Spatiotemporal landscape genetics: Investigating ecology and evolution through space and time

Area of Science:

• Evolutionary Biology
• Landscape Ecology
• Conservation Genetics

Background:

• Genetic time-series data offer insights into past population dynamics and species evolution.
• Understanding past environmental influences on evolution is limited by methods linking environmental and genetic data over time.
• Integrating spatiotemporal environmental and genetic data is crucial for interpreting past population processes and predicting future species responses.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review analytical approaches for integrating historical genetic and environmental data.
• To highlight the importance of spatiotemporal landscape genetic analyses.
• To encourage greater use of methods linking landscape, climate, and genetic data through time.

Main Methods:

• Overview of analytical approaches for integrating historical genetic and environmental data.
• Focus on five key research areas: population genetic structure, demography, phylogeography, metapopulation connectivity, and adaptation.
• Inclusion of methodological information for ancient DNA and palaeoclimate data.

Main Results:

• The review provides a framework for linking past environmental changes to species dynamics.
• It identifies key research areas where integrated analyses are beneficial.
• It addresses challenges and suggests future developments in integrating historical genetic and environmental data.

Conclusions:

• Increased integration of spatiotemporal environmental and genetic data will revolutionize evolutionary biology, landscape ecology, and conservation genetics.
• This approach is vital for quantifying anthropogenic impacts and predicting species' responses to climate change.
• Further methodological development is needed for robust spatiotemporal landscape genetic analyses.