los machos pequenos y las hembras grandes. En especies con busqueda & compania la situacion es variable, solo algunos machos se benefician al ser suficientemente grandes, mientras que otros lo hacen mejor buscando o cambiando de sexo. En comparacion con otros crustaceos, los camarones de vida libre se caracterizan por la ausencia de custodia precopulatoria e infrecuentes conductas agresivas. La eficiente y caracteristica conducta de escape de los camarones usando su abdomen contractil podria ser un importante impedimento para la evolucion de tales conductas. Nuestra revision provee buenos indicios de que los sistemas de apareamiento de camarones carideos dependen tanto de caracteristicas ambientales como biologicas propias de este taxon

https://scielo.conicyt.cl/pdf/rchnat/v76n2/art06.pdf

Mating systems in caridean shrimp (Decapoda: Caridea) and their evolutionary consequences for sexual dimorphism and reproductive biology

Questions: Do evolutionary changes in phenotypic plasticity occur after anthropogenic disturbance? Do these changes tend to be increases or decreases in plasticity? How do these evolutionary patter ...

/pdf/the-evolution-of-phenotypic-plasticity-in-response-to-2pq22ezdhk.pdf

The evolution of phenotypic plasticity in response to anthropogenic disturbance

We document the invasion of Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) to southern South America providing historical, current and future perspectives. We conducted field sampling, angler surveys, and analyzed all written records, and found evidence of reproductive populations in more than ten Andean (and many more coastal) watersheds draining mainly to the Pacific Ocean in Chile (39°–53° S), but also to the Atlantic Ocean in Argentina (50° S). Invasion begun ∼25 years ago apparently from a few point sources of introduction by ocean ranching operations using spring-run Chinook salmon originated from tributaries of the lower Columbia River, USA. The rapid spread suggests that Chinook salmon were pre-adapted to their novel marine and freshwater environments because of similarities to equivalent North Pacific habitats, and invasion may have been facilitated by low ecological resistance. Preliminary data suggest that populations express a latitudinal gradient in juvenile migration life histories equivalent to that in their native range. Parallels to the only other establishment of anadromous Chinook salmon outside their native range, New Zealand, suggests a predictable invasion rate. In South America, the invasion is ongoing in southern areas, yet we deem unlikely colonization of rivers north of the range reached thus far. This is the first anadromous salmon species to have invaded such a large range in South America, and it raises many evolutionary, ecological, environmental and socioeconomic issues, with several discussed here.

Cristian Correa

Papers

Global urban signatures of phenotypic change in animal and plant populations.

Fates beyond traits: ecological consequences of human-induced trait change

Mating systems in caridean shrimp (Decapoda: Caridea) and their evolutionary consequences for sexual dimorphism and reproductive biology

The evolution of phenotypic plasticity in response to anthropogenic disturbance

Chinook salmon invade southern South America