Rapid evolution of body size in response to consistent natural selection in a wild lizard

Clicks: 15
ID: 329753
2026
Free PDF
Article Quality & Performance Metrics
Overall Quality
Not rated
Combines reader engagement with the AI quality analysis. This article has not been analysed, so there is no overall score — reader engagement is measured and shown alongside.
AI Quality Assessment
Not analyzed
Readership in this journal
Emerging

Ranked #256 of 292 articles by views in international journal of systematic and evolutionary microbiology

Most read Least read

Bar heights use a square-root scale. Only the 120 most-read articles are drawn; the journal has 292 in total.

Mint this article as an NFT
Not yet minted

Create a permanent, verifiable on-chain record of this article on the Scimatic Network. The NFT is held in your Journament account, and you can withdraw it to your own wallet at any time.

5 SUSD one-off · no wallet required
Sign in to mint
Abstract
Although directional selection and additive genetic variance are frequently detected in wild populations, evolutionary responses are often weak or absent, giving rise to a "paradox of stasis." To explore the relationship between selection and evolution, we used a pedigreed wild population of lizards (Anolis sagrei) to quantify natural selection, estimate additive genetic (co)variances, and track phenotypic and genetic change in adult body size while addressing several factors that could lead to evolutionary stasis. Selection via adult reproductive success consistently favored larger body size in both sexes and was stronger in males. Body size was heritable and genetically correlated with adult reproductive success in both sexes, indicating that selection acted on underlying additive genetic variance. Across five annual cohorts, mean phenotypic values and breeding values for body size increased in both sexes, exceeding expectations under genetic drift. This rapid evolutionary response was not obscured by several processes commonly invoked to explain stasis. For example, accounting for phenotypic skew strengthened expected responses, and prior viability selection on juveniles did not phenotypically or genetically oppose selection on adult body size. Our results show that rapid evolutionary change is detectable in the wild when directional selection is consistent, acts on additive genetic variance, and is not genetically opposed by early-life viability selection.
Reference Key
openalex_W7214322963 Use this key to autocite in the manuscript while using SciMatic Manuscript Manager or Thesis Manager
Authors Tyler N. Wittman, Rachana S. Bhave, Ariel F. Kahrl, Aaron M. Reedy, Heidi A. Seears, Daniel A. Warner, Robert M. Cox
Are you one of these authors? Claim your profile
Journal international journal of systematic and evolutionary microbiology
Year 2026
DOI
10.1093/evolut/qpag174
URL
https://doi.org/10.1093/evolut/qpag174
Keywords Keywords not found

Citations

No citations found. To add a citation, contact the admin at info@scimatic.org

Comments

No comments yet. Be the first to comment on this article.