Causes and consequences of predator-induced phenotypic plasticity

表型可塑性是指基因型根据环境因素改变其性状表达的能力。表型可塑性的概念是进化理论的一个组成部分，大量的实证研究表明，动物可以灵活地改变其表型以适应当前的环境条件。塑性修饰通常包括表型上不同的特征，如行为、形态或生活史特征。然而，表型可塑性被认为是有成本和局限性的。对于不同性状的变化是否以及在多大程度上协同作用，或者不同性状之间是否存在权衡，我们知之甚少。此外，虽然诱导表型在诱导环境（适应性表型可塑性）中被认为是有益的，但在其他环境中可能是不利的。此外，人们对表型可塑性对表型变异的影响知之甚少，也不知道警报信号诱导的效应在多大程度上是代代相传的。本研究的目的是研究警报信号诱导的抗捕食者可塑性的近因和后果，以提供多性状表型可塑性的全面图景，包括它们在不同表型性状和不同环境下的变化。该项目将使我们获得关于基因型和表型之间关系的基本经验知识，以及表型可塑性的进化和维持，这些因素迄今为止已经在理论上得到解决。为此，我们将研究捕食者诱导的表型可塑性（由同种警报信号触发）在一夫一妻制的鲷鱼Pelvicachromis taeniatus中，一个在进化生态学研究中建立良好的模型系统。我们将首先研究警报提示诱导的可塑性和警报提示变化的潜在近似基础，以确定反捕食者表型可塑性在多大程度上是适应性的。其次，我们将确定警报信号诱导的表型可塑性在自然和性选择过程中的长期影响，以及在这一过程中不同表型性状之间的关系。实验结果将使我们能够确定哪些性状在不同的环境中是适应性的或非适应性的，以及表型变异在多大程度上受到影响。第三，我们将在不同的环境中确定短期和长期警报提示诱导的亲代对后代表现的影响。

Phenotypic plasticity is the ability of a genotype to alter its trait expression in response to environmental factors. The concept of phenotypic plasticity is an integral part of evolutionary theory and numerous empirical studies showed that animals flexibly modify their phenotypes to current environmental conditions. Plastic modifications often include phenotypically different traits like behavioral, morphological or life-history traits. However, phenotypic plasticity is assumed to have costs and limitations. Little is known about whether and to which extent changes in different traits act in concert, or whether there exist trade-offs between different traits. Furthermore, although the induced phenotype is supposed to be beneficial in the inducing environment (adaptive phenotypic plasticity), it may be disadvantageous in other contexts. Moreover, little is known about the impact of phenotypic plasticity on phenotypic variation, or to what extent alarm cues induced effects are transmitted across generations. The aim of this proposal is to investigate proximate causes and consequences of alarm cue-induced antipredator plasticity in order to provide a comprehensive picture of multi-trait phenotypic plasticity including their variation among different phenotypic traits and across different contexts. The project will allow us to attain fundamental empirical knowledge about the relationships between the genotype and phenotype as well as the evolution and maintenance of phenotypic plasticity, factors that hitherto have been addressed theoretically. For this purpose, we will examine predator-induced phenotypic plasticity (triggered by conspecific alarm cues) in the monogamous cichlid Pelvicachromis taeniatus, a fish species that is well established model system in evolutionary ecology research. We will first study the underlying proximate basics of alarm-cue induced plasticity and variation in alarm cues in order to determine to what extent antipredator phenotypic plasticity is adaptive. Second, we will determine the long-term effects of alarm cue-induced phenotypic plasticity throughout natural and sexual selection processes as well as the relationships between the different phenotypic traits during this process. The experimental results will allow us to determine which traits are adaptive or nonadaptive among different contexts, and to what extent phenotypic variation is affected. Third, we will determine short-term and long-term alarm cue induced parental effects on offspring performance in different environments.