Tag Archives: evolution

Absorptivity due to Climate Change Affects Wing Melanin in Butterflies

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by Anna Alquitela

Climate change affects many organisms in varying ways. Organisms that are unlikely to migrate must adapt to climate change through evolutionary responses. Numerous studies have documented evolutionary responses to climate change over a period of one to three decades. However, the study by Kingsolver and Buckley (2015) provides evidence of a delayed evolutionary response to climate change for the subalpine and alpine butterfly, Colias meadii, in the southern Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Kingsolver and Buckley investigated the evolution of wing melanin of C. meadii and its effect on selection. They state that many species of the study area have adapted to their local climate conditions and “have limited potential for large-scale migration and gene flow.” Continue reading →

Two Types of Science, One Study of Ocean Acidification

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by Weronika Konwent

Ocean acidification is predicted to increase as global warming accelerates, affecting marine habitats and especially coastal areas experiencing episodic upwelling, such as the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem (CCLME). Hofmann et al. (2014) are studying this particular habitat due to its wide variety of conditions and its particular susceptibility to rapid environmental change, To do this, they are using data collected by the Ocean Margin Ecosystems Group for Acidification Studies (OMEGAS) to pair oceanographic and biological data to create a more thorough understanding of genetic variability within key species populations, and how this can affect adaptation to the conditions caused by climate change. Using the biological data to measure responses of sea creatures to oceanographic factors that are affected by climate change, Hofman et al (2014) hope to plot the future survival of CCLME species. Continue reading →

Absorptivity due to Climate Change Affects Wing Melanin in Butterflies

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by Anna Alquitela

Climate change affects many organisms in varying ways. Organisms that are unlikely to migrate must adapt to climate change through evolutionary responses. Numerous studies have documented evolutionary responses to climate change over a period of one to three decades. However, the study by Kingsolver and Buckley (2015) provides evidence of a delayed evolutionary response to climate change for the subalpine and alpine butterfly, Colias meadii, in the southern Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Kingsolver and Buckley investigated the evolution of wing melanin of C. meadii and its effect on selection. They state that many species of the study area have adapted to their local climate conditions and “have limited potential for large-scale migration and gene flow.” Comparing wing melanin to regional climate change, the authors relied on models to predict selection and evolutionary responses over the past 50—60 years. Continue reading →

Reduced Body Size is a Positive Response to Climate Change

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by Anna Alquitela

Surveying 85 unique sites on the western borders of North Carolina and Virginia, biologist Nicholas Caruso and his team collected data on adult specimens of Appalachian woodland salamanders (genus Plethodon). The results showed a reduction in salamander body size in accordance with lower climate temperatures. Because woodland salamanders are lungless they breathe through their skin and require a moist environment for survival. The authors used historical and present-day data to model the changes in body size of 15 species of salamanders over the past 55 years. The dataset included 9,450 adult body size measurements from 102 populations of the 15 different species of salamanders. An 8% reduction in the average salamander size was found in all of the species over the 55-year study (Caruso et al, 2014). The reduction in body size reveals the plasticity of organisms to adapt to changes in climate. Because body size is directly linked to diet and foraging behavior, growth rates are also affected. Smaller body size means less surface area, and less loss of moisture through cutaneous responses. Also, the salamanders that were surveyed have demonstrated an increase in metabolism. Continue reading →