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Genetic divergence in morphology-performance mapping between Misty Lake and inlet stickleback.
A P Hendry1, K Hudson, J A Walker
1Redpath Museum, McGill University, 859 Sherbrooke St. West, Montréal, QC, Canada. andrew.hendry@mcgill.ca
Journal of Evolutionary Biology
|November 25, 2010
Summary
Lake stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) exhibited superior sustained and burst swimming performance, alongside distinct morphology, compared to inlet populations. These findings suggest adaptive divergence in morphology-performance relationships between environments.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Ecology
- Animal behavior
Background:
- Environmental pressures drive organismal adaptation, leading to divergence in performance and morphology.
- Understanding the genetic basis of morphology-performance relationships is crucial for evolutionary studies.
- Few studies have experimentally tested these hypotheses across different populations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate adaptive genetic divergence in morphology and swimming performance between lake and inlet stickleback populations.
- To examine the relationships between morphology and performance within and between populations.
- To test the hypothesis that different environments select for distinct morphology-performance associations.
Main Methods:
- A common-garden experiment was conducted using threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) from the Misty system.
- Morphological traits and multiple aspects of swimming performance (sustained, burst, maneuverability) were quantified.
- Analyses controlled for body size and environmental differences.
Main Results:
- Lake stickleback possessed shallower bodies, larger caudal fins, and smaller pelvic girdles compared to inlet populations, controlling for body size.
- Lake stickleback demonstrated superior sustained and burst swimming performance.
- Inlet stickleback showed greater maneuverability in certain analyses, and morphology-performance relationships differed between populations.
Conclusions:
- Populations adapting to different environments exhibit adaptive genetic divergence in morphology and swimming performance.
- Morphology-performance mapping is decoupled within versus between populations, indicating distinct evolutionary trajectories.
- Environmental adaptation leads to divergent genetic underpinnings of performance traits and their associated morphology.
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