Coastal mosaics of local adaptation and the eco-evolutionary dynamics of a marine predator-prey interaction

从历史上看，生态学家认为进化是一个过程，通常在很长的时间尺度上缓慢行动。 然而，最近的研究表明，进化也可能在更短的时间内（从几周到几年）塑造物种互动的方式。 进化和生态之间的这种快速反馈在海洋生态系统中重要吗？ 该项目将通过研究以加州贻贝为食的捕食性蜗牛（螺）来解决沿着美国太平洋海岸的这一问题，贻贝是岩石潮间带海岸上重要的生境形成物种。 先前的研究表明，一些狗螺种群是由各种各样的个体组成的，这些个体在如何有效地钻穿贻贝壳方面存在遗传差异。 该项目将测试环境的短期变化是否会带来快速的自然选择，使其中一些钻井变体优于其他变体，从而改变狗螺种群对周围贻贝床的影响。 与此同时，该项目将研究贻贝壳厚度的区域差异是否影响了分布在加州和俄勒冈州海岸沿着900公里的狗螺种群的钻探能力的演变。 总的来说，这项研究旨在了解进化和生态之间的动态反馈，可能会影响海洋社区在不断变化的海洋条件。 该项目将培养不同的本科生和研究生，并将为一个重要的公共宣传组成部分，包括制作可访问的视频纪录片提供基础。该项目旨在通过调查海洋变化，自然选择，物种相互作用和群落演替之间的联系，提高我们对海洋生态进化动力学的理解。 本计画将以台湾大螺与加州贻贝之互动为模式系统，探讨两个主要目标。(1)研究小组将探索选择的空间镶嵌如何驱动消费者群体之间的适应性分化。 新收集和存档的贻贝将进行分析，以表征加州和俄勒冈州沿海沿着贝壳厚度的变化，并评估这种空间镶嵌图在过去二十年中是一致的还是可变的。 实验室实验将测试分布在这片马赛克上的狗螺种群是否在它们可以成功钻孔的外壳厚度上存在分歧。 (2)研究小组将研究消费者表型选择的时间变化是否会影响捕食者-猎物的相互作用，并对生态动态产生级联效应。 特别是，该项目将测试猎物招聘和壳厚度的短期变化是否可以对狗螺种群内的钻孔表型频率进行快速选择。 现场实验也将测试是否选择这些捕食者的表型反过来改变了贻贝床successory.This奖项的轨迹反映了NSF的法定使命，并已被认为是值得通过评估使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准的支持。

Historically, ecologists regarded evolution as a process that typically acts slowly over very long time scales. However, recent studies suggest that evolution might also shape the way species interact over much shorter timespans, ranging from weeks to years. Are these sorts of rapid feedbacks between evolution and ecology important in marine ecosystems? This project will address this question along the Pacific coast of the United States by studying predatory snails (Channeled Dogwhelks) that feed on California Mussels, an important habitat-forming species on rocky intertidal shores. Prior research shows that some dogwhelk populations are composed of an assortment of individuals that differ genetically in how effectively they can drill through mussel shells. This project will test whether short-term changes in the environment can impose rapid natural selection that favors some of these drilling variants over others, altering the effects that a dogwhelk population has on the surrounding mussel bed. At the same time, this project will examine whether regional differences in mussel shell thickness have influenced the evolution of drilling ability among dogwhelk populations distributed along 900 kilometers of the California and Oregon coasts. Overall, this study seeks to understand the dynamic feedbacks between evolution and ecology that might influence marine communities in the face of changing ocean conditions. This project will train diverse undergraduate and graduate students and will provide the foundation for a significant public outreach component, including the production of accessible video documentaries.This project seeks to advance our understanding of eco-evolutionary dynamics in the sea by investigating links among oceanographic variation, natural selection, species interactions, and community succession. This project will use the interaction between the Channeled Dogwhelk (Nucella canaliculata) and the California Mussel (Mytilus californianus) as a model system to address two central objectives. (1) The research team will explore how spatial mosaics of selection drive adaptive differentiation among populations of consumers. Newly collected and archived mussels will be analyzed to characterize variation in shell thickness along the coasts of California and Oregon, and to evaluate whether this spatial mosaic has been consistent or variable over the past two decades. Laboratory experiments will test whether dogwhelk populations distributed across this mosaic have diverged in the thickness of shell that they can drill successfully. (2) The research team will examine whether temporal variation in selection on consumer phenotypes shapes predator-prey interactions, with cascading effects on ecological dynamics. In particular, the project will test whether short-term variation in prey recruitment and shell thickness can impose rapid selection on the frequency of drilling phenotypes within a dogwhelk population. A field experiment will also test whether selection on these predator phenotypes in turn alters the trajectory of mussel bed succession.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.