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Natural Selection on Adults Has Trait-Dependent Consequences for Juvenile Evolution in Dragonflies
The American Naturalist
|May 14, 2021
Summary
Natural selection in one life stage can constrain evolution in other stages, particularly for linked traits. Dragonflies show that coadapted structures and biochemical pathways limit independent stage-specific evolution.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Developmental biology
- Ecology
Background:
- Natural selection can fluctuate across an organism's lifespan.
- Understanding how selection in one life stage influences evolution in others is crucial, especially in species with metamorphosis.
- Dragonflies provide a model system due to their distinct larval and adult stages.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the conditions under which selection in one life stage affects evolution in other stages.
- To test hypotheses regarding stage-specific evolution in dragonflies.
- To determine if trait-dependent constraints link evolutionary trajectories across ontogeny.
Main Methods:
- Comparative study of dragonflies.
- Examined three hypothesized conditions for stage-dependent evolution: degree of metamorphosis, homologous/coadapted structures, and traits linked to biochemical pathways.
- Analyzed evolutionary patterns of larval and adult traits.
Main Results:
- Larval body shape evolved independently of adult shape, refuting the hypothesis that less dramatic metamorphosis limits stage-specific evolution.
- Selection for larger adult wings was linked to the evolution of coadapted larval wing sheaths.
- Adult wing melanization was associated with weaker larval melanin-based immune defenses, supporting the hypothesis for traits linked to biochemical pathways.
Conclusions:
- Natural selection in one life stage imposes trait-dependent constraints on evolution in other stages.
- The degree of metamorphosis does not necessarily limit stage-specific evolution.
- Interdependencies between larval and adult traits, especially those involving coadapted structures or shared biochemical pathways, restrict independent evolutionary trajectories.
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