Eco-evolutionary responses and feedbacks of a key herbivore to lake oligotrophication

该项目将使用长期数据分析、复活生态学和建模来调查水生关键食草动物水蚤对环境变化的生态和进化反应。此外，所获得的结果将能够估计水蚤的种群动态，持久性，因此，整体生态系统动态的进化反应的后果。该项目将详细分析水蚤、其食物、竞争者和捕食者对模型生态系统中贫营养化的反应，即，博登湖和另外的变化水蚤种群动态在几个最好的研究湖泊的世界。将重新分析博登湖的历史现场样本，以研究水蚤对寡营养化的表型生活史和形态反应。使用复活生态学，我们将分析水蚤盔形虫的生活史参数寡营养化的进化反应-特别强调其投资到有性生殖/生产的休眠蛋以及生活史可塑性响应无脊椎动物捕食者和食物水平下降。这些分析（结合模型模拟）将提供关键数据，了解水蚤的生命周期策略（越冬的浮游生物或休眠卵）的作用水蚤持久性在永久性湖泊中，水蚤休眠卵银行的解释，和进化的遗传方差和协方差的生活史参数。

The project will use analysis of long-term data, resurrection ecology and modeling to investigate the ecological and evolutionary response of an aquatic key herbivore, Daphnia, to environmental change. In addition, the results obtained will enable to estimate the consequences of the evolutionary response of Daphnia for its population dynamics, persistence and consequently, overall ecosystem dynamics. The project will analyze in detail the response of Daphnia, its food, competitors and predators to oligo-trophication in a model ecosystem, i.e., Lake Constance and additionally variability in Daphnia population dynamics in several of the best studied lakes of the world. Historical field samples from Lake Constance will be re-analyzed to study the phenotypic life history and morphological responses of Daphnia to oligo-trophication. Using resurrection ecology we will analyze the evolutionary response of Daphnia galeata life history parameters to oligo-trophication – with special emphasis on its investment into sexual reproduction/production of resting eggs as well as life history plasticity in response to invertebrate predators and declining food levels. These analyses (in combination with model simulations) will provide key data for understanding the role of Daphnia life cycle strategy (overwintering in the plankton or in resting eggs) for Daphnia persistence in permanent lakes, for the interpretation of Daphnia resting egg banks, and the evolution of the genetic variances and co-variances of life history parameters.