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Evolutionary Processes Shaping Postglacial Gene Pools of High-Altitude Forests: Evidence from the Endemic Eucalypts of Tasmania

Forests, ISSN: 1999-4907, Vol: 14, Issue: 6
2023
  • 1
    Citations
  • 0
    Usage
  • 2
    Captures
  • 2
    Mentions
  • 0
    Social Media
Metric Options:   Counts1 Year3 Year

Metrics Details

  • Citations
    1
    • Policy Citations
      1
      • Policy Citation
        1
  • Captures
    2
  • Mentions
    2
    • Blog Mentions
      1
      • Blog
        1
    • News Mentions
      1
      • News
        1

Most Recent News

New Study Findings from University of Tasmania Illuminate Research in Climate Change (Evolutionary Processes Shaping Postglacial Gene Pools of High-Altitude Forests: Evidence from the Endemic Eucalypts of Tasmania)

2023 JUL 10 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at NewsRx Life Science Daily -- Fresh data on climate change are presented in

Article Description

Climatic changes during the Pleistocene were responsible for dramatic redistributions of plant species worldwide. On the rugged southern hemisphere island of Tasmania, temperature increases following the last glaciation saw upslope migration of climatically suitable species from lowland refugia and the expansion of eucalypt-dominated forests and woodlands in the Central Highlands. We integrate multiple lines of evidence (chloroplast and nuclear DNA markers, seedling morphology, and survival in common garden experiments) from a group of closely related endemic eucalypts (the alpine white gums) to argue that (i) the Central Highlands of the island were colonised by multiple glacial refugia with hybridisation among species and previously separated populations, and (ii) natural selection has filtered the admixed populations, resulting in local adaptation to the harsh sub-alpine environment. Chloroplast haplotype diversity decreased and nuclear microsatellite diversity increased with altitude, chloroplast sharing among taxa was common, and nuclear DNA differentiation of morphologically distinct taxa was lower in the Central Highlands compared with lowland regions. Local adaptation in the highlands was signalled by evidence from (i) a glasshouse trial in which directional selection (Q > F) had shaped seedling morphological trait variation and (ii) population survival differences in 35-year-old reciprocal plantings along the major environmental gradients. We conclude that the evolutionary response of these island endemic trees to past climate change has involved the interplay of both hybridisation and natural selection, highlighting the importance of maintaining species interactions under future climate change.

Bibliographic Details

Rebecca C. Jones; Peter A. Harrison; Corey J. Hudson; Cate A. Hirst; Alexander T. Matthews; Romuald Rouger; Sascha L. Wise; Julianne M. O’Reilly-Wapstra; Robert J. E. Wiltshire; Gregory J. Jordan; René E. Vaillancourt; Brad M. Potts

MDPI AG

Agricultural and Biological Sciences

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