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Naturally clonal vertebrates are an untapped resource in ecology and evolution research

Nature Ecology & Evolution volume 3, pages 161–169 (2019)Cite this article

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Abstract

Science requires replication. The development of many cloned or isogenic model organisms is a testament to this. But researchers are reluctant to use these traditional animal model systems for certain questions in evolution or ecology research, because of concerns over relevance or inbreeding. It has largely been overlooked that there are a substantial number of vertebrate species that reproduce clonally in nature. Here we highlight how use of these naturally evolved, phenotypically complex animals can push the boundaries of traditional experimental design and contribute to answering fundamental questions in the fields of ecology and evolution.

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Fig. 1: Three examples of unisexual vertebrates.
Fig. 2: Modes of unisexual reproduction.

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Acknowledgements

We thank M. Schartl and I. Schlupp for constructive conversations. This work was supported in part by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (Grant LA 3778/1-1 to K.L.L.; grant BI 1828/2-1 to D.B.) and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation (Postdoctoral Fellowship to C.D.).

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  1. Department of Biology & Ecology of Fishes, Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology & Inland Fisheries, Berlin, Germany

    Kate L. Laskowski, Carolina Doran, David Bierbach, Jens Krause & Max Wolf

  2. Faculty of Life Sciences, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Jens Krause

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  1. Kate L. Laskowski
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K.L.L., M.W. and J.K. conceived the idea for the manuscript. K.L.L. wrote the initial draft. All authors substantially contributed to revisions and editing of manuscript.

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Correspondence to Kate L. Laskowski.

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Laskowski, K.L., Doran, C., Bierbach, D. et al. Naturally clonal vertebrates are an untapped resource in ecology and evolution research. Nat Ecol Evol 3, 161–169 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-018-0775-0

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