Evolution of resource specialisation in competitive metacommunities.

Area of Science:

• Ecology
• Evolutionary Biology
• Theoretical Ecology

Background:

• Metacommunity persistence is often linked to spatial heterogeneity and dispersal.
• The impact of evolution on this relationship, particularly resource-specialization, remains less understood.
• This study investigates how evolving resource-uptake strategies influence metacommunity diversity.

Discussion:

• In homogeneous environments, coexistence requires substitutable resources and specialist-favoring trade-offs.
• These conditions paradoxically reduce diversity in heterogeneous environments by promoting two generalist specialists.
• Maximum diversity arises from intermediate trade-offs and distinct resource types, creating contrasting selection regimes.

Key Insights:

• Evolutionary specialization in resource uptake is sensitive to environmental heterogeneity and resource characteristics.
• The interplay between trade-off shapes and resource substitutability critically determines evolved diversity.
• Spatial heterogeneity can suppress diversity when evolutionary dynamics favor broad resource monopolization.

Outlook:

• Findings offer a nuanced understanding of resource competition's role in driving evolutionary stable diversity.
• Results are applicable to diverse ecological systems facing environmental change and evolutionary pressures.
• Further research could explore additional factors like mutation rates and more complex spatial structures.