Eco-evolutionary feedbacks under artificial light at night
Nedim Tüzün1, Luc De Meester1,2,3, Franz Hölker1,2
1Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin, Germany.
Iscience
|June 12, 2025
Summary
Artificial light at night (ALAN) drives rapid evolution, but ecological responses often mask genetic adaptation. Eco-evolutionary feedbacks complicate understanding light pollution
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Evolutionary Biology
- Environmental Science
Background:
- Artificial light at night (ALAN) is a pervasive anthropogenic stressor impacting ecosystems globally.
- While ALAN can drive evolutionary change, direct evidence for genetic adaptation is limited, with ecological plasticity often dominating observed effects.
- Eco-evolutionary feedbacks, where ecological and evolutionary processes interact, may obscure signals of adaptation to ALAN.
Purpose of the Study:
- To critically review the existing evidence for evolutionary adaptation to artificial light at night.
- To propose that eco-evolutionary feedbacks complicate the detection of genetic adaptation to ALAN.
- To advocate for common-garden experiments to differentiate genetic adaptation from phenotypic plasticity in response to ALAN.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of studies investigating the effects of ALAN on organisms.
- Conceptual modeling using an urban freshwater pond ecosystem and the keystone species *Daphnia* (water flea).
- Analysis of how ALAN influences ecological processes like diel vertical migration, parasite dynamics, and trophic control.
Main Results:
- ALAN can impose complex and cascading selection pressures on aquatic organisms.
- Observed ecological responses to ALAN may not solely reflect genetic adaptation.
- Eco-evolutionary feedbacks can obscure direct evolutionary signals, necessitating careful experimental design.
Conclusions:
- Understanding the interplay between ecological and evolutionary processes is crucial for assessing the impact of light pollution.
- Common-garden experiments are essential for disentangling genetic adaptation from plasticity in response to ALAN.
- Insights into eco-evolutionary dynamics under ALAN can inform conservation strategies for ecosystems in increasingly illuminated environments.
More Related Videos
06:19Low-Cost Automated Flight Intercept Trap for the Temporal Sub-Sampling of Flying Insects Attracted to Artificial Light at Night
Published on: December 29, 2021
2.5K
07:14Light Preference Assay to Study Innate and Circadian Regulated Photobehavior in Drosophila Larvae
Published on: April 20, 2013
12.9K
Related Concept Videos
02:45Biological Clocks and Seasonal Responses
34.6K
The circadian—or biological—clock is an intrinsic, timekeeping, molecular mechanism that allows plants to coordinate physiological activities over 24-hour cycles called circadian rhythms. Photoperiodism is a collective term for the biological responses of plants to variations in the relative lengths of dark and light periods. The period of light-exposure is called the photoperiod.
34.6K
02:00Photoreceptors and Plant Responses to Light
20.2K
Light plays a significant role in regulating the growth and development of plants. In addition to providing energy for photosynthesis, light provides other important cues to regulate a range of developmental and physiological responses in plants.
20.2K
01:32What is Natural Selection?
114.9K
Natural selection is an evolutionary process in which individuals with survival-promoting traits reproduce at higher rates. These favorable traits become more common within a population or species. Naturally selected traits initially arise via random genetic mutations. In order for selection to occur, there must be variation within a population, the trait controlling the variation must be heritable, and there must be an evolutionary advantage for variation in the trait.
114.9K
02:19Circadian Rhythms and Gene Regulation
4.0K
The biological clock is involved in many aspects of regulating complex physiology in all animals. It was in 1935 when German zoologists, Hans Kalmus and Erwin Bünning, discovered the existence of circadian rhythm in Drosophila melanogaster. However, the internal molecular mechanisms behind the circadian clock remained a mystery until 1984, when Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash, and Michael W. Young discovered the expression of the Per gene oscillating over a 24-hour cycle. In subsequent...
4.0K
01:22Photoreceptors and Visual Pathways
5.9K
At the molecular level, visual signals trigger transformations in photopigment molecules, resulting in changes in the photoreceptor cell's membrane potential. The photon's energy level is denoted by its wavelength, with each specific wavelength of visible light associated with a distinct color. The spectral range of visible light, classified as electromagnetic radiation, spans from 380 to 720 nm. Electromagnetic radiation wavelengths exceeding 720 nm fall under the infrared category,...
5.9K