Plasticity of Performance Curves in Ectotherms: Individual Variation Modulates Population Responses to Environmental Change.

ABSTRACT: Many ectothermic animals can respond to changes in their environment by altering the sensitivities of physiological rates, given sufficient time to do so. In other words, thermal acclimation and developmental plasticity can shift thermal performance curves so that performance may be completely or partially buffered against the effects of environmental temperature changes. Plastic responses can thereby increase the resilience to temperature change. However, there may be pronounced differences between individuals in their capacity for plasticity, and these differences are not necessarily reflected in population means. In a bet-hedging strategy, only a subsection of the population may persist under environmental conditions that favour either plasticity or fixed phenotypes. Thus, experimental

SUBMITTER: Seebacher F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8513571 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature