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Evolutionary rescue via transgenerational plasticity: Evidence and implications for conservation
Author(s) -
Harmon Emily A.,
Pfennig David W.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
evolution and development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.651
H-Index - 78
eISSN - 1525-142X
pISSN - 1520-541X
DOI - 10.1111/ede.12373
Subject(s) - transgenerational epigenetics , biology , phenotypic plasticity , extinction (optical mineralogy) , population , evolutionary biology , natural selection , environmental change , process (computing) , survival of the fittest , adaptation (eye) , selection (genetic algorithm) , plasticity , ecology , climate change , offspring , genetics , neuroscience , computer science , paleontology , demography , sociology , thermodynamics , physics , artificial intelligence , operating system , pregnancy
When a population experiences severe stress from a changing environment, evolution by natural selection can prevent its extinction, a process dubbed “evolutionary rescue.” However, evolution may be unable to track the sort of rapid environmental change being experienced by many modern‐day populations. A potential solution is for organisms to respond to environmental change through phenotypic plasticity, which can buffer populations against change and thereby buy time for evolutionary rescue. In this review, we examine whether this process extends to situations in which the environmentally induced response is passed to offspring. As we describe, theoretical and empirical studies suggest that such “transgenerational plasticity” can increase population persistence. We discuss the implications of this process for conservation biology, outline potential limitations, and describe some applications. Generally, transgenerational plasticity may be effective at buying time for evolutionary rescue to occur.