Progress 04/16/14 to 09/30/18
Outputs
Target Audience:1. Academic scientists, including evolutionary ecologists, plant biologists, crop modelers, and global change scientists 2. Conservation managers and foresters 3. General public Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Seven postdocs (including a UC President's Postdoctoral Fellow and a Mexican Conacyt Fellow), one Ph.D student, three "postbac" researchers, and at least 15 undergraduates have so far received research training on the design of evolutionary ecology experiments, the use of common garden experiments to detect the signature of climate adaptation, and the genetic basis of life history variation in plants. Two of the postdocs now hold assistant professor positions (Department of Plant Sciences, UCD, and North Dakota State University.) How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Open access publications, academic seminars (UC Berkeley; Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory; UC Irvine, Princeton U., Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research; UC Merced; Carnegie Institute Department of Plant Biology; U. of Melbourne), presentations at scientific meetings (Evolution 2014, International Conference on Arabidopsis Research, Baker/Stebbins Invasion Genetics Symposium; Ecological Society of America, International Union of Forest Research Organizations Workshop on Genetics of Five Needle Pines; 5th International Conference on Quantitative Genetics ; American Society of Naturalists; Evolution 2018; Keynote speaker, Green Life Sciences Symposium: Plant-Environment Interactions Across Scales, University of Michigan), presentations and reports to practitioners (Western Seed Physiology Research Group; Workshop for managers at USFS: Using Provenance Test Data to Inform Ecological Restoration in the Tahoe Basin; Tahoe National Forest webinar on Climate Change and Assisted Migration; SNPLMA Final Report: Using Provenance Test Data to Inform Ecological Restoration in the Tahoe Basin); public lectures (Miegunyah Lecture, U. of Melbourne). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
1: Sample genotypes across the California range. We collected multiple seed families from ~ 30 Streptanthus tortuosus populations spanning elevational gradients in 4 regions over a latitudinal range: Sequoia/Kings Canyon NP, Yosemite NP and Mariposa region, Lake Tahoe and Carson Pass region (national forest), and Lassen NP. These seed families were planted in the screen house for phenological and life history measurements, as well as crosses for quantitative genetic studies. Our common garden experiments demonstrate striking elevational clines in germination, growth, and life history. High-elevation plants have stronger cold requirements for germination and vernalization, shorter, branchier growth forms, and greater perenniality. We have sampled DNA from these populations for RADSeq analysis of population structure and performed crosses within and across populations for quantitative genetic analysis. 2.Experimentally measure the response of germination phenology, flowering time, and seed set of different genotypes to changes in winter precipitation. We completed screenhouse experiments with near-isogenic lines (NILs) of Arabidopsis thaliana segregating different alleles at dormancy and flowering time loci, as well as with S. tortuosus seed families collected across an elevational gradient. We allowed seeds to after-ripen naturally in the screenhouse and measured their germination phenology under a range of simulated onsets of winter precipitation. Genotypes of both species differed in germination and flowering phenology in response to the treatments. 3. Experimentally measure evolutionary response of dormancy and flowering time loci to simulated variation in Mediterranean precipitation regimes. In autumn 2014 we established a large "population cage" experiment in the screen house. We created replicate populations with equal frequencies of four NILs representing the 4 possible combinations of early/late flowering and high/low seed dormancy. These replicates were then exposed to a range of experimental precipitation treatments that varied in the onset and duration of winter precipitation as well as the occurrence of midwinter drought. We assessed mortality and growth of these populations and allowed them to disperse seed naturally into seed traps as well as the soil for multiple generations, sampling plants and seeds in each cohort. In late summer 2016, we made our final seed collection and we are now genotyping plants and seeds from each treatment for molecular markers to track changes in frequency of the 4 genotypes over time. Preliminary data indicate that different genotypes are favored by different precipitation regimes. 4. Develop integrated life cycle models. Former postdoc Daniel Runcie, now an assistant professor Plant Sciences faculty, and his lab continue to collaborate with us to develop models. In addition, Dr. Jennifer Gremer (EVE) is collaborating with us to develop life cycle models for Streptanthus.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Awaiting Publication
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Martinez-Berdeja, A., J.A. Hamilton, A. Bontemps, J. Schmitt, and J.W. Wright. 2019. Evidence for population differentiation among Jeffrey and Ponderosa pines in survival, growth and phenology. Forest Ecology and Management
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Taylor, M.A., M.D. Cooper, and J. Schmitt. 2019. Phenological and fitness responses to climate warming depend upon genotype and competitive neighborhood in Arabidopsis thaliana. Functional Ecology 33:308-322
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Under Review
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Gremer, J.R., C.J. Wilcox, A. Chiono, E.Suglia, and J. Schmitt. 2019. Germination timing and chilling exposure create contingency in life history and influence fitness in the native wildflower Streptanthus tortuosus. Journal of Ecology
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Progress 10/01/16 to 09/30/17
Outputs
Target Audience:Academic scientists, including evolutionary ecologists, plant biologists, crop modelers, and global change scientists Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Six postdocs (including a UC President's Postdoctoral Fellow and a Mexican Conacyt Fellow), one Ph.D student, three "postbac" researchers, and at least 15 undergraduates have so far received research training on the design of evolutionary ecology experiments, the use of common garden experiments to detect the signature of climate adaptation, and the genetic basis of life history variation in plants. Two of the postdocs started assistant professor positions in July 2015 (Department of Plant Sciences, UCD, and North Dakota State University). How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?This reporting period: Open access publications, academic seminars (U.C. Merced, Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We will collect S. tortuosus seed families from additional populations, and continue crosses for quantitative genetic studies and common garden experiments in the screenhouse and controlled environmental chambers. We are also conducting ffield studies in three sites across an elevational gradient: Table Mountain (411 m), Wright's Lake Road (2020m), and Carson Pass (2423) (in collaboration with Dr. Jennifer Gremer) to examine population demographic parameters and the fitness effects of annual vs. perennial life history strategies and germination timing. We will complete genotyping of the screenhouse population cage experiment and analyze and publish data from the screenhouse phenology experiments. We also plan to develop SNP markers to describe the population structure of S. tortuosus in order to test whether the observed elevational clines in life history traits show a signature of local adaptation.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
1: Sample genotypes across the California range. In this reporting period we continued to collect multiple seed families from additional Streptanthus tortuosus populations spanning elevational gradients in 4 regions over a latitudinal range: Sequoia/Kings Canyon NP, Yosemite NP, Lake Tahoe region (national forest), and Lassen NP. These seed families were planted in the screen house for phenological and life history measurements, as well as crosses for quantitative genetic studies. Our common garden experiments demonstrate striking elevational clines in germination, growth, and life history. High-elevation plants have stronger cold requirements for germination and vernalization, shorter, branchier growth forms, and greater perenniality. 2.Experimentally measure the response of germination phenology, flowering time, and seed set of different genotypes to changes in winter precipitation. We completed screenhouse experiments with near-isogenic lines (NILs) of Arabidopsis thaliana segregating different alleles at dormancy and flowering time loci, as well as with S. tortuosus seed families collected across an elevational gradient. We allowed seeds to after-ripen naturally in the screenhouse and measured their germination phenology under a range of simulated onsets of winter precipitation. Genotypes of both species differed in germination phenology in response to the treatments. 3. Experimentally measure evolutionary response of dormancy and flowering time loci to simulated variation in Mediterranean precipitation regimes. In autumn 2014 we established a large "population cage" experiment in the screen house. We created replicate populations with equal frequencies of four NILs representing the 4 possible combinations of early/late flowering and high/low seed dormancy. These replicates were then exposed to a range of experimental precipitation treatments that varied in the onset and duration of winter precipitation as well as the occurrence of midwinter drought. We assessed mortality and growth of these populations and allowed them to disperse seed naturally into seed traps as well as the soil for multiple generations, sampling plants and seeds in each cohort. In late summer 2016, we made our final seed collection and we are now genotyping plants and seeds from each treatment for molecular markers to track changes in frequency of the 4 genotypes over time. Preliminary data indicate that different genotypes are favored by different precipitation regimes. 4. Develop integrated life cycle models. Former postdoc Daniel Runcie, now an assistant professor Plant Sciences faculty, and his lab continue to collaborate with us to develop models.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Grant, P.R, B.R. Grant, R.B.Huey, M.T.J. Johnson, A.H. Knoll, and J. Schmitt. 2017. Evolution caused by extreme events. Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc. B. 372 (1723), 20160146
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Hereford, J., J. Schmitt, and D.D. Ackerly. 2017. The seasonal climate niche predicts phenology and distribution of an ephemeral annual plant, Mollugo verticillata. Journal of Ecology 105:1323-1334.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Taylor, M.A., M.D. Cooper, R.Sellamuthu, P. Braun, A. Migneault, A. Browning, E. Perry, and J. Schmitt. 2017. Interacting effects of genetic variation for seed dormancy and flowering time on phenology, life history, and fitness of experimental Arabidopsis thaliana populations over multiple generations in the field. New Phytologist 216: 291-302
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Progress 10/01/15 to 09/30/16
Outputs
Target Audience:1. Academic scientists, including evolutionary ecologists, plant biologists, crop modelers, and global change scientists 2. Conservation managers and foresters Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Six postdocs (including a UC President's Postdoctoral Fellow and a Mexican Conacyt Fellow), one Ph.D student, two "postbac" researchers, and 6 undergraduates have so far received research training on the design of evolutionary ecology experiments, the use of common garden experiments to detect the signature of climate adaptation, and the genetic basis of life history variation in plants. Two of the postdocs started assistant professor positions in July 2015 (Department of Plant Sciences, UCD, and North Dakota State University). How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Open access publications, academic seminars (Princeton University), presentations at scientific meetings (5th International Conference on Quantitative Genetics), presentations and reports to practitioners (SNPLMA Final Report: Using Provenance Test Data to Inform Ecological Restoration in the Tahoe Basin). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We will collect S. tortuosus seed families from additional populations, and continue crosses for quantitative genetic studies and common garden experiments in the screenhouse and controlled environmental chambers. We are also conducting pilot field studies in three sites across an elevational gradient: Table Mountain (411 m), Wright's Lake Road (2020m), and Carson Pass (2423) (in collaboration with Dr. Jennifer Gremer) to examine population demographic parameters and the fitness effects of annual vs. perennial life history strategies and germination timing. We will complete genotyping of the screenhouse population cage experiment and analyze and publish data from the screenhouse phenology experiments. We also plan to develop SNP markers to describe the population structure of S. tortuosus in order to test whether the observed elevational clines in life history traits show a signature of local adaptation.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
1: Sample genotypes across the California range. In this reporting period we continued to collect multiple seed families from additional Streptanthus tortuosus populations spanning elevational gradients in 4 regions over a latitudinal range: Sequoia/Kings Canyon NP, Yosemite NP, Lake Tahoe region (national forest), and Lassen NP. These seed families were planted in the screen house for phenological and life history measurements, as well as crosses for quantitative genetic studies. Our common garden experiments demonstrate striking elevational clines in germination, growth, and life history. High-elevation plants have stronger cold requirements for germination and vernalization, shorter, branchier growth forms, and greater perenniality. In addition, we completed a related project in collaboration with Dr. Jessica Wright (USFS) and postdocs Aurore Bontemps and Alejandra Martinez-Berdeja, analyzing pine provenance test data for the signature of climate adaptation along elevational and latitudinal gradients. We found evidence that adaptation to climate may be lagging behind current climate change in Ponderosa pine: trees transferred from lower elevations had higher relative growth rates in all planting sites. This work is in revision for Forest Ecology and Management. 2.Experimentally measure the response of germination phenology, flowering time, and seed set of different genotypes to changes in winter precipitation. We continued screenhouse experiments with near-isogenic lines (NILs) of Arabidopsis thaliana segregating different alleles at dormancy and flowering time loci, as well as with S. tortuosus seed families collected across an elevational gradient. We allowed seeds to after-ripen naturally in the screenhouse and measured their germination phenology under a range of simulated onsets of winter precipitation. Genotypes of both species differed in germination phenology in response to the treatments. 3. Experimentally measure evolutionary response of dormancy and flowering time loci to simulated variation in Mediterranean precipitation regimes. In autumn 2014 we established a large "population cage" experiment in the screen house. We created replicate populations with equal frequencies of four NILs representing the 4 possible combinations of early/late flowering and high/low seed dormancy. These replicates were then exposed to a range of experimental precipitation treatments that varied in the onset and duration of winter precipitation as well as the occurrence of midwinter drought. We assessed mortality and growth of these populations and allowed them to disperse seed naturally into seed traps as well as the soil for multiple generations, sampling plants and seeds in each cohort. In late summer 2016, we made our final seed collection and we are now genotyping plants and seeds from each treatment for molecular markers to track changes in frequency of the 4 genotypes over time. Preliminary data indicate that different genotypes are favored by different precipitation regimes. 4. Develop integrated life cycle models. Current postdoc Daniel Runcie, now an assistant professor Plant Sciences faculty, and his lab continue to collaborate with us to develop models. In addition, former postdoc Alexandre Fournier-Level and I published a genomic prediction model that predicts both phenology and adaptive evolution under different scenarios of climate change (Fournier-Level et al. 2016). .
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Under Review
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Mart�nez-Berdeja, A., J. W. Wright, A. Bontemps, and J. Schmitt. Evidence for population differentiation among Jeffrey and Ponderosa pines in survival, growth, and phenology. Forest Ecology and Management, revision requested.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Fournier-Level, A., E.O. Perry, J. Wang, P.T. Braun, A. Migneault, M.D. Cooper, J.E. Metcalf, and J. Schmitt. 2016. Predicting the evolutionary dynamics of seasonal adaptation to novel climates in Arabidopsis thaliana. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 113: E2812E2821.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Burghardt, L., D.E. Runcie, A.M. Wilczek, M.D. Cooper, J. Roe, S.M. Welch, and J. Schmitt. 2016. Fluctuating warm temperatures decrease the effect of a key floral repressor on flowering time in Arabidopsis thaliana. New Phytologist 210: 564-576.
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Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/15
Outputs
Target Audience:1. Academic scientists, including evolutionary ecologists, plant biologists, crop modelers, and global change scientists 2. Conservation managers and foresters Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Five postdocs (including a UC President's Postdoctoral Fellow and a Mexican Conacyt Fellow), one Ph.D student, one "postbac" researcher, and 4 undergraduates received research training on the design of evolutionary ecology experiments, the use of common garden experiments to detect the signature of climate adaptation, and the genetic basis of life history variation in plants. Two of the postdocs started assistant professor positions in July 2015 (Department of Plant Sciences, UCD, and North Dakota State University). How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Open access publications, academic seminars (UCI), presentations at scientific meetings (Ecological Society of America, International Union of Forest Research Organizations Workshop on Genetics of Five Needle Pines), presentations and reports to practitioners (Workshop for managers at USFS: Using Provenance Test Data to Inform Ecological Restoration in the Tahoe Basin; Tahoe National Forest webinar on Climate Change and Assisted Migration; SNPLMA Final Report: Using Provenance Test Data to Inform Ecological Restoration in the Tahoe Basin). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We will collect S. tortuosus seed families from additional populations, (particularly Kings Canyon populations that were inaccessible due to fires last summer), and continue crosses for quantitative genetic studies and common garden experiments in the screenhouse. We are also conducting pilot field studies at Table Mountain (in collaboration with Dr. Jennifer Gremer) to examine the fitness effects of annual vs. perennial life history strategies. We will analyze and publish data from the screenhouse phenology experiments and will continue to monitor the population cage experiment and track changes in genotype frequency under the different experimental precipitation regimes.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
1: Sample genotypes across the California range. In summer 2015 we collected multiple seed families from > 20 Streptanthus tortuosus populations spanning elevational gradients in 4 regions over a latitudinal range: Sequoia/Kings Canyon NP, Yosemite NP, Lake Tahoe region (national forest), and Lassen NP. These seed families were planted in the screen house for phenological and life history measurements, as well as crosses for quantitative genetic studies. In addition, we completed a related project in collaboration with Dr. Jessica Wright (USFS)and postdoc Aurore Bontemps, analyzing pine provenance test data for the signature of climate adaptation along elevational and latitudinal gradients. Climate of origin predicted survival and growth in four different common garden sites, and these effects increased substantially with tree age. 2.Experimentally measure the response of germination phenology, flowering time, and seed set of different genotypes to changes in winter precipitation. We continued screenhouse experiments with near-isogenic lines (NILs) of Arabidopsis thaliana segregating different alleles at dormancy and flowering time loci, as well as with S. tortuosus seed families collected across an elevational gradient. We allowed seeds to after-ripen naturally in the screenhouse and measured their germination phenology under a range of simulated onsets of winter precipitation. Genotypes of both species differed in germination phenology in response to the treatments. Moreover, S. tortuosus displayed an elevational trend in life history; high-elevation populations had a stronger vernalization requirement and did not flower in the screen house during the first year unless transferred to a cold room for additional chilling. However, a low elevation population from Table Mountain exhibited dramatic life history variation which depended upon the timing of germination. Autumn-germinating cohorts flowered in spring, whereas cohorts germinating in winter and early spring did not flower in the screen house, exhibiting a perennial life history (although flowering was induced by vernalization in a cold room). 3. Experimentally measure evolutionary response of dormancy and flowering time loci to simulated variation in Mediterranean precipitation regimes. In autumn 2014 we established a large "population cage" experiment in the screen house. We created replicate populations with equal frequencies of four NILs representing the 4 possible combinations of early/late flowering and high/low seed dormancy. These replicates were then exposed to a range of experimental precipitation treatments which varied in the onset and duration of winter precipitation as well as the occurrence of midwinter drought. We assessed mortality and growth of these populations and allowed them to disperse seed naturally into seed traps as well as the soil. This will allow us to track changes in frequency of the 4 genotypes over time in each population cage, using molecular markers. 4. Develop integrated life cycle models. Postdoc Daniel Runcie continued to develop a mechanistic model of phenology. In July 2015 he joined the Plant Sciences faculty and his lab continues to collaborate with us.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Hamilton, J.A., M. Okada, T.M. Korves, and J. Schmitt. 2015. The role of climate adaptation in colonization success in Arabidopsis thaliana. Molecular Ecology 24: 2253-2263.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Donohue, K., L.T. Burghardt, D. Runcie, K. J. Bradford, and J. Schmitt. 2015. Applying developmental threshold models to evolutionary ecology. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 30:66-77.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Burghardt, L.T., J.E. Metcalf, A.M. Wilczek, J. Schmitt, and K. Donohue. 2015. Predicting the influence of genetic and environmental variation on the plasticity of plant life cycles across landscapes. American Naturalist, 185: 212-227
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Progress 04/16/14 to 09/30/14
Outputs
Target Audience:1. Academic scientists, including evolutionary ecologists, plant biologists, crop modelers, and global change scientists 2. Conservation managers and foresters Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Five postdocs (including a UC President's Postdoctoral Fellow and a Mexican Conacyt Fellow), one Ph.D student, one "postbac" researcher, and 4 undergraduates received research training on the design of evolutionary ecology experiments, the use of common garden experiments to detect the signature of climate adaptation, and the genetic basis of life history variation in plants. Two of the postdocs have just started assistant professor positions (Department of Plant Sciences, UCD, and North Dakota State University). How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Open access publications, academic seminars (UCD, UCB, UCI), presentations at scientific meetings (Evolution 2014 meetings, International Conference on Arabidopsis Research, Baker/Stebbins Invasion Genetics Symposium), presentations to practitioners (Western Seed Physiology Research Group, workshop for managers at USFS: Using Provenance Test Data to Inform Ecological Restoration in the Tahoe Basin What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We will collect S. tortuosus seed families from >30 populations and grow them in the screenhouse to produce seed to initiate common garden experiments. We will analyze and publish data from the screenhouse phenology experiments and will continue to monitor the population cage experiment and track changes in genotype frequency under the different experimental precipitation regimes.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
1. Sample genotypes across the California range. We conducted initial surveys for natural populations of Arabidopsis thaliana and Streptanthus tortuosus, which showed that S. tortuosus was a much better system for this objective. We collected seed from 5 populations along an elevational gradient in summer 2014, and searched online databases and conducted additional field surveys to identify additional populations. We have now identified > 30 new populations and applied for permits for seed collection in late August. These populations span elevational gradients in 4 regions over a latitudinal range: Sequoia/Kings Canyon NP, Yosemite NP, Lake Tahoe region (national forest), and Lassen NP. In addition, we became involved with a related project in collaboration with Dr. Jessica Wright, USFS, analyzing pine provenance test data for the signature of climate adaptation along elevational and latitudinal gradients. 2.Experimentally measure the response of germination phenology, flowering time, and seed set of different genotypes to changes in winter precipitation. We established screenhouse experiments with near-isogenic lines (NILs) of Arabidopsis thaliana segregating different alleles at dormancy and flowering time loci, as well as with S. tortuosus seed families collected across an elevational gradient. We allowed seeds to after-ripen naturally in the screenhouse and measured their germination phenology under a range of simulated onsets of winter precipitation. Genotypes of both species differed in germination phenology in response to the treatments. In addition, we performed a series of repeated plantings to investigate the effect of germination timing on flowering phenology and fitness of A. thaliana. In general, later onset of precipitation resulted in reduced fecundity, but the relative fitness of different genotypes varied dramatically across precipitation treatments. In addition, Presidential Postdoctoral Fellow Joe Hereford performed a related experiment using 6 populations of the summer annual Mollugo verticillata. 3. Experimentally measure evolutionary response of dormancy and flowering time loci to simulated variation in Mediterranean precipitation regimes. In autumn 2014 we established a large "population cage" experiment in the screenhouse. We created replicate populations with equal frequencies of four NILs representing the 4 possible combinations of early/late flowering and high/low seed dormancy. These replicates were then exposed to a range of experimental precipitation treatments which varied in the onset and duration of winter precipitation as well as the occurrence of midwinter drought. We assessed mortality and growth of these populations and allowed them to disperse seed naturally into seed traps as well as the soil. This will allow us to track changes in frequency of the 4 genotypes over time in each population cage, using molecular markers. 4. Develop integrated life cycle models. With colleagues Kathleen Donohue and Liana Burghardt (Duke University) we wrote a paper using an integrated life cycle model to predict life history expression of Arabidopsis thaliana in different climates (Burghardt et al. 2015, American Naturalist). Postdoc Daniel Runcie continued to develop a mechanistic model of phenology.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Wilczek, A.M., M.D. Cooper, T. Korves, J. Schmitt. 2014. Lagging adaptation to warming climate in Arabidopsis thaliana. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111:7906-7914.
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