Impacts of dispersal on rapid adaptation and dynamic stability of Daphnia in fluctuating environments.

ABSTRACT: Prior ecological research has shown that spatial processes can enhance the temporal stability of populations in fluctuating environments. Less explored is the effect of dispersal on rapid adaptation and its concomitant impact on population dynamics. For asexually reproducing populations, theory predicts that dispersal in fluctuating environments can facilitate asynchrony among clones and enhance stability by reducing temporal variability of total population abundance. This effect is predicted when clones exhibit heritable variation in environmental optima and when fluctuations occur asynchronously among patches. We tested this in the field using artificial ponds and metapopulations composed of a diverse assemblage of Daphnia pulex clones. We directly manipulated dispersal presence/absence

SUBMITTER: Steiner CF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4810845 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature