Dealing with stress in space and time: plasticity, evolvability and dispersal in temporally and spatially varying environments

• Applicant: Privatdozent Dr. Thomas Hovestadt, since 6/2017
• Subject Area: Ecology and Biodiversity of Animals and Ecosystems, Organismic Interactions
• Term: from 2015 to 2019
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 273823547

One major current focus of eco-evolutionary research lies on the ability of species to cope with rapid changes in environmental conditions, either in space or time. When populations face such challenges, they either have to adapt to, tolerate or track these changing conditions by dispersal. Otherwise, extinction is inevitable. If besides changing mean trends (like e.g. mean global temperature) also environmental variability is increasing, the ability of species to cope with these changes is crucial. In the proposed modelling project I want to investigate, under which specific conditions either dispersal, phenotypic plasticity or increased evolvability are optimal mechanisms allowing for adaptation sensu lato. I will therefore use a model of annual species living in spatially structured populations, which was successfully applied to several eco-evolutionary research questions before. The individuals will have heritable strategies, which define (1) their niche width (i.e. degree of phenotypic plasticity), (2) their degree of evolvability (implemented as the mutation rate of local adaptation) and (3) their propensity to emigrate from their natal patch. In the first proposed work package I will focus on the evolution of plasticity vs. evolvability, while keeping dispersal fixed. Evolution of the latter will be included in a second work package, allowing me to disentangle the role and potential contribution of each mechanism to population survival. For these two work packages I will consider only temporally changing conditions, ignoring the role of space with regard to any spatial autocorrelation of strategies and landscape parameters. In a third work package, however, I will explicitly consider the role of space and investigate the eco-evolutionary dynamics of plasticity, evolvability and dispersal during range expansion and climate-driven range shifts. The results of this project will not only be beneficial for future attempts to project the changes in ecosystems during impending environmental changes, but may also contribute to a better understanding of the role of (epi)genetic processes for the ecology and evolution of species.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Ehemaliger Antragsteller: Dr. Alexander Kubisch, until 5/2017