Evidence for frozen-niche variation in a cosmopolitan parthenogenetic soil mite species (Acari, Oribatida).

ABSTRACT: Parthenogenetic lineages may colonize marginal areas of the range of related sexual species or coexist with sexual species in the same habitat. Frozen-Niche-Variation and General-Purpose-Genotype are two hypotheses suggesting that competition and interclonal selection result in parthenogenetic populations being either genetically diverse or rather homogeneous. The cosmopolitan parthenogenetic oribatid mite Oppiella nova has a broad ecological phenotype and is omnipresent in a variety of habitats. Morphological variation in body size is prominent in this species and suggests adaptation to distinct environmental conditions. We investigated genetic variance and body size of five independent forest - grassland ecotones. Forests and grasslands were inhabited by distinct genetic lineages with tr

SUBMITTER: von Saltzwedel H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4237384 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature