10.5061/DRYAD.57N5J
Huss, Magnus
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Howeth, Jennifer G.
Yale University
Osterman, Julia I.
Yale University
Post, David M.
Yale University
Data from: Intraspecific phenotypic variation among alewife populations
drives parallel phenotypic shifts in bluegill
Dryad
dataset
2014
Alewife
bluegill
character displacement
eco-evolutionary dynamics
trait variation
2014-06-02T18:26:40Z
2014-06-02T18:26:40Z
en
https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2014.0275
29370 bytes
1
CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
Evolutionary diversification within consumer species may generate
selection on local ecological communities, affecting prey community
structure. However, the extent to which this niche construction can
propagate across food webs and shape trait variation in competing species
is unknown. Here, we tested whether niche construction by different
life-history variants of the planktivorous fish alewife (Alosa
pseudoharengus) can drive phenotypic divergence and resource use in the
competing species bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus). Using a combination of
common garden experiments and a comparative field study, we found that
bluegill from landlocked alewife lakes grew relatively better when fed
small than large zooplankton, had gill rakers better adapted for feeding
on small-bodied prey and selected smaller zooplankton compared with
bluegill from lakes with anadromous or no alewife. Observed shifts in
bluegill foraging traits in lakes with landlocked alewife parallel those
in alewife, suggesting interspecific competition leading to parallel
phenotypic changes rather than to divergence (which is commonly
predicted). Our findings suggest that species may be locally adapted to
prey communities structured by different life-history variants of a
competing dominant species.
Data to Huss et al 2014Experimental data on bluegill growth rates and prey
size. Comparative lake data on bluegill gill raker morphology.