1
|
Boughman JW, Brand JA, Brooks RC, Bonduriansky R, Wong BBM. Sexual selection and speciation in the Anthropocene. Trends Ecol Evol 2024:S0169-5347(24)00042-9. [PMID: 38503640 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2024.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2023] [Revised: 02/08/2024] [Accepted: 02/15/2024] [Indexed: 03/21/2024]
Abstract
Anthropogenic change threatens global biodiversity by causing severe ecological disturbance and extinction. Here, we consider the effects of anthropogenic change on one process that generates biodiversity. Sexual selection (a potent evolutionary force and driver of speciation) is highly sensitive to the environment and, thus, vulnerable to anthropogenic ecological change. Anthropogenic alterations to sexual display and mate preference can make it harder to distinguish between conspecific and heterospecific mates or can weaken divergence via sexual selection, leading to higher rates of hybridization and biodiversity loss. Occasionally, anthropogenically altered sexual selection can abet diversification, but this appears less likely than biodiversity loss. In our rapidly changing world, a full understanding of sexual selection and speciation requires a global change perspective.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Janette W Boughman
- Department of Integrative Biology & Evolution, Ecology and Behavior Program, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA.
| | - Jack A Brand
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3800, Australia; Department of Wildlife, Fish, and Environmental Studies, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umeå, Västerbotten, SE-907 36, Sweden
| | - Robert C Brooks
- Evolution & Ecology Research Centre and School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
| | - Russell Bonduriansky
- Evolution & Ecology Research Centre and School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
| | - Bob B M Wong
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3800, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Ålund M, Cenzer M, Bierne N, Boughman JW, Cerca J, Comerford MS, Culicchi A, Langerhans B, McFarlane SE, Möst MH, North H, Qvarnström A, Ravinet M, Svanbäck R, Taylor SA. Anthropogenic Change and the Process of Speciation. Cold Spring Harb Perspect Biol 2023; 15:a041455. [PMID: 37788888 PMCID: PMC10691492 DOI: 10.1101/cshperspect.a041455] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/05/2023]
Abstract
Anthropogenic impacts on the environment alter speciation processes by affecting both geographical contexts and selection patterns on a worldwide scale. Here we review evidence of these effects. We find that human activities often generate spatial isolation between populations and thereby promote genetic divergence but also frequently cause sudden secondary contact and hybridization between diverging lineages. Human-caused environmental changes produce new ecological niches, altering selection in diverse ways that can drive diversification; but changes also often remove niches and cause extirpations. Human impacts that alter selection regimes are widespread and strong in magnitude, ranging from local changes in biotic and abiotic conditions to direct harvesting to global climate change. Altered selection, and evolutionary responses to it, impacts early-stage divergence of lineages, but does not necessarily lead toward speciation and persistence of separate species. Altogether, humans both promote and hinder speciation, although new species would form very slowly relative to anthropogenic hybridization, which can be nearly instantaneous. Speculating about the future of speciation, we highlight two key conclusions: (1) Humans will have a large influence on extinction and "despeciation" dynamics in the short term and on early-stage lineage divergence, and thus potentially speciation in the longer term, and (2) long-term monitoring combined with easily dated anthropogenic changes will improve our understanding of the processes of speciation. We can use this knowledge to preserve and restore ecosystems in ways that promote (re-)diversification, increasing future opportunities of speciation and enhancing biodiversity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Murielle Ålund
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, Animal Ecology, Uppsala University, Uppsala 75236, Sweden
| | - Meredith Cenzer
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60637, USA
| | - Nicolas Bierne
- ISEM, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, IRD, Montpellier 34095, France
| | - Janette W Boughman
- Department of Integrative Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, USA
| | - José Cerca
- CEES - Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo 0316, Norway
| | | | - Alessandro Culicchi
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, Animal Ecology, Uppsala University, Uppsala 75236, Sweden
| | - Brian Langerhans
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, USA
| | - S Eryn McFarlane
- Department of Botany, University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming 82071, USA
- Department of Biology, York University, Toronto, Ontario M3J 1P3, Canada
| | - Markus H Möst
- Research Department for Limnology, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck 6020, Austria
| | - Henry North
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, United Kingdom
| | - Anna Qvarnström
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, Animal Ecology, Uppsala University, Uppsala 75236, Sweden
| | - Mark Ravinet
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, United Kingdom
| | - Richard Svanbäck
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, Animal Ecology, Uppsala University, Uppsala 75236, Sweden
| | - Scott A Taylor
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado 80309, USA
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Szynwelski BE, Kretschmer R, Matzenbacher CA, Ferrari F, Alievi MM, de Freitas TRO. Hybridization in Canids-A Case Study of Pampas Fox ( Lycalopex gymnocercus) and Domestic Dog ( Canis lupus familiaris) Hybrid. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:2505. [PMID: 37570312 PMCID: PMC10417603 DOI: 10.3390/ani13152505] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2023] [Revised: 07/25/2023] [Accepted: 08/01/2023] [Indexed: 08/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Hybridization between species with different evolutionary trajectories can be a powerful threat to wildlife conservation. Anthropogenic activities, such as agriculture and livestock, have led to the degradation and loss of natural habitats for wildlife. Consequently, the incidence of interspecific hybridization between wild and domestic species has increased, although cases involving species of different genera are rare. In Vacaria, a Southern city in Brazil, a female canid with a strange phenotype, which had characteristics between the phenotype of the domestic dog (Canis familiaris) and that of the pampas fox (Lycalopex gymnocercus), was found. Our analysis suggests that the animal is a hybrid between a domestic dog and a pampas fox, but future studies are necessary to investigate additional cases of this hybridization in nature. This finding worries for the conservation of wild canids in South America, especially concerning Lycalopex species. Hybridization with the domestic dog may have harmful effects on pampas fox populations due to the potential for introgression and disease transmission by the domestic dog. Therefore, future studies to explore the consequences of hybridization on genetics, ecology, and behavior of wild populations will be essential to improve the conservation of this species.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bruna Elenara Szynwelski
- Laboratório de Citogenética e Evolução, Departamento de Genética, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre 91509-900, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; (B.E.S.); (C.A.M.); (T.R.O.d.F.)
| | - Rafael Kretschmer
- Departamento de Ecologia, Zoologia e Genética, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Campus Universitário Capão do Leão, Pelotas 96010-900, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
| | - Cristina Araujo Matzenbacher
- Laboratório de Citogenética e Evolução, Departamento de Genética, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre 91509-900, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; (B.E.S.); (C.A.M.); (T.R.O.d.F.)
| | - Flávia Ferrari
- Núcleo de Conservação e Reabilitação de Animais Silvestres, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre 90540-000, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; (F.F.); (M.M.A.)
| | - Marcelo Meller Alievi
- Núcleo de Conservação e Reabilitação de Animais Silvestres, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre 90540-000, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; (F.F.); (M.M.A.)
| | - Thales Renato Ochotorena de Freitas
- Laboratório de Citogenética e Evolução, Departamento de Genética, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre 91509-900, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; (B.E.S.); (C.A.M.); (T.R.O.d.F.)
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
De León LF, Silva B, Avilés-Rodríguez KJ, Buitrago-Rosas D. Harnessing the omics revolution to address the global biodiversity crisis. Curr Opin Biotechnol 2023; 80:102901. [PMID: 36773576 DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2023.102901] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2022] [Revised: 01/10/2023] [Accepted: 01/18/2023] [Indexed: 02/12/2023]
Abstract
Human disturbances are altering global biodiversity in unprecedented ways. We identify three fundamental challenges underpinning our understanding of global biodiversity (namely discovery, loss, and preservation), and discuss how the omics revolution (e.g. genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and meta-omics) can help address these challenges. We also discuss how omics tools can illuminate the major drivers of biodiversity loss, including invasive species, pollution, urbanization, overexploitation, and climate change, with a special focus on highly diverse tropical environments. Although omics tools are transforming the traditional toolkit of biodiversity research, their application to addressing the current biodiversity crisis remains limited and may not suffice to offset current rates of biodiversity loss. Despite technical and logistical challenges, omics tools need to be fully integrated into global biodiversity research, and better strategies are needed to improve their translation into biodiversity policy and practice. It is also important to recognize that although the omics revolution can be considered the biologist's dream, socioeconomic disparity limits their application in biodiversity research.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Luis F De León
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA 02125, USA.
| | - Bruna Silva
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA 02125, USA
| | - Kevin J Avilés-Rodríguez
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA 02125, USA; Department of Biology, Fordham University, Bronx, NY, USA
| | | |
Collapse
|
5
|
McFarlane SE, Mandeville EG. Diverse data sources and new statistical models offer prospects for improving the predictability of anthropogenic hybridization. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2023; 29:923-925. [PMID: 36409147 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.16527] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2022] [Accepted: 11/08/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Human disturbance can theoretically influence the rates of hybridization, but few studies have convincingly identified a causal link. Grabenstein et al. (2022) used a genomic and phenotypic study of chickadees to associate hybridization with human disturbance. Additionally, this is consistent with citizen science reports of chickadee hybrids across the range. We highlight the exciting aspects of this work and make suggestions about a role for broad geographic and genomic sampling, and new statistical methods to better connect hybridization outcomes to anthropogenic disturbance in diverse study systems.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- S Eryn McFarlane
- Department of Botany, University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming, USA
| | | |
Collapse
|