Community consequences of aphid genetic diversity and interactions with ants

蚜虫遗传多样性和与蚂蚁相互作用的社区后果

• 批准号: 0919178
• 负责人: Kailen Mooney
• 金额: $ 13.5万
• 依托单位: University of California-Irvine
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2009
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2009-08-01 至 2012-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0919178&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Community; consequences; aphid; genetic; diversity

Ecologists have historically adopted the simplifying assumption that interactions among species are sufficiently homogeneous that variation within species can be ignored. In other words, differences among individuals of the same species are largely assumed to be unimportant to understanding the interactions among species. At the same time, evolutionary biologists base their research on the fact that this assumption is false, i.e. that there are genetically based differences among individuals that have consequences for the fitness of that species. This project will examine this discrepancy, and contribute to the synthesis between ecology and evolutionary biology, by answering two fundamental questions: How do individuals within a species vary in their influence on the surrounding community based upon genetically based differences in an ecologically important trait? Does the amount of genetic variation in a population for an ecologically important trait have detectable consequences for the surrounding community? This project will address these questions by measuring the ecological consequences of population genetic variation in the aphid Aphis varians that engages in a mutualism with ants on the plant species fireweed (Epilobium angustifolium). Field experiments will test for aphid genetic variation in attractiveness to mutualist ants and measure the natural selection imposed by ants on specific aphid traits. This trait-based understanding of aphid-ant relations will be used to mechanistically characterize how aphid genetic variation influences both ants and the broader community in which this mutualism is embedded.This project has the significant broader impact in that it will be conducted at, and support, the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory. This institution enhances intellectual exchange and collaboration among biologists from around the world. This project will provide research training for undergraduate and graduate students in evolutionary ecology. This project will also include an outreach effort to students and teachers in science classes in K-12 schools serving underrepresented minorities.

生态学家历来采用简化的假设，即物种之间的相互作用是足够同质的，物种内的变异可以忽略不计。 换句话说，同一物种的个体之间的差异在很大程度上被认为对理解物种之间的相互作用并不重要。 与此同时，进化生物学家的研究基于这样一个事实，即这种假设是错误的，即个体之间存在遗传差异，这些差异对该物种的适应性有影响。 这个项目将研究这种差异，并有助于生态学和进化生物学之间的综合，通过回答两个基本问题：如何在一个物种内的个体在他们的影响力不同的基础上对周围社区的遗传基础上的差异在生态上重要的特征？ 一个种群中具有生态重要性的性状的遗传变异量是否对周围的社区产生了可检测的后果？ 该项目将通过测量蚜虫种群遗传变异的生态后果来解决这些问题，该蚜虫与蚂蚁在植物物种杂草（Epilobium angustifolium）上进行互利共生。 田间实验将测试蚜虫对互利蚂蚁的吸引力的遗传变异，并测量蚂蚁对特定蚜虫性状的自然选择。 这种基于性状的理解蚜虫蚂蚁关系将被用来机械地表征蚜虫遗传变异如何影响蚂蚁和更广泛的社区，这种互利关系是embedded.This项目具有显着的更广泛的影响，因为它将在进行，并支持，落基山生物实验室。 该机构加强了来自世界各地的生物学家之间的知识交流和合作。 这个项目将为本科生和研究生提供进化生态学方面的研究培训。 这一项目还将包括在为代表人数不足的少数民族服务的K-12学校的科学课上向学生和教师开展外联工作。