title: Rapid local adaptation mediates zooplankton community assembly in experimental mesocosms.
abstract: Adaptive evolution can occur over similar timescales as ecological processes such as community assembly, but its particular effects on community assembly and structure and their magnitude are poorly understood. In experimental evolution trials, Daphnia magna were exposed to varying environments (presence and absence of fish and artificial macrophytes) for 2 months. Then, in a common gardening experiment, we compared zooplankton community composition when either experimentally adapted or D. magna from the original population were present. Local adaptation of D. magna significantly altered zooplankton community composition, leading to a suppression of abundances for some zooplankton taxa and facilitation for others. The effect size of D. magna adaptation was similar to that of adding fish or macrophytes to mesocosms, two important drivers of zooplankton community structure. Our results suggest that substantial amounts of variation in community composition in natural systems may be unexplained if evolutionary dynamics are ignored.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation, KU Leuven, University of Leuven, Charles Deberiotstraat 32, 3000, Leuven, Belgium.|Centre d'Ecologie fonctionnelle et Evolutive, UMR 5175 CNRS - Université de Montpellier - EPHE, Campus CNRS, 1919 route de Mende, 34293 Montpellier, Cedex 05, France.
authors.forename: Jelena H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Pantel
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation, KU Leuven, University of Leuven, Charles Deberiotstraat 32, 3000, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Cathy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Duvivier
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation, KU Leuven, University of Leuven, Charles Deberiotstraat 32, 3000, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Luc De
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: Meester
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological / Q000235:genetics*; D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D003621:Daphnia / Q000235:genetics*; D017753:Ecosystem; D005399:Fishes; D008954:Models, Biological; D011157:Population Dynamics; D015048:Zooplankton / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*
keywords: Community assembly; Daphnia; evolving metacommunity; local adaptation