Evolution can change how an ecosystem collapses, study finds Premium

Scientists have revealed the first experimental evidence that tipping point behaviour can indeed evolve, and evolve quickly.

Dying coral reefs, rainforests transforming into savannas, grasslands turning into deserts – these are ecosystem “tipping points”, boundary lines we’re desperate not to cross.

In dynamic systems filled with life, these critical thresholds aren’t set in stone. Since organisms can evolve, the tipping points within these ecosystems might evolve too.

Most of us think of evolution as a glacial process, too slow to witness in a single lifetime. But evolution, especially in the microbial world, can happen very quickly. Consider antibiotic-resistant bacteria that emerge within years, or the COVID-causing virus evolving new variants in mere months. When the conditions are just right, evolution can go into overdrive — although that’s usually not good for us.

Our latest research, published today in Nature Ecology and Evolution, reveals the first experimental evidence that tipping point behaviour can indeed evolve, and evolve quickly. This raises an exciting prospect: could understanding the evolution of tipping points help us steer ecosystems away from collapse?

Tipping points are critical thresholds where a small change in environmental conditions can lead to a dramatic and often irreversible shift in an ecosystem’s state. But what exactly does this mean?

An ecological community is a network of interacting species – plants, animals and microorganisms – that live in the same area and are interconnected through various relationships like predation, competition and symbiosis.

A healthy ecological community has a balanced mix of species that perform essential roles. They contribute to services like pollination, nutrient cycling, water purification and climate regulation.