Editing Maternal effect (section)

===Phenotypic plasticity===

When analyzing the types of changes that can occur to a phenotype, we can see changes that are behavioral, morphological, or physiological. A characteristic of the phenotype that arises through adaptive maternal effects, is the plasticity of this phenotype. [[Phenotypic plasticity]] allows organisms to adjust their phenotype to various environments, thereby enhancing their fitness to changing environmental conditions.<ref name=Galloway/> Ultimately it is a key attribute to an organism's, and a population's, ability to adapt to short term environmental change.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Nussey DH, Wilson AJ, Brommer JE |title=The evolutionary ecology of individual phenotypic plasticity in wild populations |journal=Journal of Evolutionary Biology |volume=20 |issue=3 |pages=831–44 |year=2007 |pmid=17465894 |doi=10.1111/j.1420-9101.2007.01300.x |s2cid=18056412 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Garland T, Kelly SA |title=Phenotypic plasticity and experimental evolution |journal=The Journal of Experimental Biology |volume=209 |issue=Pt 12 |pages=2344–61 |year=2006 |pmid=16731811 |doi=10.1242/jeb.02244 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2006JExpB.209.2344G }}</ref>

Phenotypic plasticity can be seen in many organisms, one species that exemplifies this concept is the seed beetle ''Stator limbatus''. This seed beetle reproduces on different host plants, two of the more common ones being ''Cercidium floridum'' and ''Acacia greggii''. When ''C. floridum'' is the host plant, there is selection for a large egg size; when ''A. greggii'' is the host plant, there is a selection for a smaller egg size. In an experiment it was seen that when a beetle who usually laid eggs on ''A. greggii'' was put onto ''C. floridum'', the survivorship of the laid eggs was lower compared to those eggs produced by a beetle that was conditioned and remained on the ''C. florium'' host plant. Ultimately these experiments showed the plasticity of egg size production in the beetle, as well as the influence of the maternal environment on the survivorship of the offspring.<ref name=seedbeetle/>