Plasticity-Mediated Persistence in New and Changing Environments

Table 3

Ways in which plasticity may facilitate or hamper ecological speciation.

Process of ecological speciation	Plasticity facilitates speciation	Plasticity hinders speciation
Colonizing divergent environments	PMP; (i) Preadapted plasticity; (ii) Cryptic genetic variation	Maladaptive plasticity
Divergent selection on divergent phenotypes in divergent environments	Production of divergent phenotypes; (i) Adaptive plasticity; (ii) Innovation/novelty; (iii) Phenotypic accommodation; Production of genetic variation; (i) Mutations in conditionally expressed genes; (ii) More targets for mutation; Coincident variation: genetic assimilation; (i) Modified phenotype is adaptive; (ii) Plasticity then lost via neutral mutations or selection to reduce costs (modern definition); Correlated variation; (i) Enhance the modified trait; (ii) Improvement of traits “saved” by plasticity; (iii) Novel selection imposed by changes to phenotypic correlations	Migration and postdispersal plasticity erode genetic differentiation; Divergent phenotypes in divergent environments, generated by plasticity, weaken selection in the new environment
Reproductive isolation as a byproduct of selection	Plastic changes isolate populations if; plasticity is irreversible and assortative mating; occurs; Genetic assimilation/correlated variation; leads to isolation (e.g., reduced hybrid; fitness)	Migration and postdispersal plasticity erode genetic differentiation; Plasticity in sexually selected traits removes reproductive barriers (hybrid swarms)