Data from: Phenotypic plasticity for sailfin mollies raised at two temperatures and three salinities
Data files
Aug 16, 2024 version files 5.91 KB
Abstract
Phenotypic plasticity, the ability of a single genotype to produce different phenotypes under different environmental conditions, plays a profound role in several areas of evolutionary biology. However, it is unclear how much reaction norms vary among conspecific populations and whether differences in reaction norms represent adaptations to different levels of environmental variation. We present data on the reaction norms of growth and maturation to variation in temperature and salinity in sailfin mollies (Poecilia latipinna) from three populations from South Carolina (SC). This area is the northern edge of the species range and we compare these reaction norms to those previously reported in populations from north Florida (NF), which is the center of the species range. In general, fish from SC displayed less plasticity than fish from NF because they grew faster and matured earlier at the lower temperatures and salinities compared to NF fish. Among fish from both regions, males were much less plastic than females. In both sexes, fish from SC matured at much younger ages than NF fish in the same conditions. While there was no detectable heterogeneity among populations from NF, males from one of the SC populations displayed a strikingly different response in age at maturity to temperature variation than did males from the other two SC populations, maturing earlier at the lower temperature, rather than at the higher one. The pattern in fish from SC is one of countergradient variation, in which they grow faster and mature earlier in conditions that would otherwise slow growth and delay maturity. This pattern is well-matched to the cooler thermal regime and shorter growing season experienced in SC populations, suggesting an adaptive divergence in reaction norms.
README: Data from: Phenotypic plasticity for sailfin mollies raised at two temperatures and three salinities
https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.mw6m90645
The data consist of records of individual fish from three different populations of origin raised in the laboratory. Each line or record describes one fish's history from parturition to maturation. In the experiment we raised fish under all combinations of two temperatures (24 or 29 degrees C) and three salinities (2, 12, or 20 parts per thousand). Each fish was raised individually in a 38 liter aquarium. We drew fish from three natural populations in South Carolina (Goat Island, Boundary, and Yawkey) and recorded where in the laboratory each fish's aquarium was placed (BAY) and its family identity (FAM, denoting progeny of a single female).
Description of the data and file structure
The variables are:
ORIG: Individual population of origin. Entries are 1, 2, or 3, with 1 = Goat Island; 2 = Boundary; 3 = Yawkey. These populations are in coastal South Carolina and precise locations are described in the manuscript.
FAM: Individual half-sib family identity. Each number corresponds to a half-sibship, which is the progeny of one female who likely mated with multiple males. Numbers are identifiers only and do not correspond perfectly to order of birth in the laboratory.
TEMP: Temperature at which the fish was raised in the laboratory. Entries are 1 or 2 with 1 = 24 degrees C; 2 = 29 degrees C
SAL: Salinity in parts per thousand at which the fish was raised in the laboratory. Entries are the actual salinities, 2, 12, or 20 parts per thousand.
BAY: Location in the laboratory in which the fish's aquarium was located. Numbers correspond to a physical location in the laboratory.
SIZE24: Standard length (tip of snout to caudal peduncle) in millimeters on day 24 after birth.
SIZE 31: Standard length (tip of snout to caudal peduncle) in millimeters on day 31 after birth.
SIZEMAT: Standard length (tip of snout to caudal peduncle) in millimeters at completion of maturation
DTM: Number of days from birth to completion of maturation
SEX: Sex of fish. Entries are either 1 or 2 with 1 = male; 2 = female
Several cells are blank. These indicate missing data. The data are missing because the fish died during the course of the experiment.
Methods
These data were collected from the F1 progreny of wild-caught fish raised in the laboratory under one of six combinations of two temperatures and three salinities. This dataset comprises all of the raw data from these rearings.