Evol Ecol Res 8: 553-559 (2006)     Full PDF if your library subscribes.

Inducible plasticity: optimal waiting time for the development of an inducible phenotype

Kinya Nishimura*

Graduate School of Fisheries Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hakodate 041-8611, Japan


e-mail: kinya@fish.hokudai.ac.jp

ABSTRACT

Question: How does an organism that possesses inducible plasticity determine waiting time before the development of a secondary phenotype after changing to the secondary environment, in which the inducible secondary phenotype is suitable?

Model: Maximization of the fitness currency, the survival possibility times the expected amount of remaining energy at terminal time, with respect to waiting time before development of a secondary phenotype.

Key assumptions: If the individual develops the inducible secondary phenotype in the secondary environment, death rate is reduced. The development and maintenance of the inducible phenotype incurs a cost.

Results: The optimal waiting time should be longer under the following conditions: when the inducible phenotype has low effectiveness in improving the survival rate of an organism exposed to the secondary environment; when the cost of development of the secondary phenotype is high; when the time delay required to develop the phenotype is short; or when the total energy that an organism possesses initially is low and fitness will be evaluated far in the future.

Keywords: cost, delay time, inducible defences, inducible plasticity, waiting time.

DOWNLOAD A FREE, FULL PDF COPY
IF you are connected using the IP of a subscribing institution (library, laboratory, etc.)
or through its VPN.

 

        © 2006 Kinya Nishimura. All EER articles are copyrighted by their authors. All authors endorse, permit and license Evolutionary Ecology Ltd. to grant its subscribing institutions/libraries the copying privileges specified below without additional consideration or payment to them or to Evolutionary Ecology, Ltd. These endorsements, in writing, are on file in the office of Evolutionary Ecology, Ltd. Consult authors for permission to use any portion of their work in derivative works, compilations or to distribute their work in any commercial manner.

       Subscribing institutions/libraries may grant individuals the privilege of making a single copy of an EER article for non-commercial educational or non-commercial research purposes. Subscribing institutions/libraries may also use articles for non-commercial educational purposes by making any number of copies for course packs or course reserve collections. Subscribing institutions/libraries may also loan single copies of articles to non-commercial libraries for educational purposes.

       All copies of abstracts and articles must preserve their copyright notice without modification.