Connecting the microevolutionary pressures of parasites to the macroevolutionary dynamics of their hosts
Abstract: In this talk I will broadly cover community ecology, disease ecology, and evolutionary biology through my past experimental work with damselflies, current observational work with deer, and planned future work connecting the microevolutionary effects of parasites to the macroevolutionary trends of their hosts. Parasites are ubiquitous and frequently impose strong deleterious fitness effects on host individuals. These effects often manifest at the microevolutionary scale through host assortative mating and local adaptation. At the macroevolutionary scale, parasite-mediated effects can cause population divergence leading to speciation, but also cause extirpation of host populations, leading to extinction. The balance between parasite-mediated effects on both speciation and extinction determines species diversification patterns. Linking the microevolutionary effects to macroevolutionary patterns will provide insight into if parasitism, like other species interactions, shapes the process of diversification.
Speaker: Dr Adam Hasik, University of Edinburgh
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