The impact of climate change on natural selection and evolution

  • Climate change affects natural selection patterns, modifying the evolution of species.
  • Decreasing rainfall and increasing droughts are creating new challenges for organisms to adapt.
  • Species such as tropical reptiles are showing rapid adaptations to temperature changes, suggesting accelerated evolution.

climate change affects natural selection

In our ecosystems, all living beings follow a process called natural selectionThis process is what decides which genes are most beneficial for the survival of living beings and lead to improvements in their adaptation. It is one of the main mechanisms of evolution, proposed by Charles Darwin in the 19th century, who described how those organisms whose characteristics gave them a greater chance of survival tended to reproduce more, and therefore, would perpetuate these beneficial traits.

However, climate change, and its increasingly devastating effects around the world, is introducing new variables that affect this evolutionary process. The change in environmental conditions, such as temperatures and precipitation patterns, influences both the survival and reproduction capacity of species. As a result, we observe a phenomenon in which Climate change can also affect natural selection, altering the evolutionary trajectories of organisms in a process that involves not only genetics, but also interaction with the environment.

What is natural selection?

natural selection in butterflies

To fully understand how climate change can affect the process of natural selection, it is important to remember what natural selection is. Natural selection is the process by which a species adapts to its environment over generations.This process leads to evolutionary change when individuals with more advantageous characteristics (either in terms of survival or reproduction) are more successful than others, and therefore pass these characteristics on to their offspring. In this way, genes that allow for better adaptation survive and spread within the population.

The concept of natural selection is based on the idea that there is a variability genetics between species. This diversity is what allows some individuals to thrive more than others under certain circumstances. This phenomenon has been demonstrated in various genetic studies over time, with paradigmatic examples such as that of the Biston betularia moths, which, after the Industrial Revolution, evolved towards a darker colour to better camouflage themselves in soot-covered trees.

This process of change and adaptation is neither automatic nor rapid, but what we have seen in recent years is that, with climate change driven by human activity, the times and pace of adaptation are changing as well.

Natural selection and climate change

adaptation of moths to their environment

A study published in the magazine Science argues that global changes in this natural selection process are more guided by the rainfall than by temperatures. The study shows that climate change can influence the evolutionary process of species by modifying the rainfall regime at a global level.

Although ecological consequences of climate change are being increasingly documented, the effects on the evolutionary process that guides adaptation are still largely unknown. By analyzing a vast database covering several studies on different populations of animals, plants and other organisms, researchers have studied how variations in climate are affecting natural selection.

Adam Siepielski, a researcher at the University of Arkansas, points out that one of the aspects that has already been identified is the change in drought and precipitation patterns. By altering precipitation levels, dry areas could experience more severe droughts, while wet areas that already receive abundant rainfall could become even more extreme. These changes, in turn, would affect trophic interactions and the availability of resources.

For example, a change in rainfall patterns can affect the food source of various organisms, forcing some species to adapt quickly or face extinction. These changes in climate patterns reveal that natural selection is being shaped by the planet's new climatic reality.

Decreased rainfall and increased droughts

climate change in living beings

The rainfall regime is one of the most critical variables that can affect natural selection. decrease in rainfall and increasing droughts are becoming more common, especially in traditionally arid or semi-arid areas. As droughts increase in duration and frequency, some regions are experiencing a transition to drier and even desert-like climates.

The impact on the species is considerable, since a decrease in water availability directly affects the base of the food chain, such as plants and insects. This in turn impacts on herbivores and the predators that depend on them. For example, in some areas, species that rely on specific vegetation for food may struggle when vegetation cover declines as a result of water stress.

Conversely, some regions may see an increase in rainfall, which also affects organisms that are not adapted to a wetter environment. In both cases, the climate functions as an external agent that imposes new conditions that living beings must cope with. The nature of natural selection means that species capable of adapting to these new conditions will not only survive, but thrive, while others will face population declines and even extinction.

Changes in ecosystems

natural selection is an evolutionary process

The world's ecosystems are undergoing significant transformations due to climate change. The speed at which these changes occur will determine whether affected species have enough time to adapt or whether they will be left behind. In many systems, a change in rainfall pattern directly affects the survival dynamics of organisms. For example, herbivorous species depend on the availability of specific plants, and disruptions in rainfall cycles can mean a significant loss of their food source.

Furthermore, as ecosystems change, so do trophic interactions. Predators that rely on herbivorous species may also be affected, triggering a series of cascading effects within the community. Scientists are observing that some species may see their ranges reduced as new species colonize their territory, creating new dynamics of competition.

Understanding the relationship between climate change and species evolution is crucial to anticipating changes that may occur in ecosystems. Recent studies, such as work with fish in aquatic habitats, have revealed that organisms in these environments are particularly exposed to climate change because they are very directly dependent on water temperature and quality.

Rapid adaptations and accelerated natural selection

Climate change and natural selection

Climate change not only involves slow, gradual changes that species can cope with little by little, but in some cases, the speed of global warming requires rapid adaptationsA study led by Dartmouth University (USA) shows that some species of tropical reptiles, such as brown lizards, have begun to adapt much more quickly than expected to rising temperatures. This accelerated evolution is due to natural selection that occurs in real time, where only those individuals best adapted to the new conditions survive and reproduce.

In this case, it was observed that lizards that could run faster at higher temperatures had a higher survival rate, as they could maintain their activity in harsh environmental conditions, allowing them to eat more and evade predators. This example highlights how some species can evolve rapidly in direct response to environmental changes, something that was not thought possible until recently. This type of research provides hope, but also underlines how complex and uncertain it can be to predict species’ response to climate change.

Conclusions on the impact of climate change on natural selection

Climate change and natural selection

Climate change is altering the process of natural selection in profound and, in many cases, unexpected ways. Whether due to changes in rainfall patterns, prolonged droughts or rising global temperatures, species around the world are being forced to adapt to new realities. While some species appear to have the capacity to respond quickly and effectively, many others may not be able to do so, posing a significant challenge to global biodiversity.

The adaptive capacity of a species may depend on many factors, including its genetic diversity, its ecological niche, and the resources available in its changing environment. However, one thing is clear: climate change is not only altering the climate, it is also transforming the mechanisms of evolution and natural selection that have operated for millions of years.

Understanding the links between climate change, natural selection and evolution is therefore crucial to anticipating how ecosystems might change in the coming decades, and which species will succeed in the future climate-dependent world. Meanwhile, scientific research continues to advance to unravel the complex mechanisms by which nature responds, adapts or, in some cases, perishes in the face of new environmental challenges.

Climate change and natural selection


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