The practice and promise of temporal genomics for measuring evolutionary responses to global change

Understanding the evolutionary consequences of anthropogenic change is
imperative for estimating long-term species resilience. While contemporary
genomic data can provide us with important insights into recent
demographicic histories, investigating past change using present genomic
data alone has limitations. In comparison, temporal genomics studies,
defined herein as those that incorporate time series genomic data,
leverage museum collections and repeated field sampling to directly
examine evolutionary change. As temporal genomics is applied to more
systems, species, and questions, best practices can be helpful guides to
make the most efficient use of limited resources. Here, we conduct a
systematic literature review to synthesize the effects of temporal
genomics methodology on our ability to detect evolutionary changes. We
focus on studies investigating recent change within the past 200 years,
highlighting evolutionary processes that have occurred during the past two
centuries of accelerated anthropogenic pressure. We first identify the
most frequently studied taxa, systems, questions, and drivers, before
highlighting overlooked areas where further temporal genomics studies may
be particularly enlightening. Then, we provide guidelines for future study
and sample designs while identifying key considerations that may influence
statistical and analytical power. Our aim is to provide recommendations to
a broad array of researchers interested in using temporal genomics in
their work.