Biologists Antoine Perrier (left) and Laura Galloway (right) study plant populations at the warm edges of species’ ranges, gaining new insight into how evolution shapes responses to climate change. Credit: Evan Kutsko, University of Virginia When scientists think about how plants will respond to climate change, they often look north. As temperatures rise, many species are expected to shift their ranges toward cooler regions with a loss of populations in warmer habitats. But new research from the University of Virginia, published in the journal Evolution Letters , suggests the story may be more complicated and more hopeful. The University of Virginia's Commonwealth Professor of Biology Laura Galloway and postdoctoral research associate Antoine Perrier are studying what they call "rear-edge" populations, those found at the warmest edges of their geographic ranges. These populations, often descended from groups that survived the last ice age, have endured thousands of years of climate change.…