THE EVOLUTION OF LIFE HISTORIES AND PHENOTYPIC PLASTICITY ACROSS ENVIRONMENTAL GRADIENTS IN DAPHNIA SP.
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Date
2020-08-11Author
Packer, Michelle Renee Swan
0000-0002-6288-2606
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Understanding how environmentally-induced variation ultimately leads to speciation is a main component of evolutionary ecology. This dissertation uses Daphnia in experimental and comparative studies to address several theoretical questions concerning the role of phenotypic plasticity in the evolutionary process. Specifically, I explore novel environmental factors which induce plasticity and investigate the plastic response across systems to determine general hypotheses for understanding the mechanisms which may be involved. Additionally, this dissertation provides empirical results which add to the body of research investigating the transition between environmentally induced phenotypes and genetic adaptation. The results of this body of work show that ancestral plasticity can predict the direction of adaptation, and that location-specific biotic factors may change the mechanisms by which plasticity leads to patterns of local adaptation. This work demonstrates the value of Daphnia as a model system for addressing empirical evolutionary questions and provides insight on the complex function of plasticity in evolutionary transitions.