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

加拿大北方有数百个废弃的矿井，几十年前的人类活动至今仍在对环境产生影响。很少有研究亚北极湖泊的当代生态，因为他们从历史上的采矿污染反弹。大多数生态系统恢复或复原框架都侧重于物种一级的生物多样性。然而，适应性种内变异的种群，社区，生态系统中的环境变化之间的相互作用可以调节生态进化动力学（生态和进化之间的相互反馈），这可能有助于解释生态弹性面对环境变化。 我的长期研究目标是整合一个生态进化框架，以了解人为干扰对水生食物网的生物影响和恢复。 发现补助金（DG）的目标是整合一个生态进化框架，以解决西北地区耶洛奈夫周围砷污染湖泊的当代生物恢复问题，这些湖泊在历史上受到金矿开采的污染。 短期目标是评估：1）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，A）一种关键的浮游食草动物，蚤状水蚤，和B）一种重要的新兴昆虫，摇蚊，以测试适应性进化的历史砷暴露沿着湖泊污染梯度。 2)进化过程影响生物恢复生态的程度。关于种群的进化过程在多大程度上能够影响群落和生态系统的生态学，目前还缺乏相关信息。A）我们将通过野外围隔实验和DNA元条形码研究蚤状蚤的进化在砷回收湖泊浮游动物群落重组中的作用。B）我们将研究摇蚊的进化对污染物和必需脂肪酸从水生栖息地到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，对于恢复这些淡水生态系统为加拿大人生计提供的惠益至关重要，其中许多影响最直接的弱势群体。这项研究将评估种内变异和生态进化动力学的潜力，以改善人类干扰挑战的水生生态系统的恢复和恢复。它将为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，培训他们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.