EVOLUTIONARY SIGNIFICANCE OF LOCAL GENETIC DIFFERENTIATION IN PLANTS

• Published in: Annual review of ecology and systematics Vol. 27; no. 1; pp. 237 - 277
• Main Authors: Linhart, Yan B, Grant, Michael C
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Palo Alto, CA 94303-0139 Annual Reviews 01.01.1996; 4139 El Camino Way, P.O. Box 10139 Annual Reviews Inc; USA
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; Biological evolution; Ecological genetics; Evolution; evolutionary dynamics; Evolutionary genetics; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gene flow; Genetic variation; Genetics of eukaryotes. Biological and molecular evolution; Herbivores; microdifferentiation; Natural selection; Plant genetics; Plants; Population genetics; seleccion natural; selection; selection naturelle; variacion genetica; variation genetique; Plant; Genetic variability; Review; Biological evolution; Natural selection
• ISSN: 0066-4162; 2330-1902
• DOI: 10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.27.1.237

The study of natural plant populations has provided some of the strongest and most convincing cases of the operation of natural selection currently known, partly because of amenability to reciprocal transplant experiments, common garden work, and long-term in situ manipulation. Genetic differentiation among plant populations over small scales (a few cm to a few hundred cm) has been documented and is reviewed here, in herbaceous annuals and perennials, woody perennials, aquatics, terrestrials, narrow endemics, and widely distributed species. Character differentiation has been documented for most important features of plant structure and function. Examples are known for seed characters, leaf traits, phenology, physiological and biochemical activities, heavy metal tolerance, herbicide resistance, parasite resistance, competitive ability, organellar characters, breeding systems, and life history. Among the forces that have shaped these patterns of differentiation are toxic soils, fertilizers, mowing and grazing, soil moisture, temperature, light intensity, pollinating vectors, parasitism, gene flow, and natural dynamics. The breadth and depth of the evidence reviewed here strongly support the idea that natural selection is the principal force shaping genetic architecture in natural plant populations; that view needs to be more widely appreciated than it is at present.