Geographic Variation in Festuca rubra L. Ploidy Levels and Systemic Fungal Endophyte Frequencies.

ABSTRACT: Polyploidy and symbiotic Epichloë fungal endophytes are common and heritable characteristics that can facilitate environmental range expansion in grasses. Here we examined geographic patterns of polyploidy and the frequency of fungal endophyte colonized plants in 29 Festuca rubra L. populations from eight geographic sites across latitudes from Spain to northernmost Finland and Greenland. Ploidy seemed to be positively and negatively correlated with latitude and productivity, respectively. However, the correlations were nonlinear; 84% of the plants were hexaploids (2n = 6x = 42), and the positive correlation between ploidy level and latitude is the result of only four populations skewing the data. In the southernmost end of the gradient 86% of the plants were tetraploids (2n = 4x = 28), whe

SUBMITTER: Dirihan S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5112939 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature