Laboratory measurements of physiological and demographic tolerances are important in understanding the impact of climate change on species diversity; however, it has been recognized that forecasts based solely on these laboratory estimates overestimate risk by omitting the capacity for species to utilize microclimatic variation via behavioral adjustments in activity patterns or habitat choice. The complex, and often context-dependent nature, of microclimate utilization has been an impediment to the advancement of general predictive models. Here, we overcome this impediment and estimate the potential impact of warming on the fitness of ectotherms using a benefit/cost trade-off derived from the simple and broadly documented thermal performance curve and a generalized cost function. Our framework reveals that, for certain environments, the cost of behavioral thermoregulation can be reduced as warming occurs, enabling behavioral buffering (e.g., the capacity for behavior to ameliorate detrimental impacts) and "behavioral rescue" from extinction in extreme cases. By applying our framework to operative temperature and physiological data collected at an extremely fine spatial scale in an African lizard, we show that new behavioral opportunities may emerge. Finally, we explore large-scale geographic differences in the impact of behavior on climate-impact projections using a global dataset of 38 insect species. These multiple lines of inference indicate that understanding the existing relationship between thermal characteristics (e.g., spatial configuration, spatial heterogeneity, and modal temperature) is essential for improving estimates of extinction risk.
1.Reed Coll, Dept Biol, Portland, OR 97202 USA 2.Yale Univ, Dept Ecol & Evolutionary Biol, New Haven, CT USA 3.Stellenbosch Univ, Dept Bot & Zool, Stellenbosch, South Africa 4.Stellenbosch Univ, Ctr Invas Biol, Stellenbosch, South Africa 5.Univ Calif Santa Cruz, Dept Ecol & Evolutionary Biol, Santa Cruz, CA 95064 USA 6.Univ Nevada, Dept Biol, Reno, NV 89557 USA 7.Smithsonian Trop Res Inst, Panama City, Panama 8.Univ British Columbia, Dept Zool, Vancouver, BC, Canada 9.Univ British Columbia, Biodivers Res Ctr, Vancouver, BC, Canada 10.Rice Univ, BioSci, Houston, TX USA 11.Univ Nebraska, Sch Biol Sci, Lincoln, NE USA 12.Michigan State Univ, Dept Fisheries & Wildlife, E Lansing, MI 48824 USA 13.Rutgers State Univ, Dept Ecol Evolut & Nat Resources, New Brunswick, NJ USA 14.Univ Calif Davis, Dept Environm Sci & Policy, Davis, CA 95616 USA
Recommended Citation:
Fey, Samuel B.,Vasseur, David A.,Alujevic, Karla,et al. Opportunities for behavioral rescue under rapid environmental change[J]. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY,2019-01-01,25(9):3110-3120