Is phenotypic plasticity evolution

Phenotypic plasticity and experimental evolution j exp biol.We are familiar with phenotypic plasticity from human populations.Assessing the impacts of phenotypic plasticity on evolution.However, little is known about how.Scheiner summarizes the three main models:The average human alive today is taller than the average human alive 100 years ago — but this change is not the result of evolution.

Understanding how and why this phenomenon exists is crucial because it unites all levels of biological inquiry.We have moved from variation for plasticity being considered as a nuisance in evolutionary studies to it being the primary target of investigations that use an array of methods, including quantitative and molecular genetics, as well as of several approaches that model the evolution of plastic responses.To achieve a coherent evolutionary theory, it is necessary to account for the effects of the environment on the process of development.In this view, phenotypic plasticity might be of huge ecological importance but is a trait as any other trait as regards evolution.This book chapter should be the first piece read by anyone interested in phenotypic plasticity.E.g., continuous reaction norms versus.