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Winter color polymorphisms identify global hot spots for evolutionary rescue from climate change

Authors:

Scott Mills

Eugenia Bragina

Alexander Kumar

Marketa Zimova

Diana Lafferty

Jennifer Feltner

Brandon Davis

Klaus Hackländer

Paulo Alves

Jeffrey Good

José Melo-Ferreira

Andreas Dietz

Alexei Abramov

Natalia Lopatina

Kairsten Fay

+10 more
Publication Type:
Journal Article
Year of Publication:
2018
Secondary Title:
Science
ISSN:
0036-8075
DOI:
10.1126/science.aan8097
Pages:
1033-1036
Volume:
359
Year:
2018
Date:
Feb-03-2018

Abstract

Maintenance of biodiversity in a rapidly changing climate will depend on the efficacy of evolutionary rescue, whereby population declines due to abrupt environmental change are reversed by shifts in genetically driven adaptive traits. However, a lack of traits known to be under direct selection by anthropogenic climate change has limited the incorporation of evolutionary processes into global conservation efforts. In 21 vertebrate species, some individuals undergo a seasonal color molt from summer brown to winter white as camouflage against snow, while other individuals remain brown. Seasonal snow duration is decreasing globally, and fitness is lower for winter white animals on snowless backgrounds. Based on 2713 georeferenced samples of known winter coat color—from eight species across trophic levels—we identify environmentally driven clinal gradients in winter coat color, including polymorphic zones where winter brown and white morphs co-occur. These polymorphic zones, underrepresented by existing global protected area networks, indicate hot spots for evolutionary rescue in a changing climate.