Variation in the genetic architecture of ecologically relevant traits along elevational gradients Abstract. Species are confined within spatial boundaries, which may be determined by various factors. An understudied one is the genetic non-independence o

So happy to see the 2nd chapter of my PhD out! doi.org/10.1093/evol...

Here, we studied populations sampled from their local elevational edges and centers on mountain slopes, and characterised the variation in G-matrices (comprised of growth and leaf investment traits) among these populations. 1/5

new framework for stochastic eco-evo dynamics of multivariate traits now published at jtb 1 new result on response of G matrices to drift , questioning classical wisdom 2 new tools to make measure-valued processes accessible 3 synthesis of classic multvr quant gen ! enjoi :3

doi.org/10.1016/j.jt...

The plants I worked on came from the beautiful Swiss Alps, and here are some of the views I had when I was out sampling :)

This paper would not have been possible without the help of all the assistants and colleagues! I also enjoyed (and am grateful to) the peer review process at Evolution – their feedback along the way improved the presentation and clarity of the paper. 5/5

Finally 3) we saw that G-matrices were aligned with population divergence; the genetic integration likely restricts divergence along certain trait dimensions and reduces evolvability, which may hinder or limit the evolution of species' ranges. 4/5

Trait divergence and trade-offs among Brassicaceae species differing in elevational distribution Abstract. Species have restricted geographic distributions and the causes are still largely unknown. Temperature has long been associated with distribution

Some of this trait integration was reflected in "trade-off" relationships among traits representing growth rate and size, which incidentally show a macroevolutionary trade-off in Brassicaceae (doi.org/10.1111/evo....). 3/5

Our main takeaways from this paper are that 1) lower edge populations have reduced genetic variations in the low-elevation montane species 2) evolvabilities are small and similar across populations, a result of substantial genetic integration among traits (i.e. "cigar" shaped G-matrices). 2/5

Variation in the genetic architecture of ecologically relevant traits along elevational gradients Abstract. Species are confined within spatial boundaries, which may be determined by various factors. An understudied one is the genetic non-independence o

So happy to see the 2nd chapter of my PhD out! doi.org/10.1093/evol...

Here, we studied populations sampled from their local elevational edges and centers on mountain slopes, and characterised the variation in G-matrices (comprised of growth and leaf investment traits) among these populations. 1/5

Digest: Drift and environmental fluctuations reveal fitness variance under balancing selection Abstract. Why natural populations harbor high additive genetic variance for fitness remains an evolutionary puzzle. Connallon and Czuppon (2026) show that

New Evolution Digest out! 🎉

Does balancing selection maintain fitness variance? Yes, when drift and environmental fluctuations are in play!

I discuss why this matters for plant adaptation to climate change. 🌱🌡️

doi.org/10.1093/evol...

@sse-evolution.bsky.social
@journal-evo.bsky.social

Whoa—machine learning strikes again (in a good way)

www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

What happens *after* enemy release? In a new paper, we present 7 years of infection & immune trait dynamics in 16 lake populations of stickleback.
www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/...
This is definitely the longest-scale study I've done in my career, I'm very excited to see it out.
1/6

🌺 PhD position in Theoretical Evolutionary Biology! 🌺

There is about two weeks left to apply to come work with me on the evolution of plant reproductive strategies at @unifr.bsky.social ! Contact me or visit here or for more info: tinyurl.com/monoecy

Please share! 🌱

Lizard head on the journal cover

Our work as Editor's choice in @evolletters.bsky.social !✨️

Developmental biases & micro- to macroevution in the lizard skull 🦎
academic.oup.com/evlett/advan...

We just published a review 🗞️😁:

‘The ecology of adaptive radiation’ revisited: A 25-year reflection

Dolph Schluter’s book inspired the interest in adaptive radiation, and we wanted to revisit it.

academic.oup.com/evolinnean/a...

1/5 🧵

Our new experimental evolution study across 30+ locations using the plant Arabidopsis thaliana —— we direct "see" adaptation and extinction to different climates at the genetic as it happens!

Read it in Science
dx.doi.org/10.1126/scie...

@ucberkeleyofficial.bsky.social
@hhmi-science.bsky.social

Higher carbon storage in primary than secondary boreal forests in Sweden Boreal forests provide considerable global land carbon storage and uptake, but they are being rapidly transformed to managed secondary forests, with poorly quantified implications for ecosystem carbon...

Very interesting study challenging previous estimates of the magnitude of C storage difference between boreal primary forests and managed secondary forests in Europe.

View of the old city of Fribourg from the "Pont du Milieu". © Ville de Fribourg

🚨 PhD position available ! 🚨

I am hiring a PhD student to work with me on the evolution of plant sexual systems 🌺 at @unifrbiology.bsky.social ! The position is funded for 4 years by @snsf.ch as part of my Ambizione fellowship. More info here: tinyurl.com/monoecy

🌱 Please RP and share widely ! 🌱

Really exciting!

The American Naturalist classic cover

Evolution is faster with stronger selection, but this may come with a demographic cost. Xu & Osmond characterized conditions when the chance of evolutionary rescue increases with the strength of selection across different scenarios.

Read now ahead of print!
www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/...

Rapid evolution predicts demographic recovery after extreme drought Populations that are declining as a result of climate change may need to evolve to persist. Although evolutionary rescue has been demonstrated in theory and in the laboratory, its relevance to natural...

Big congrats to former Lowry Lab postdoc Daniel Anstett, who's paper: "Rapid evolution predicts demographic recovery after extreme drought" is out in Science today. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

David Marques was an amazing speciation genomics researcher, a passionate birder, and a wonderful friend, husband, and father. May he rest in peace. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Postdoctoral position in Forest Genetics at @uni-freiburg.de with a focus on local adaptation and/or stress reaction of trees. The position combines research and teaching (4 SWS), and offers the opportunity to develop an independent research profile (4+ years).

How does the strength of genetic drift evolve over long times?

New preprint out 👇

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Asymmetric gene flow maintains range edges in a marine invertebrate | The American Naturalist: Vol 0, No ja

Three years since I collected the first amphipod for this paper and it is finally published! Feels like the end of an era.

We show that biased dispersal towards the range center maintains distinct edges in a beach amphipod.

www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/...

Eawag 2-year postdoc fellowship in Switzerland. Funding for Independent projects hosted in one of the research departments… come join us in Switzerland 🇨🇭! apply.refline.ch/673277/1335/...

'Modeling evolutionary rescue' doi.org/10.32942/X25...

Schematic representation of fitness landscapes. (A) Orange lines show maximum (dashed) and average (dotted) fitness of a population on a narrower peak (yellow circles), blue lines show the same for a wider peak (blue circles). (B) Trajectory of a population in a periodically changing environment with respect to a given fitness landscape (solid arrow) and with respect to an unseen other fitness landscape (dashed arrow). (C) Hypothetical “trapping” of the population in variable environments.

One of the most-viewed PNAS articles in the last week is “The variability of evolvability: Properties of dynamic fitness landscapes determine how phenotypic variability evolves.” Explore now: https://ow.ly/XouU50XWiiV

For more trending articles, visit https://ow.ly/AiXL50XWi81

This story is absolutely wild. Did you know that avocados change sex over the course of a day? And that it's controlled by a single ancient balanced polymorphism? This is flat our crazy

Empseb is simply the best. If you're a PhD student of evolutionary biology, do go there!

Photo of a large number of scarlet monkeyflower plants growing in southern California (photo by MC Moazed).

Excited to share the first two publications from our PERSIST (Predicting Evolutionary Rescue of a Species in Space and Time) project. Thanks to NSF-DEB for supporting this work! (1/3)