DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Understanding thermal adaptation to climate change using a globally invasive species

动物通过在不同时间尺度上的几个过程来适应环境，从个体内部的快速变化到整个种群的长期进化。这个项目调查了一种广泛的入侵物种欧洲绿蟹对温度的适应机制。整个欧洲的绿蟹种群都是本土物种，研究人员将研究它们的温度耐受性极限，并确定与这种耐受性有关的基因和途径。这些结果将与在入侵范围内收集的数据进行比较，以确定来自不同环境和历史的种群对温度的反应是否不同，并检查它们是否使用相同的基因以相同的方式应对温度。入侵物种必须迅速适应新环境，这为研究快速适应的速度和机制提供了绝佳的机会。动物在短时间内适应自然的方式尚不清楚，但在预测和规划它们对快速环境变化的反应方面尤为重要。了解绿蟹如何适应新的温度将有助于了解有多少物种会对气候变化做出反应。此外，该项目将促进与欧洲研究人员的合作，并将为该领域的公众宣传提供机会。

Animals adapt to their environments through several processes that act on different time scales, from rapid changes within an individual to longer-term evolution across entire populations. This project investigates the mechanisms behind adaptation to temperature in a widespread invasive species, the European green crab. Green crab populations across Europe, where the species is native, will be studied for the limits of their temperature tolerance, and to determine the genes and pathways involved in this tolerance. These results will be compared with data already collected in the invasive range to determine whether populations from different environments and histories respond to temperature differently, and to examine whether they use the same genes in the same ways to deal with temperature. Invasive species have to adapt to novel environments quickly, and offer a wonderful opportunity to examine the pace and mechanisms of rapid adaptation. The way that animals adapt in nature over short time scales is not well-understood, but is particularly important in predicting and planning for their response to rapid environmental shifts. Understanding how green crabs adapt to novel temperatures will be useful in understanding how many species will react to climate change. In addition, this project will foster collaboration with European researchers, and will provide opportunities for public outreach in the field.