Significant patterns of fine-scale spatial genetic structure in a narrow endemic wind-dispersed tree species, Cedrus brevifolia Henry

• Published in: Tree genetics & genomes 2018-02, Vol.14 (1), p.1-15, Article 15
• Main Authors: Eliades, Nicolas-George H., Fady, Bruno, Gailing, Oliver, Leinemann, Ludger, Finkeldey, Reiner
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biotechnology; Cedrus; Coniferous trees; Current distribution; Demographics; Dispersion; Endemic species; Environmental Sciences; Forestry; Genetic structure; Genomes; Global Changes; Habitat fragmentation; Life Sciences; Linkage disequilibrium; Microsatellites; Original Article; Plant Breeding/Biotechnology; Plant Genetics and Genomics; Plant species; Pollen; Population structure; Seed dispersal; Spatial distribution; Species; Tree Biology; Trees; Wind
• ISSN: 1614-2942; 1614-2950
• DOI: 10.1007/s11295-018-1231-7

Cedrus brevifolia is a narrowly distributed conifer species, currently limited to a single mountain in Cyprus, growing in restricted habitats on sites of different densities and sizes. This study assessed the influence of seed and pollen dispersal, as well as the effect of demographic and genetic features on the magnitude of fine-scale spatial genetic structure (SGS). Sampling was performed in 11 plots where 50 neighboring adult trees were sampled from each plot, while biparentally and paternally inherited genomes were used for analysis with microsatellites. Fine-scale SGS was significant but showed contrasting patterns among plots. Although the magnitude of SGS in C. brevifolia mainly results from restricted seed dispersal, short-distance pollen dispersal could also explain fine-scale SGS in some plots, which is rather uncommon in wind-pollinated conifer species. The lack of a general and consistent trend of SGS among plots and between genomes indicates that pollen and seed dispersal varies at plot level. The complex SGS patterns in C. brevifolia may result from the unequal ratio of male and female strobilies of trees within the same plots, at different reproductive periods. Demographic features such as habitat fragmentation did not influence the magnitude of SGS in C. brevifolia , whereas low tree aggregation reduced it. Further, the significant correlation observed between linkage disequilibrium ( LD ) and plots with significant SGS supports the assumption that under specific conditions, LD is likely to be caused by the magnitude of SGS.