Reading light: leaf spectra capture fine-scale diversity of closely related, hybridizing arctic shrubs.

ABSTRACT: Leaf reflectance spectroscopy is emerging as an effective tool for assessing plant diversity and function. However, the ability of leaf spectra to detect fine-scale plant evolutionary diversity in complicated biological scenarios is not well understood. We test if reflectance spectra (400-2400 nm) can distinguish species and detect fine-scale population structure and phylogenetic divergence - estimated from genomic data - in two co-occurring, hybridizing, ecotypically differentiated species of Dryas. We also analyze the correlation among taxonomically diagnostic leaf traits to understand the challenges hybrids pose to classification models based on leaf spectra. Classification models based on leaf spectra identified two species of Dryas with 99.7% overall accuracy and genetic populations w

SUBMITTER: Stasinski L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9297881 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature