Cell volumes were calculated for 8 species of marine cryptophytes grown under full-spectrum, blue, green, or red light during laboratory-based growth experiments conducted in February of 2018.

Several studies of eye morphology have analyzed macroevolutionary patterns in the diversity of eyes, and though these studies are often linked to environment or behavior, they provide only indirect evidence of selection. Specific data to show the microevolutionary potential for adaptation by natural selection in eye morphology has been lacking. We document directional selection on eye size, an important determinant of visual capabilities, in a wild population of the freshwater microcrustacean Daphnia. We show that even slight changes in eye size may have major consequences for fitness. An increase of eye diameter of 19.9 μm – slightly more than one standard deviation – is associated with an increase in clutch size of one egg, or an increase of nearly 20% of the mean clutch size. Furthermore, relative eye size is genetically variable, and thus could evolve in response to the observed selective pressure. We conclude that selection on incremental variation in eye size may have led to differences observed on broader taxonomic scales.

Genetic correlations among traits alter evolutionary trajectories due to indirect selection. Pleiotropy, chance linkage, and selection can all lead to genetic correlations, but have different consequences for phenotypic evolution. We sought to assess the mechanisms contributing to correlations with size at maturity in the cyclic parthenogen Daphnia pulicaria. We selected on size in each of four populations that differ in the frequency of sex, and evaluated correlated responses in a life table. Size at advanced adulthood, reproductive output, and adult growth rate clearly showed greater responses in high sex populations, with a similar pattern in neonate size and r. This pattern is expected only when trait correlations are favored by selection and the frequency of sex favors the creation and demographic expansion of highly fit clones. Juvenile growth and age at maturity did not diverge consistently. The inter-clutch interval appeared to respond more strongly in low sex populations, but this was not statistically significant. Our data support the hypothesis that correlated selection is the strongest driver of genetic correlations, and suggest that in organisms with both sexual and asexual reproduction, adaptation can be enhanced by recombination.