Acquisition of Adaptive Traits via Interspecific Association: Ecological Consequences and Applications

Adaptative traits enable organisms to survive and reproduce. Though these traits are often innate features (ones that may or may not exhibit variability in response to environmental cues or originate from horizontal gene transfer), this is not always the case. Many species endure natural selection not with the traits they possess intrinsically but with exogenous substances and abilities that they acquire from other species, via ecological interactions akin to outsourcing, pillaging, and fraud. Here, I review the mechanisms of this exogenous trait acquisition and highlight some of their repercussions and usefulness for natural resource management, industry, and human health.