Integrating genomics and telomere dynamics to understand climate adaptation in a migratory songbird

Abstract

Declines in avian species have become widespread due to numerous threats, including anthropogenic climate change. Migratory birds, which occupy multiple environments throughout their annual cycle, are particularly vulnerable. Understanding and predicting the response of migratory bird species to climate change is critical for targeted conservation efforts and the mitigation of further declines. A key factor in species resilience lies in their ability to genetically adapt to changing environments. Recent advances in conservation genomics have improved our ability to detect local adaptation and predict maladaptation to climate change in non-model species. In my dissertation, I test the overall hypothesis that integrating telomere dynamics and conservation genomics will allow for the identification and validation of fitness-related traits in studies of local adaptation. With this hypothesis, I aim to uncover potential mechanisms of local adaptation and assess the impacts of climate change on the yellow warbler (Setophaga petechia). In my first chapter, I link genetic, phenotypic, and environmental data with telomere length measurements to enhance our understanding of local adaptation and the effects of climate change in this species. In the second chapter, I combine models of genomic offsets with telomere data to validate the prediction that yellow warblers inhabiting regions with high genomic offset experience elevated physiological stress due to climate change. Finally, in my third chapter, I investigate local adaptation to the non-breeding grounds and test whether climate tracking reflects local adaptation across the annual cycle in this migratory species. Taken together, my doctoral research highlights the importance of understanding local adaptation to inform population responses to the changing climate. Importantly, this work represents the first demonstration of how integrating methodologies from modern genomics and assessment of biological measures of stress like telomeres can advance our knowledge of wild species' responses to environmental change and enhance conservation efforts.