TableS1_species.list.xlsx from Evolution of competitive traits changes species diversity in a natural field

Studying the interaction between evolutionary and ecological processes (i.e. eco-evolutionary dynamics) has great potential to improve our understanding of biological processes such as species interactions, community assembly and ecosystem functions. However, most experimental studies have been conducted under controlled laboratory or mesocosm conditions, and the importance of these interactions in natural field communities has not been evaluated. In this study, we focused on the contemporary divergence of a competitive trait (the height–width ratio) of an annual grass Eleusine indica between urban and farmland populations and investigated how trait evolution affects ecological processes by transplanting E. indica individuals from lineages with different trait values into semi-natural grassland. The competitive trait of the transplanted individuals not only affected their own growth and fitness, but also affected the vegetative growth of the competing species and the species diversity. These results indicate that the evolution of competitive traits, even in a single species, can influence the community species diversity through changes in interspecific interactions. Eco-evolutionary interactions therefore play a crucial role in natural field environments. Our results suggest that understanding intraspecific variation in competitive traits driven by rapid evolution is essential for understanding interspecific competitive interactions, community assembly and species diversity.

研究进化与生态过程的交互作用（即生态进化动力学（eco-evolutionary dynamics）），对于深化我们对物种交互、群落构建与生态系统功能等生物过程的认知具有重要价值。然而，绝大多数实验研究均在受控实验室或中宇宙（mesocosm）环境中开展，此类交互作用在自然野外群落中的重要性尚未得到评估。本研究聚焦于一年生草本植物牛筋草（Eleusine indica）在城市与农田种群间的竞争性状——株高-冠幅比（height–width ratio）的当代分化，并通过将携带不同性状值谱系的牛筋草个体移植至半天然草地中，探究性状进化对生态过程的影响机制。移植个体的竞争性状不仅会影响自身的生长与适合度，还会对竞争物种的营养生长以及群落物种多样性产生作用。研究结果表明，即便仅针对单一物种，其竞争性状的进化也可通过种间交互的改变，对群落物种多样性产生调控效应。由此可见，生态进化交互作用在自然野外环境中扮演着至关重要的角色。本研究结果提示，阐明由快速进化驱动的竞争性状种内变异，是理解种间竞争交互、群落构建与物种多样性的核心前提。