Social interactions generate complex selection patterns in virtual worlds.

Area of Science:

• Evolutionary Biology
• Behavioral Ecology
• Quantitative Genetics

Background:

• Understanding social interactions' impact on fitness is crucial for predicting phenotypic evolution.
• Measuring selection components (social, correlational, indirect) on behaviors in natural populations is challenging.
• Behaviors mediate social interactions, yet their role in selection is understudied.

Purpose of the Study:

• To estimate natural and social selection on behavioral traits in a social context.
• To quantify the contribution of social interactions and indirect selection to total selection.
• To investigate the causal mechanisms linking behavior to fitness using a novel data source.

Main Methods:

• Utilized an online multiplayer video game to record extensive data on social interactions among prey.
• Estimated natural and social selection on behavioral traits related to competition, cooperation, and predator-prey dynamics.
• Analyzed the contribution of indirect selection through trait correlations to total selection.

Main Results:

• Social selection, driven by the behaviors of other individuals, significantly impacts prey survival.
• Social interactions can enhance or mitigate natural selection, though natural selection remains the primary driver.
• Indirect selection through trait correlations also contributes to overall selection, highlighting the importance of considering all components.

Conclusions:

• Failing to account for social and indirect selection leads to misestimations of total selection acting on traits.
• Social interactions create complex selective regimes, even in simplified ecological settings.
• This study quantifies the role of conspecific behaviors as agents of selection, emphasizing their importance in evolutionary processes.