Local adaptation in thermal tolerance for a tropical butterfly across ecotone and rainforest habitats
Thermal adaptation to habitat variability can determine species vulnerability to environmental change. For example, physiological tolerance to naturally low thermal variation in tropical forests species may alter their vulnerability to climate change impacts, compared with open habitat species. Howe...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
The Company of Biologists
2021-04-01
|
| Series: | Biology Open |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://bio.biologists.org/content/10/4/bio058619 |
| _version_ | 1818655859261046784 |
|---|---|
| author | Michel A. K. Dongmo Rachid Hanna Thomas B. Smith K. K. M. Fiaboe Abraham Fomena Timothy C. Bonebrake |
| author_facet | Michel A. K. Dongmo Rachid Hanna Thomas B. Smith K. K. M. Fiaboe Abraham Fomena Timothy C. Bonebrake |
| author_sort | Michel A. K. Dongmo |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Thermal adaptation to habitat variability can determine species vulnerability to environmental change. For example, physiological tolerance to naturally low thermal variation in tropical forests species may alter their vulnerability to climate change impacts, compared with open habitat species. However, the extent to which habitat-specific differences in tolerance derive from within-generation versus across-generation ecological or evolutionary processes are not well characterized. Here we studied thermal tolerance limits of a Central African butterfly (Bicyclus dorothea) across two habitats in Cameroon: a thermally stable tropical forest and the more variable ecotone between rainforest and savanna. Second generation individuals originating from the ecotone, reared under conditions common to both populations, exhibited higher upper thermal limits (CTmax) than individuals originating from forest (∼3°C greater). Lower thermal limits (CTmin) were also slightly lower for the ecotone populations (∼1°C). Our results are suggestive of local adaptation driving habitat-specific differences in thermal tolerance (especially CTmax) that hold across generations. Such habitat-specific thermal limits may be widespread for tropical ectotherms and could affect species vulnerability to environmental change. However, microclimate and within-generation developmental processes (e.g. plasticity) will mediate these differences, and determining the fitness consequences of thermal variation for ecotone and rainforest species will require continued study of both within-generation and across-generation eco-evolutionary processes. This article has an associated First Person interview with the first author of the paper. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-17T03:16:23Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-45f921f731e34e1f8ce0268595de036e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2046-6390 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-17T03:16:23Z |
| publishDate | 2021-04-01 |
| publisher | The Company of Biologists |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Biology Open |
| spelling | doaj.art-45f921f731e34e1f8ce0268595de036e2022-12-21T22:05:39ZengThe Company of BiologistsBiology Open2046-63902021-04-0110410.1242/bio.058619058619Local adaptation in thermal tolerance for a tropical butterfly across ecotone and rainforest habitatsMichel A. K. Dongmo0Rachid Hanna1Thomas B. Smith2K. K. M. Fiaboe3Abraham Fomena4Timothy C. Bonebrake5 International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), PO Box 2008 (Messa), Yaoundé-Cameroon, Yaoundé, Cameroon International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), PO Box 2008 (Messa), Yaoundé-Cameroon, Yaoundé, Cameroon Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Institute of Environment and Sustainability, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), PO Box 2008 (Messa), Yaoundé-Cameroon, Yaoundé, Cameroon Laboratory of Parasitology and Ecology, Faculty of Science, University of Yaoundé I PO Box 812, Yaoundé-Cameroon Division of Ecology & Biodiversity, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China Thermal adaptation to habitat variability can determine species vulnerability to environmental change. For example, physiological tolerance to naturally low thermal variation in tropical forests species may alter their vulnerability to climate change impacts, compared with open habitat species. However, the extent to which habitat-specific differences in tolerance derive from within-generation versus across-generation ecological or evolutionary processes are not well characterized. Here we studied thermal tolerance limits of a Central African butterfly (Bicyclus dorothea) across two habitats in Cameroon: a thermally stable tropical forest and the more variable ecotone between rainforest and savanna. Second generation individuals originating from the ecotone, reared under conditions common to both populations, exhibited higher upper thermal limits (CTmax) than individuals originating from forest (∼3°C greater). Lower thermal limits (CTmin) were also slightly lower for the ecotone populations (∼1°C). Our results are suggestive of local adaptation driving habitat-specific differences in thermal tolerance (especially CTmax) that hold across generations. Such habitat-specific thermal limits may be widespread for tropical ectotherms and could affect species vulnerability to environmental change. However, microclimate and within-generation developmental processes (e.g. plasticity) will mediate these differences, and determining the fitness consequences of thermal variation for ecotone and rainforest species will require continued study of both within-generation and across-generation eco-evolutionary processes. This article has an associated First Person interview with the first author of the paper.http://bio.biologists.org/content/10/4/bio058619climate changecommon gardenecotonethermal tolerancebicyclus dorothea |
| spellingShingle | Michel A. K. Dongmo Rachid Hanna Thomas B. Smith K. K. M. Fiaboe Abraham Fomena Timothy C. Bonebrake Local adaptation in thermal tolerance for a tropical butterfly across ecotone and rainforest habitats Biology Open climate change common garden ecotone thermal tolerance bicyclus dorothea |
| title | Local adaptation in thermal tolerance for a tropical butterfly across ecotone and rainforest habitats |
| title_full | Local adaptation in thermal tolerance for a tropical butterfly across ecotone and rainforest habitats |
| title_fullStr | Local adaptation in thermal tolerance for a tropical butterfly across ecotone and rainforest habitats |
| title_full_unstemmed | Local adaptation in thermal tolerance for a tropical butterfly across ecotone and rainforest habitats |
| title_short | Local adaptation in thermal tolerance for a tropical butterfly across ecotone and rainforest habitats |
| title_sort | local adaptation in thermal tolerance for a tropical butterfly across ecotone and rainforest habitats |
| topic | climate change common garden ecotone thermal tolerance bicyclus dorothea |
| url | http://bio.biologists.org/content/10/4/bio058619 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT michelakdongmo localadaptationinthermaltoleranceforatropicalbutterflyacrossecotoneandrainforesthabitats AT rachidhanna localadaptationinthermaltoleranceforatropicalbutterflyacrossecotoneandrainforesthabitats AT thomasbsmith localadaptationinthermaltoleranceforatropicalbutterflyacrossecotoneandrainforesthabitats AT kkmfiaboe localadaptationinthermaltoleranceforatropicalbutterflyacrossecotoneandrainforesthabitats AT abrahamfomena localadaptationinthermaltoleranceforatropicalbutterflyacrossecotoneandrainforesthabitats AT timothycbonebrake localadaptationinthermaltoleranceforatropicalbutterflyacrossecotoneandrainforesthabitats |