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Colonisation of toxic environments drives predictable life‐history evolution in livebearing fishes (Poeciliidae)
Author(s) -
Riesch Rüdiger,
Plath Martin,
Schlupp Ingo,
Tobler Michael,
Brian Langerhans R.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
ecology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.852
H-Index - 265
eISSN - 1461-0248
pISSN - 1461-023X
DOI - 10.1111/ele.12209
Subject(s) - poeciliidae , biology , poecilia , ecology , fecundity , offspring , natural selection , adaptation (eye) , life history theory , colonisation , evolutionary ecology , avian clutch size , zoology , evolutionary biology , life history , selection (genetic algorithm) , fish <actinopterygii> , reproduction , fishery , population , pregnancy , genetics , demography , artificial intelligence , sociology , colonization , host (biology) , neuroscience , computer science
New World livebearing fishes (family Poeciliidae) have repeatedly colonised toxic, hydrogen sulphide‐rich waters across their natural distribution. Physiological considerations and life‐history theory predict that these adverse conditions should favour the evolution of larger offspring. Here, we examined nine poeciliid species that independently colonised toxic environments, and show that these fishes have indeed repeatedly evolved much larger offspring size at birth in sulphidic waters, thus uncovering a widespread pattern of predictable evolution. However, a second pattern, only indirectly predicted by theory, proved additionally common: a reduction in the number of offspring carried per clutch (i.e. lower fecundity). Our analyses reveal that this secondary pattern represents a mere consequence of a classic life‐history trade‐off combined with strong selection on offspring size alone. With such strong natural selection in extreme environments, extremophile organisms may commonly exhibit multivariate phenotypic shifts even though not all diverging traits necessarily represent adaptations to the extreme conditions.