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Research in the Rudman lab centers on using evolutionary genetics to better understand the fate of populations inhabiting changing environments. Much of our work focuses on the repeatability and predictability of adaptation. We combine field experiments, field collections, and analyses of genomic data to understand the factors that shape evolution and also examine rapid evolution influences populations and communities. We work primarily in organisms that are amenable to experimentation – flies, plankton, and small fish – but we always looking for new systems where interesting questions at the intersection of evolution, genetics, and ecology can be answered.
Observing adaptation in real time
We have field experiments and collections focused on understanding the process of adaptation as it occurs in natural populations. This work centers on using population-level replication to observe the action of natural selection on both phenotypic and genomic evolution. Prior work in this area includes manipulations of key factors thought to drive evolution – like the presence of competitive species. Ongoing work primarily focuses on determining how aspects of the genetic diversity influence evolutionary trajectories and establishing an additional taxonomic system to test for generalities in adaptive tracking.
Key paper: Rudman et al. (2022), Science
Evolution and host microbiome interactions
Microbiomes profoundly impact host biology. This has led to considerable excitement about the role that microbiomes may play in host evolution, including the possibilities of 'microbiome rescue' and microbiomes contributing to additive genetic variance. Our prior work has focused on determining whether and how microbiomes act as an agent of selection on host populations. Our current work examines how microbiomes evolve and whether and how that evolution contributes to host evolution in response to environmental stress.
Key paper: Rudman et al. (2019), PNAS
Evolutionary rescue and the 'ecology of doom'
Evolutionary rescue is a particularly interesting sub-case of rapid adaptation whereby adaptation flips population growth rates from negative to positive, prevent extinction. As part of our work on adaptive tracking, we are studying how rapid adaptation influences population dynamics and the probability of evolutionary rescue.
Empirical investigations of eco-evolutionary dynamics
There is widespread appreciation that evolution occurs rapidly, including on the same timescale as many ecological processes. Yet, empirical data that help us to understanding the underlying mechanisms, overall importance, and predictability of reciprocal interactions between ecological and evolutionary processes (eco-evolutionary feedbacks) is still fairly limited. Several projects in the lab are focused on studying eco-evolutionary feedbacks to improve our understanding.
Key papers: Rudman et al. (2019), Nature Ecology & Evolution; Rudman and Schluter (2016), Current Biology
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