---
_id: '3631'
abstract:
- lang: eng
text: In spatially heterogeneous environments, natural selection for maintenance
of adaptation to habitats that contribute little to the population's reproduction
is weak. In this paper we model a mechanism that can result in loss of fitness
in such marginal habitats, and thus lead to specialisation on the main habitat.
It involves accumulation of mutations that are deleterious in the marginal habitat
but neutral or nearly so in the main habitat (mutations deleterious in the main
habitat and neutral in the marginal habitat have a negligible influence). If the
contribution of the marginal habitat to total reproduction in the absence of the
mutations is less than a threshold value, selection is too weak to counter accumulation
of such mutations. A positive feedback then results in loss of fitness in the
marginal habitat. This mechanism does not require antagonistic pleiotropy in adaptation
to different habitats, although antagonistic pleiotropy facilitates the mutational
collapse of fitness in the marginal habitat. We suggest that deleterious mutations
with habitat-specific expression may play a role in the evolution of ecological
specialisation and promote evolutionary conservatism of ecological niches.
article_processing_charge: No
article_type: original
author:
- first_name: Tadeusz
full_name: Kawecki, Tadeusz
last_name: Kawecki
- first_name: Nicholas H
full_name: Barton, Nicholas H
id: 4880FE40-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
last_name: Barton
orcid: 0000-0002-8548-5240
- first_name: James
full_name: Fry, James
last_name: Fry
citation:
ama: Kawecki T, Barton NH, Fry J. Mutational collapse of fitness in marginal habitats
and the evolution of ecological specialisation. Journal of Evolutionary Biology.
1997;10(3):407-430. doi:10.1046/j.1420-9101.1997.10030407.x
apa: Kawecki, T., Barton, N. H., & Fry, J. (1997). Mutational collapse of fitness
in marginal habitats and the evolution of ecological specialisation. Journal
of Evolutionary Biology. Wiley-Blackwell. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1420-9101.1997.10030407.x
chicago: Kawecki, Tadeusz, Nicholas H Barton, and James Fry. “Mutational Collapse
of Fitness in Marginal Habitats and the Evolution of Ecological Specialisation.”
Journal of Evolutionary Biology. Wiley-Blackwell, 1997. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1420-9101.1997.10030407.x.
ieee: T. Kawecki, N. H. Barton, and J. Fry, “Mutational collapse of fitness in marginal
habitats and the evolution of ecological specialisation,” Journal of Evolutionary
Biology, vol. 10, no. 3. Wiley-Blackwell, pp. 407–430, 1997.
ista: Kawecki T, Barton NH, Fry J. 1997. Mutational collapse of fitness in marginal
habitats and the evolution of ecological specialisation. Journal of Evolutionary
Biology. 10(3), 407–430.
mla: Kawecki, Tadeusz, et al. “Mutational Collapse of Fitness in Marginal Habitats
and the Evolution of Ecological Specialisation.” Journal of Evolutionary Biology,
vol. 10, no. 3, Wiley-Blackwell, 1997, pp. 407–30, doi:10.1046/j.1420-9101.1997.10030407.x.
short: T. Kawecki, N.H. Barton, J. Fry, Journal of Evolutionary Biology 10 (1997)
407–430.
date_created: 2018-12-11T12:04:20Z
date_published: 1997-05-01T00:00:00Z
date_updated: 2022-08-19T09:46:51Z
day: '01'
doi: 10.1046/j.1420-9101.1997.10030407.x
extern: '1'
intvolume: ' 10'
issue: '3'
language:
- iso: eng
main_file_link:
- open_access: '1'
url: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1046/j.1420-9101.1997.10030407.x
month: '05'
oa: 1
oa_version: Published Version
page: 407 - 430
publication: Journal of Evolutionary Biology
publication_identifier:
issn:
- 1010-061X
publication_status: published
publisher: Wiley-Blackwell
publist_id: '2752'
quality_controlled: '1'
scopus_import: '1'
status: public
title: Mutational collapse of fitness in marginal habitats and the evolution of ecological
specialisation
type: journal_article
user_id: ea97e931-d5af-11eb-85d4-e6957dddbf17
volume: 10
year: '1997'
...