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PAEDOMORPHOSIS IN AMBYSTOMA TALPOIDEUM : MAINTENANCE OF POPULATION VARIATION AND ALTERNATIVE LIFE‐HISTORY PATHWAYS
Author(s) -
Semlitsch Raymond D.,
Harris Reid N.,
Wilbur Henry M.
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
evolution
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.84
H-Index - 199
eISSN - 1558-5646
pISSN - 0014-3820
DOI - 10.1111/j.1558-5646.1990.tb03849.x
Subject(s) - biology , neoteny , trait , salamander , metamorphosis , ecology , population , habitat , phenotypic plasticity , natural selection , local adaptation , adaptation (eye) , zoology , evolutionary biology , larva , demography , neuroscience , sociology , computer science , programming language
A “common garden” experiment using artifical ponds was performed to test if differences in frequency of paedomorphosis and metamorphosis among six natural populations of the salamander Ambystoma talpoideum resulted from the drying regime of the aquatic habitat acting as an agent of selection. Our experiment supports the hypothesis of genetic differentiation in the propensity to metamorphose among the populations, but gave mixed evidence that pond‐drying regime is the selective force directing evolution of this trait. Some populations appear to have evolved phenotypic plasticity whereas others may have a genetic polymorphism in their propensity to metamorphose as ponds dry.