OCE-PRF Comparing the genomic bases of adaptation to seasonal and spatial temperature gradients in a widespread marine copepod

桡足类是地球上最丰富的动物之一，在海洋食物网和海洋地球化学循环中发挥着重要作用。海洋变暖可能对桡足类种群产生负面影响，使整个海洋生态系统受到连锁破坏。然而，在许多地区，这种变暖是在气温季节性变化很大的背景下发生的。对这一年度温度周期所经历的不同条件的适应可能会增加桡足类种群的遗传多样性，使它们能够更好地科普长期变暖。了解季节性温度波动对桡足类种群的影响将提高我们预测，计划和减轻气候变化对沿海渔业和依赖它们的社区的影响的能力。该项目位于佛蒙特大学，将提供在内陆州与海洋动物合作的机会，吸引那些没有机会参与海洋科学的学生。该项目将结合联合收割机实地工作，实验室共同花园实验，和种群基因组学研究的流行和适应意义的季节性热适应在一个占主导地位的沿海桡足类（Acartia tonsa）跨越一个大的纬度温度梯度。这种综合的方法将提供重要的见解热适应的基因组基础，如何协调这些模式是在空间和时间尺度上，和潜在的季节性波动的选择，使海洋桡足类，以应对长期变暖。该项目有三个具体的目标：1）检查温度限制的季节性变化，在种群的Acartia tonsa从网站在一个大的纬度温度梯度; 2）量化和比较等位基因频率的季节和空间变化;和3）确定是否季节性适应基因型不同的关键健身相关的性状（温度限制，身体大小，和产卵和孵化成功的温度敏感性）。由于它们在海洋生态系统中的重要作用，这种对桡足类种群如何响应空间和时间温度梯度的机械理解将有助于我们更好地预测它们对气候变化的反应，并为海洋生态系统的未来提供关键见解。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。

Copepods are some of the most abundant animals on the planet and play important roles in marine food webs and biogeochemical cycles. Ocean warming may negatively impact copepod populations, with cascading disruptions throughout marine ecosystems. However, in many regions, this warming occurs against a background of large seasonal shifts in temperature. Adaptation to the different conditions experienced over this annual temperature cycle may increase genetic diversity in copepod populations, better enabling them to cope with long-term warming. Understanding the effects of seasonal temperature fluctuations on copepod populations will enhance our ability to predict, plan for, and mitigate the effects of climate change on coastal fisheries and the communities that rely on them. Based at the University of Vermont, this project will provide opportunities to work with marine animals in a landlocked state, engaging students who may not otherwise have the chance to participate in the marine sciences.This project will combine field work, laboratory common garden experiments, and population genomics to investigate the prevalence and adaptive significance of seasonal thermal adaptation in a dominant coastal copepod (Acartia tonsa) across a large latitudinal thermal gradient. This integrative approach will provide important insights into the genomic bases of thermal adaptation, how concordant these patterns are over spatial and temporal scales, and the potential for seasonally fluctuating selection to enable marine copepods to respond to long-term warming. This project has three specific objectives: 1) Examine seasonal variation in thermal limits in populations of Acartia tonsa from sites across a large latitudinal thermal gradient; 2) Quantify and compare seasonal and spatial variation in allele frequency; and 3) Determine if seasonally adapted genotypes differ in key fitness-related traits (thermal limits, body size, and the temperature sensitivity of egg production and hatching success). Because of their important roles in marine ecosystems, this mechanistic understanding of how copepod populations respond to spatial and temporal temperature gradients will help us better predict their responses to climate change, and provide key insights into the future of marine ecosystemsThis 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.