Intraspecific Trait Variation and Phenotypic Plasticity Across Environmental Gradients

While the investigation of species-level traits has revealed broad effects of environmental disturbances on communities and ecosystems, it is vital to recognize that species traits are dynamic across space and time, varying among populations, individuals, and genotypes. Intraspecific Trait Variation (ITV) refers to the range of trait values and syndromes exhibited by individuals within a species, reflecting their capacity to respond to environmental changes and adapt to varying conditions.ITV arises from a combination of genetic adaptation and phenotypic plasticity (the ability of a single genotype to express multiple phenotypes in response to environmental cues). ITV can be classified into three fundamental components: population-level variability, within-individual variability, and between-individual variability. Understanding these layers of variation is critical, as they offer profound understanding into a species' adaptability and persistence across distinct environments, particularly amid ongoing environmental shifts induced by climate change.The Individual-Environment InteractionA central challenge in modern ecology is understanding how individual-level responses scale up to influence broader ecological patterns. The interaction between the individual and its environment is the crucible of ecological dynamics; it is at this interface that niche breadth is determined and competitive outcomes are decided. By focusing on the individual as the fundamental unit of response, we can better understand how environmental gradients, such as resource availability, climate, or disturbance regimes, filter specific phenotypes, thereby shaping community assembly and the stability of ecosystem processes.This Research Topic seeks to integrate studies exploring how intraspecific variation and phenotypic plasticity mediate species coexistence, community assembly, and ecosystem functioning. We aim to highlight research that moves beyond "mean-field" assumptions to examine the mechanistic links between environmental heterogeneity and individual phenotypic expression. We welcome contributions that examine ITV across all taxa and environments (terrestrial, freshwater, and marine), as well as experimental and in-site studies, focusing on the ecological consequences of individual-level responses to environmental gradients.Key areas of interest include:• The individual-environment interaction: How fine-scale environmental heterogeneity drives phenotypic shifts and individual performance.• Coexistence mechanisms and niche dynamics: The role of ITV in niche partitioning, competitive interactions, and species coexistence• Trait-environment matching: Identifying how environmental filters act on individual trait distributions across space and time.• Ecosystem functioning: The impact of individual-level variation on nutrient cycling, productivity, and energy flow.• Environmental gradients and plasticity: Mechanistic studies on how phenotypic plasticity enables individuals to adapt to environmental shifts.• Climate change resilience: Using ITV and plasticity to predict species' adaptability to global shifts.• Methodological advances: New frameworks and statistical tools for integrating individual-level data into community and ecosystem models. Topic editors: Ana Luisa Fares, Lenize Calvão, Alana Patricia, Karoline Chaves, Erlane José Cunha Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/79055/intraspecific-trait-variation-and-phenotypic-plasticity-across-environmental-gradients