Ecological Determinants of Genetic Structure in Plant Populations

Abstract

Plant populations are not randomly arranged assemblages of genotypes but are structured in space and time (2, 29, 49, 58, 84, 112). This structure may be manifested among geographically distinct populations, within a local group of plants, or even in the progeny of individuals. Genetic structure results from the joint action of mutation, migration, selection, and drift, which in tum must operate within the historical and biological context of each plant species. Ecological factors affecting reproduction and dispersal are likely to be particularly important in determining genetic structure (2, 31, 58). Reproduction is the process that translates the current genotypic array into that of subsequent generations, while the dispersal of pollen and seeds determines the postreproductive pattems of gene dispersion within and among populations. Although the concept of genetic structure has been used in various ways (58, 130, 154), we limit our definition to the nonrandom distribution of alleles or genotypes in space or time and disregard genome organization and meiotic processes that can also affect allele and genotype frequencies. Because of the limited mobility of plants, their genetic structure implies spatial structure, or the actual physical distribution of individuals. While spatial pattems often have genetic implications, nonrandom genetic pattems can exist without a nonrandom distribution of individuals. Conversely, a population may have a nonrandom spatial distribution without any accompanying genetic structure. Spatial and genetic patterns are often assumed to result from environmental heterogeneity and differential selection pressures (22, 53, 131, 132). Selection is a ubiquitous feature of natural populations; it alters gene and