O father where art thou? Paternity analyses in a natural population of the haploid-diploid seaweed Chondrus crispus.

ABSTRACT: The link between life history traits and mating systems in diploid organisms has been extensively addressed in the literature, whereas the degree of selfing and/or inbreeding in natural populations of haploid-diploid organisms, in which haploid gametophytes alternate with diploid sporophytes, has been rarely measured. Dioecy has often been used as a proxy for the mating system in these organisms. Yet, dioecy does not prevent the fusion of gametes from male and female gametophytes originating from the same sporophyte. This is likely a common occurrence when spores from the same parent are dispersed in clumps and recruit together. This pattern of clumped spore dispersal has been hypothesized to explain significant heterozygote deficiency in the dioecious haploid-diploid seaweed Chondrus cris

SUBMITTER: Krueger-Hadfield SA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4815628 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature