Plasticity
Plasticity
This chapter details the nature of plasticity and how it can be studied, focusing in particular on the “reaction norm” approach. The subsequent key questions first evaluate whether or not plasticity is typically adaptive, with the main alternative being maladaptive physiological responses to stress. The next question informs the costs and limits to plasticity, without which any environment-phenotype mismatch could be easily bridged. The chapter considers when adaptive plasticity should be strongest, such as when environments are variable in space or time, when gene flow is high, and when reliable cues exist. Also considered are alternative hypotheses for how genetic change and plasticity interact: that is, plasticity might enhance or constrain genetic evolution and ecological speciation.
Keywords: plasticity, reaction norm, environment-phenotype mismatch, adaptive plasticity, gene flow, genetic change, ecological speciation
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