Polymorphism in rapidly-changing cyclic environment

TL;DR

This paper models how populations adapt and maintain polymorphism in rapidly changing cyclic environments using replicator dynamics, revealing that environmental fluctuations can induce stable diversity even with potential fitness costs.

Contribution

It introduces a non-linear fitness model in cyclic environments showing how polymorphism can be stabilized by environmental tracking, extending classical models of genetic diversity.

Findings

Polymorphism can be stabilized by environmental tracking.

Time-averaged fitness may decrease despite stable diversity.

Environmental fluctuations can induce robustness in population diversity.

Abstract

Selection in a time-periodic environment is modeled via the continuous-time two-player replicator dynamics, which for symmetric pay-offs reduces to the Fisher equation of mathematical genetics. For a sufficiently rapid and cyclic [fine-grained] environment, the time-averaged population frequencies are shown to obey a replicator dynamics with a non-linear fitness that is induced by environmental changes. The non-linear terms in the fitness emerge due to populations tracking their time-dependent environment. These terms can induce a stable polymorphism, though they do not spoil the polymorphism that exists already without them. In this sense polymorphic populations are more robust with respect to their time-dependent environments. The overall fitness of the problem is still given by its time-averaged value, but the emergence of polymorphism during genetic selection can be accompanied by decreasing mean fitness of the population. The impact of the uncovered polymorphism scenario on the models of diversity is examplified via the rock-paper-scissors dynamics, and also via the prisoner's dilemma in a time-periodic environment.