Eco-Evolutionary Dynamics of Biological Recovery in Arsenic-Recovering Lakes

数百个废弃矿井遍布加拿大北部，几十年前的人类活动至今仍在对环境产生影响。很少有人研究亚北极湖泊的当代生态，因为它们从历史的采矿污染中恢复过来。大多数生态系统恢复或恢复框架都侧重于物种层面的生物多样性。然而，种群、群落的适应性种内变异与生态系统中环境变化之间的相互作用可以调节生态进化动力学（生态与进化之间的相互反馈），这可能有助于解释面对环境变化的生态恢复力。我的长期研究目标是整合生态进化框架，以理解受人为干扰挑战的水生食物网的生物影响和恢复。探索基金（DG）的目标是整合一个生态进化框架，以解决NWT黄刀周围砷污染湖泊的当代生物恢复问题，这些湖泊历史上受到金矿开采的污染。短期目标是评估：1)对砷污染的进化反应。没有研究涉及水生生物对砷污染的进化反应。我的实验室将使用全基因组测序和实验室实验来测试A)一个关键的远洋食草动物，水蚤，B)一个重要的新兴昆虫，摇尾虫，以测试沿湖污染梯度的历史砷暴露的适应性进化。2)进化过程对生物恢复生态学的影响程度。关于种群的进化过程能在多大程度上影响群落和生态系统的生态方面的资料很少。A)采用野外围封实验和DNA元编码技术，探讨水蚤进化在砷恢复湖泊浮游动物群落重组中的作用。B)我们将研究手拟动物的进化对污染物和必需脂肪酸从水生栖息地向河岸食物网的跨生态系统补贴的作用。了解促进或限制受历史采矿排放影响的湖泊生物恢复的过程对于重新获得这些淡水生态系统为加拿大人的生计提供的利益至关重要，其中许多利益直接影响到弱势群体。本研究将评估将种内变异和生态进化动力学结合起来的潜力，以促进受人类干扰的水生生态系统的恢复和恢复。该项目将为3名博士生和5-10名本科生提供高级技能培训，并提供在加拿大北部工作的经验。总干事响应加拿大对HQP的需求，这些HQP经过培训，通过从基因到生态系统的综合方法解决威胁淡水生态系统的全球挑战。

Hundreds of abandoned mines occur across northern Canada, places where human activities from decades ago continue to have environmental impacts in the present. Little work has examined the contemporary ecology of subarctic lakes as they rebound from historical mining pollution. Most ecosystem restoration or recovery frameworks have focused on biodiversity at the species level. Yet, interactions between adaptive intraspecific variation in populations, communities, and environmental change in ecosystems can modulate eco-evolutionary dynamics (reciprocal feedbacks between ecology and evolution), which may help explain ecological resilience in face of environmental change.  My long-term research objective is to integrate an eco-evolutionary framework for understanding biological impact and recovery in aquatic food webs challenged by anthropogenic disturbance. The goal of the Discovery Grant (DG) is to integrate an eco-evolutionary framework for addressing contemporary biological recovery in arsenic-contaminated lakes surrounding Yellowknife, NWT that were historically polluted by gold mining.  The short-term objectives are to evaluate: 1) Evolutionary responses to arsenic contamination. No studies have addressed evolutionary responses in aquatic organisms to arsenic pollution. My lab will use whole genome sequencing and laboratory experiments for A) a key pelagic grazer, Daphnia pulex, and B) an important emergent insect, chironomids, to test for adaptive evolution to historical arsenic exposure along a lake contamination gradient. 2) The extent to which evolutionary processes influences the ecology of biological recovery. There is a paucity of information regarding the extent to which evolutionary processes in populations can influence the ecology of communities and ecosystems. A) We will investigate the role of evolution in Daphnia pulex in zooplankton community re-assembly in arsenic-recovering lakes with field enclosure experiments and DNA metabarcoding. B) We will investigate the role of evolution in chironomids on cross-ecosystem subsidies of contaminants and essential fatty acids from aquatic habitats to the riparian food web. Understanding processes that facilitate or limit biological recovery of lakes impacted by historical mining emissions is essential for regaining benefits provided by these freshwater ecosystems to the livelihoods of Canadians, many of which influence most directly vulnerable groups of people. The research will evaluate the potential of intraspecific variation and eco-evolutionary dynamics to be integrated for the improved recovery and restoration of aquatic ecosystems challenged by human disturbance. It will provide advanced skills training for 3 PhD students and 5-10 undergraduate students, and experience working in the Canadian North. The DG responds to Canadian needs for HQP that are trained to solve global challenges that threaten freshwater ecosystems through integrative approaches from genes to ecosystems.