Adaptive Traits of Wild Barley Plants of Mediterranean and Desert Origin

Reciprocal introduction of seeds and seedlings was used to test for local adaptation and to identify a set of co-adapted traits of Mediterranean and desert ecotypes of wild barley Hordeum spontaneum. Evidence for local adaptation was found in seedling introductions into intact environments and from...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Oecologia 2002-10, Vol.133 (2), p.131-138
Main Authors: Volis, Sergei, Mendlinger, Samuel, Ward, David
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal and plant ecology
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Barley
Biological and medical sciences
Demecology
Deserts
Ecological competition
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Germination
Mixed stands
Plant adaptation
Plants
Plants and fungi
Population Ecology
Seedlings
Spikelets
Vegetation
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Reciprocal introduction of seeds and seedlings was used to test for local adaptation and to identify a set of co-adapted traits of Mediterranean and desert ecotypes of wild barley Hordeum spontaneum. Evidence for local adaptation was found in seedling introductions into intact environments and from ecotype colonization success in the first generation after seed dispersal. Estimates of fitness were obtained at particular stages of the life cycle (seed, seedling and adult). Experiments that manipulated the environment (vegetation removal, different plant density) demonstrated the intensity and direction of natural selection in different life history episodes, but there was no strong evidence for local adaptation under these circumstances. The observed genetically determined differences between Mediterranean and desert ecotypes can be summarized as the following: reproductive output was higher in desert plants, with smaller seeds than in Mediterranean plants. There was a higher competitive ability of Mediterranean than desert plants. Plants of desert origin had significant reductions in yield when grown in mixed stands with Mediterranean plants; no such effect was observed for plants of Mediterranean origin. Seed germination and seedling survival was lower in seeds of desert origin. This was due to both: genetically determined higher dormancy of desert seeds and a trade-off between no. of seeds and their size (directly related to seed/seedling vigour).
ISSN:0029-8549
1432-1939
DOI:10.1007/s00442-002-0999-0