Gene Flow Limits Adaptation along Steep Environmental Gradients.
Am Nat
; 195(3): E67-E86, 2020 03.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-32097047
ABSTRACT
When environmental variation is spatially continuous, dispersing individuals move among nearby sites with similar habitat conditions. But as an environmental gradient becomes steeper, gene flow may connect more divergent habitats, and this is predicted to reduce the slope of the adaptive cline that evolves. We compared quantitative genetic divergence of Rana temporaria frog populations along a 2,000-m elevational gradient in eastern Switzerland (new experimental results) with divergence along a 1,550-km latitudinal gradient in Fennoscandia (previously published results). Both studies found significant countergradient variation in larval development rate (i.e., animals from cold climates developed more rapidly). The cline was weaker with elevation than with latitude. Animals collected on both gradients were genotyped at â¼2,000 single-nucleotide polymorphism markers, revealing that dispersal distance was 30% farther on the latitudinal gradient but 3.9 times greater with respect to environmental conditions on the elevational gradient. A meta-analysis of 19 experimental studies of anuran populations spanning temperature gradients revealed that countergradient variation in larval development, while significant overall, was weaker when measured on steeper gradients. These findings support the prediction that adaptive population divergence is less pronounced, and maladaptation more pervasive, on steep environmental gradients.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Banco de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Rana temporaria
/
Adaptación Biológica
/
Ambiente
/
Flujo Génico
Tipo de estudio:
Prognostic_studies
/
Systematic_reviews
Límite:
Animals
País/Región como asunto:
Europa
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Am Nat
Año:
2020
Tipo del documento:
Article