TY - JOUR
T1 - The ecogenetic link between demography and evolution
T2 - Can we bridge the gap between theory and data?
AU - Kokko, Hanna
AU - López-Sepulcre, Andrés
PY - 2007/9
Y1 - 2007/9
N2 - Calls to understand the links between ecology and evolution have been common for decades. Population dynamics, i.e. the demographic changes in populations, arise from life history decisions of individuals and thus are a product of selection, and selection, on the contrary, can be modified by such dynamical properties of the population as density and stability. It follows that generating predictions and testing them correctly requires considering this ecogenetic feedback loop whenever traits have demographic consequences, mediated via density dependence (or frequency dependence). This is not an easy challenge, and arguably theory has advanced at a greater pace than empirical research. However, theory would benefit from more interaction between related fields, as is evident in the many near-synonymous names that the ecogenetic loop has attracted. We also list encouraging examples where empiricists have shown feasible ways of addressing the question, ranging from advanced data analysis to experiments and comparative analyses of phylogenetic data.
AB - Calls to understand the links between ecology and evolution have been common for decades. Population dynamics, i.e. the demographic changes in populations, arise from life history decisions of individuals and thus are a product of selection, and selection, on the contrary, can be modified by such dynamical properties of the population as density and stability. It follows that generating predictions and testing them correctly requires considering this ecogenetic feedback loop whenever traits have demographic consequences, mediated via density dependence (or frequency dependence). This is not an easy challenge, and arguably theory has advanced at a greater pace than empirical research. However, theory would benefit from more interaction between related fields, as is evident in the many near-synonymous names that the ecogenetic loop has attracted. We also list encouraging examples where empiricists have shown feasible ways of addressing the question, ranging from advanced data analysis to experiments and comparative analyses of phylogenetic data.
KW - Comparative analysis
KW - Density-dependent selection
KW - Eco-evolutionary feedback
KW - Ecogenetics
KW - Experimental evolution
KW - Frequency-dependent selection
KW - Life-history theory
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=34547474618&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2007.01086.x
DO - 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2007.01086.x
M3 - Review article
SN - 1461-023X
VL - 10
SP - 773
EP - 782
JO - Ecology Letters
JF - Ecology Letters
IS - 9
ER -