Changes in the Magnitude of the Individual and Combined Effects of Contaminants, Warming, and Predators on Tropical Cladocerans across 11 Generations.

A massive challenge in ecotoxicology is assessing how the interaction of contaminants, climate change, and biotic stressors shapes the structure and functions of natural populations. Furthermore, it is not known whether contemporary evolutionary responses to multiple stressors across multigenerations may alter the interaction of these stressors. To address these issues, we exposed to lead (Pb, 50 μg/L) under two temperatures (25 and 28 °C) with/without predator cues from climbing perch () for 11 generations (F1-F11). We assessed changes in fitness, including development time, adult size, lifespan, fecundity, and neonate production. We found strong negative effects of Pb, elevated temperature, and predator cues on the fitness of . Strikingly, Pb-induced reduction in the performance of was stronger at 25 °C and in the absence of predator cues. The individual and interactive effects of Pb, temperature, and predator cues on were stronger across F1-F9 and generally leveled off in F10-F11. Our results highlight the high vulnerability of to multiple stressors, thus weakening top-down control on algal blooms in eutrophic lakes. Our study underscores the importance of integrating evolutionary responses in realistic ecotoxicological risk assessments of contaminants interacting with climatic and biotic stressors.