Comparing the effects of rapid evolution and phenotypic plasticity on predator-prey dynamics

Area of Science:

• Ecology
• Evolutionary Biology
• Theoretical Ecology

Background:

• Ecologists are increasingly studying how rapid adaptive trait changes influence population dynamics.
• Rapid adaptation can stem from rapid evolution or phenotypic plasticity, but direct comparisons are rare.

Purpose of the Study:

• To theoretically compare the effects of rapid evolution and phenotypic plasticity on predator-prey dynamics.
• To investigate the conditions under which a phenotypically plastic prey genotype can outperform specialist genotypes.

Main Methods:

• Theoretical modeling of predator-prey interactions.
• Numerical analyses of population dynamics under different adaptive mechanisms.

Main Results:

• Phenotypic plasticity generally stabilizes population dynamics more effectively than rapid evolution.
• A plastic prey genotype may not coexist with specialist genotypes unless population dynamics exhibit limit cycles.
• Forced environmental fluctuations are crucial for the plastic genotype to replace specialist genotypes across a wide parameter range.

Conclusions:

• The mechanism generating phenotypic variation is critical for predicting the dynamics of rapidly adapting populations.
• A plastic genotype's advantage can be diminished by its stabilizing effect on population oscillations, creating intermittent limit cycles.