Eco-evolutionary maintenance of diversity in fluctuating environments

Area of Science:

• Ecology
• Evolutionary Biology
• Population Genetics

Background:

• Temporal fluctuations are increasingly recognized for maintaining biodiversity.
• Studies on genetic variation and species diversity have historically been siloed within evolutionary biology and ecology, respectively.
• Conceptual overlap exists between these fields regarding diversity maintenance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review and synthesize theoretical and empirical studies on diversity maintenance in fluctuating environments.
• To integrate population genetics and community ecology perspectives on the 'temporal storage effect'.
• To explore how fluctuating environments promote both genetic variation and species diversity.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of theoretical and empirical studies.
• Synthesis of diversity maintenance theories across biological levels.
• Comparison of frequency-dependent and density-dependent dynamics models.
• Application of Chesson's coexistence theory.

Main Results:

• Temporally fluctuating environments promote the maintenance of genetic variation and species diversity.
• The 'temporal storage effect' is a key mechanism for coexistence.
• Temporal fluctuations can simultaneously drive genetic and species diversity through eco-evolutionary dynamics.

Conclusions:

• Integrating ecological and evolutionary approaches is crucial for understanding diversity maintenance.
• Fluctuating environments act as a unifying factor for diversity across genetic and species levels.
• Further synthesis will accelerate understanding of natural diversity maintenance mechanisms.