High biological species diversity in the arctic flora

The arctic flora is considered to be impoverished, but estimates of species diversity are based on morphological assessments, which may not provide accurate counts of biological species. Here we report on crossing relationships within three diploid circumpolar plant species in the genus Draba (Brass...

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Published inProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS Vol. 103; no. 4; pp. 972 - 975
Main Authors Grundt, H.H, Kjolner, S, Borgen, L, Rieseberg, L.H, Brochmann, C
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States National Academy of Sciences 24.01.2006
National Acad Sciences
Subjects
amplified fragment length polymorphism
Arctic Regions
Biodiversity
Biological Sciences
Biological taxonomies
Brassicaceae
Crosses, Genetic
crossing
cryptic species
Draba
Draba fladnizensis
Draba nivalis
Draba subcapitata
Evolution
Evolution, Molecular
Flowers & plants
Genetic Markers
Genetic Variation
Genetics, Population
Geographic regions
geographical variation
Geography
Hybridity
hybridization
hybrids
intraspecific hybridization
Models, Genetic
Phylogeny
plant fertility
Plant morphology
Plant Physiological Phenomena
Plants
Plants - genetics
Pollen
Polymorphism, Genetic
provenance
Seed set
speciation
Species
Species diversity
Species Specificity
Arctic region
Arctic Regions
Norway
Greenland
USA, Alaska
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Summary:The arctic flora is considered to be impoverished, but estimates of species diversity are based on morphological assessments, which may not provide accurate counts of biological species. Here we report on crossing relationships within three diploid circumpolar plant species in the genus Draba (Brassicaceae). Although 99% of parental individuals were fully fertile, the fertility of intraspecific crosses was surprisingly low. Hybrids from crosses within populations were mostly fertile (63%), but only 8% of the hybrids from crosses within and among geographic regions (Alaska, Greenland, Svalbard, and Norway) were fertile. The frequent occurrence of intraspecific crossing barriers is not accompanied by significant morphological or ecological differentiation, indicating that numerous cryptic biological species have arisen within each taxonomic species despite their recent (Pleistocene) origin.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
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Abbreviation: AFLP, amplified fragment length polymorphism.
Conflict of interest statement: No conflicts declared.
Communicated by Peter R. Crane, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, United Kingdom, November 28, 2005
To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: lriesebe@indiana.edu.
ISSN:0027-8424
1091-6490
DOI:10.1073/pnas.0510270103