Predicting local adaptation in fragmented plant populations: Implications for restoration genetics

Date

2012

Authors

Pickup, Melinda
Field, David L.
Rowell, David M
Young, Andrew

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Wiley-Blackwell

Abstract

Understanding patterns and correlates of local adaptation in heterogeneous landscapes can provide important information in the selection of appropriate seed sources for restoration. We assessed the extent of local adaptation of fitness components in 12 population pairs of the perennial herb Rutidosis leptorrhynchoides (Asteraceae) and examined whether spatial scale (0.7-600 km), environmental distance, quantitative (QST) and neutral (FST) genetic differentiation, and size of the local and foreign populations could predict patterns of adaptive differentiation. Local adaptation varied among populations and fitness components. Including all population pairs, local adaptation was observed for seedling survival, but not for biomass, while foreign genotype advantage was observed for reproduction (number of inflorescences). Among population pairs, local adaptation increased with QST and local population size for biomass. QST was associated with environmental distance, suggesting ecological selection for phenotypic divergence. However, low FST and variation in population structure in small populations demonstrates the interaction of gene flow and drift in constraining local adaptation in R. leptorrhynchoides. Our study indicates that for species in heterogeneous landscapes, collecting seed from large populations from similar environments to candidate sites is likely to provide the most appropriate seed sources for restoration.

Description

Keywords

Keywords: Adaptive differentiation; Environmental heterogeneity; FST; Population size; QST; Rutidosis leptorrhynchoides

Citation

Source

Evolutionary Applications

Type

Journal article

Book Title

Entity type

Access Statement

Open Access

License Rights

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