Trait variation in response to varying winter temperatures, diversity patterns and signatures of selection along the latitudinal distribution of the widespread grassland plant Arrhenatherum elatius.

ABSTRACT: Across Europe, genetic diversity can be expected to decline toward the North because of stochastic and selective effects which may imply diminished phenotypic variation and less potential for future genetic adaptations to environmental change. Understanding such latitudinal patterns can aid provenance selection for breeding or assisted migration approaches. In an experiment simulating different winter temperatures, we assessed quantitative trait variation, genetic diversity, and differentiation for natural populations of the grass Arrhenatherum elatius originating from a large latitudinal gradient. In general, populations from the North grew smaller and had a lower flowering probability. Toward the North, the absolute plastic response to the different winter conditions as well as he

SUBMITTER: Michalski SG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5415536 | biostudies-literature | 2017 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature