Past and recent farming degrades aquatic insect genetic diversity

Revealing the cascade of pesticide effects from gene to community

Global pesticide exposure in agriculture leads to biodiversity loss, even at ultra-low concentrations below the legal limits. The mechanisms by which the effects of toxicants act at such low concentrations are still unclear, particularly in relation to their propagation across the different biological levels. In this study, we demonstrate, for the first time, a cascade of effects from the gene to the community level. At the gene level, agricultural pesticide exposure resulted in reduced genetic diversity of field-collected Gammarus pulex, a dominant freshwater crustacean in Europe. Additionally, we identified alleles associated with adaptations to pesticide contamination. At the individual level, this genetic adaptation to pesticides was linked to a lower fecundity, indicating related fitness costs. At the community level, the combined effect of pesticides and competitors caused a decline in the overall number and abundance of pesticides susceptible macroinvertebrate competing with gammarids. The resulting reduction in interspecific competition provided an advantage for pesticide-adapted G. pulex to dominate macroinvertebrate communities in contaminated areas, despite their reduced fitness due to adaptation. These processes demonstrate the complex cascade of effects, and also illustrate the resilience and adaptability of biological systems across organisational levels to meet the challenges of a changing environment.