Opportunities for behavioral rescue under rapid environmental change

Authors

Samuel B. Fey, Reed CollegeFollow
David A. Vasseur, Yale UniversityFollow
Karla Alujević, Stellenbosch UniversityFollow
Kristy J. Kroeker, University of California Santa CruzFollow
Michael L. Logan, University of Nevada, RenoFollow
Mary I. O'Connor, University of British ColumbiaFollow
Volker H.W. Rudolf, Rice UniversityFollow
John DeLong, University of Nebraska - LincolnFollow
Scott Peacor, Michigan State UniversityFollow
Rebecca L. Selden, Rutgers University - New Brunswick/PiscatawayFollow
A Sih, University of California DavisFollow
Susana Clusella‐Trullas, Stellenbosch UniversityFollow

ORCID IDs

Samuel B. Fey https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7471-3308

Kristy J. Kroeker https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5766-1999

Volker H. W. Rudolf https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9214-2000

John P. DeLong https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0558-8213

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

5-31-2019

Citation

Published as: Fey SB, Vasseur DA, Alujević K, et al. Opportunities for behavioral rescue under rapid environmental change. Global Change Biology, Volume 25, Issue 9 (September 2019), pp 3110-3120.

doi:10.1111/gcb.14712

Comments

Copyright © 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Used by permission.

Abstract

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.