PCI Ecology

Title

Eco-evolutionary dynamics further weakens mutualistic interaction and coexistence under population declineuse asterix (*) to get italics

Authors

Avril Weinbach, Nicolas Loeuille, Rudolf P. RohrPlease use the format "First name initials family name" as in "Marie S. Curie, Niels H. D. Bohr, Albert Einstein, John R. R. Tolkien, Donna T. Strickland"

Year

2021

Picture

Abstract

<p style="text-align: justify;">With current environmental changes, evolution can rescue declining populations, but what happens to their interacting species? Mutualistic interactions can help species sustain each other when their environment worsens. However, mutualism is often costly to maintain, and evolution might counter-select it when not profitable enough. We investigate how the evolution of mutualism affects the coexistence of two mutualistic species, e.g. a plant-pollinator or plant-fungi system. Specifically, using eco-evolutionary dynamics, we study the evolution of the focal species investment in the mutualistic interaction of a focal species (e.g. plant attractiveness via flower or nectar production for pollinators or carbon exudate for mycorrhizal fungi), and how it is affected by the decline of the partner population with which it is interacting. We assume an allocation trade-off so that investment in the mutualistic interaction reduces the species intrinsic growth rate. First, we investigate how evolution changes species persistence, biomass production, and the intensity of the mutualistic interaction. We show that concave trade-offs allow evolutionary convergence to stable coexistence. We next assume an external disturbance that decreases the partner population by lowering its intrinsic growth rate. Such declines result in the evolution of lower investment of the focal species in the mutualistic interaction, which eventually leads to the extinction of the partner species. With asymmetric mutualism favouring the partner, the evolutionary disappearance of the mutualistic interaction is delayed. Our results suggest that evolution may account for the current collapse of some mutualistic systems like plant-pollinator ones, and that restoration attempts should be enforced early enough to prevent potential negative effects driven by evolution.</p>

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Keywords

adaptive dynamics, plant attractiveness, pollinators decline, evolutionary murder, asymmetrical interactions, alternative stable states

Methods that require specific expertise (optional)

NonePlease indicate the methods that may require specialised expertise during the peer review process (use a comma to separate various required expertises).

Thematic fields

Coexistence, Eco-evolutionary dynamics, Evolutionary ecology, Interaction networks, Pollination, Theoretical ecology

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Submission date

2019-09-05 11:29:45

Recommender

Sylvain Billiard

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