Quercus species divergence is driven by natural selection on evolutionarily less integrated traits.

ABSTRACT: Functional traits are organismal attributes that can respond to environmental cues, thereby providing important ecological functions. In addition, an organism's potential for adaptation is defined by the patterns of covariation among groups of functionally related traits. Whether an organism is evolutionarily constrained or has the potential for adaptation is based on the phenotypic integration or modularity of these traits. Here, we revisited leaf morphology in two European sympatric white oaks (Quercus petraea (Matt.) Liebl. and Quercus robur L.), sampling 2098 individuals, across much of their geographical distribution ranges. At the phenotypic level, leaf morphology traditionally encompasses discriminant attributes among different oak species. Here, we estimated in situ heritability, g

SUBMITTER: Klapste J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8027598 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature