To be or not to be a model organism – Daphnia in evolutionary ecology
A closer integration of the fields of ecology and evolution is viewed by many as inevitable to understand, evaluate, and predict the effects of human activities on ecosystems. Experimental research plays a key role in this endeavour. However, much of this experimental research in freshwater ecosystems relies on a well-established model organism: our beloved Daphnia. Undoubtedly, Daphnia provide unique opportunities to study the interactions between ecological and evolutionary dynamics. Join me here in exploring what we have learned from eco-evo experiments with Daphnia and what may be not.
