Experimental migration upward in elevation is associated with strong selection on life history traits

One of the strongest biological impacts of climate change has been the movement of species poleward and upward in elevation. Yet, what is not clear, is the extent to which the spatial distribution of locally adapted lineages and ecologically important traits may also shift with continued climate change. Here, we take advantage of a transplant experiment mimicking up-slope seed dispersal for a suite of ecologically-diverse populations of yellow monkeyflower (Mimulus guttatus sensu lato) into a high-elevation common garden during an extreme drought period in the Sierra Nevada mountains, California, USA. We use a demographic approach to quantify fitness and test for selection on life history traits in local vs. lower-elevation populations and in normal vs. drought years to test the potential for up-slope migration and phenotypic selection to alter the distribution of key life history traits in montane environments. We find that lower-elevation populations tend to outperform local populatio...

气候变化对生物最显著的影响之一，是物种向极地迁移以及向高海拔爬升。然而目前仍未明确的是，随着气候变化持续加剧，本地适应谱系与生态重要性状的空间分布，究竟会在多大程度上随之发生改变。本研究依托一项模拟沿坡向上种子扩散的移植实验，将美国加利福尼亚州内华达山脉极端干旱时段内的黄色猴面花（广义斑点沟酸浆，*Mimulus guttatus* sensu lato）的一系列生态多样种群，移植至高海拔同质园（common garden）中。本研究采用种群统计方法，量化适合度（fitness）并检验本地种群与低海拔种群、正常年份与干旱年份间生活史性状（life history traits）的选择压力，以此探究沿坡向上迁移与表型选择（phenotypic selection）是否会改变山地生境中关键生活史性状的分布格局。本研究发现，低海拔种群的表现往往优于本地种群……