Sympatric speciation in mountain roses (Metrosideros) on an oceanic island.

ABSTRACT: Shifts in flowering time have the potential to act as strong prezygotic reproductive barriers in plants. We investigate the role of flowering time divergence in two species of mountain rose (Metrosideros) endemic to Lord Howe Island, Australia, a minute and isolated island in the Tasman Sea. Metrosideros nervulosa and M. sclerocarpa are sister species and have divergent ecological niches on the island but grow sympatrically for much of their range, and likely speciated in situ on the island. We used flowering time and population genomic analyses of population structure and selection, to investigate their evolution, with a particular focus on the role of flowering time in their speciation. Population structure analyses showed the species are highly differentiated

SUBMITTER: Osborne OG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7423271 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature