Environmental predictability drives different routes to adaptation

Climate change is altering thermal environments, yet we know little about how environmental predictability shapes species' adaptive responses. Different species may rely on plasticity or evolution to survive environmental change, but how these strategies depend on environmental predictability remains unclear. Experimental evidence that distinguishes between plastic and evolutionary responses to different patterns of environmental variability has been lacking. Here we present the first experimental demonstration that compares adaptive responses to predictable versus unpredictable thermal variation disentangling plastic from evolutionary changes. Using Drosophila melanogaster populations evolved for 11 generations under constant, predictably fluctuating, and randomly fluctuating thermal regimes, we assessed survival and fecundity: a plasticity assay testing flies directly from their evolutionary environments to capture total phenotypic responses, and a common garden assay after two genera..., , # Environmental predictability drives different routes to adaptation

Dataset DOI: [10.5061/dryad.2jm63xt3v](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.2jm63xt3v)

## Description of the data and file structure

README for Data and Code Associated with: \"Environmental Predictability Drives Different Routes to Adaptation\" Vinton et al. - Evolution Letters

#### CONTENTS

1\. Fly_Data_Dryad.csv - Experimental data

2\. Analysis_Code.R - R script to reproduce all statistical analyses

DATA FILE: Fly_Data_Dryad.csv

#### DESCRIPTION

This dataset contains survival and fecundity measurements from an experimental evolution study using Drosophila melanogaster. Flies were maintained in three thermal regimes (constant, predictably fluctuating, and randomly fluctuating) for 11 generations. Fitness assays were conducted at generations 4, 7, and 10.

Two assay types were performed:

\- Plasticity Assay (PA): Flies tested directly from their evolutionary environment

\- Common Garden Assay (CG): Flies reared for ...,