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Fluctuating selection and its (elusive) evolutionary consequences in a wild rodent population
1Research School of Biology, ANU College of Science, The Australian National University, Acton, ACT, Australia.
Journal of Evolutionary Biology
|January 31, 2018
Summary
Evolutionary selection fluctuates over time, but genetic change in wild rodents remained stable. More data is needed to understand the link between fluctuating selection and genetic evolution, especially considering genetic drift.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Quantitative genetics
- Ecology
Background:
- Fluctuating selection is hypothesized to slow evolutionary rates.
- Understanding its prevalence and impact on contemporary timescales is limited.
- Empirical data on selection variation and its translation to genetic change are scarce.
Purpose of the Study:
- Quantify fluctuating selection on body size in a wild rodent population.
- Estimate the evolutionary dynamics of body size.
- Investigate the relationship between fluctuating selection and genetic evolution.
Main Methods:
- Utilized long-term, individual-based data from a wild rodent population.
- Quantified the magnitude of phenotypic selection on body size.
- Estimated evolutionary change and tested for correlations with selection fluctuations.
Main Results:
- Phenotypic selection on body size significantly fluctuated over 11 years.
- Genetic change in body size remained largely constant, irrespective of selection direction.
- Simulations indicated that genetic drift can obscure the correlation between selection and evolution.
Conclusions:
- Fluctuating selection does not necessarily lead to fluctuating evolution on shorter timescales.
- Measuring the coupling between selection and evolution requires robust methods to account for factors like drift.
- Further research with extensive data is necessary for accurate estimation of this relationship.
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