A Community-Based Framework Integrates Interspecific Interactions into Forest Genetic Conservation
Author:
Wang Xi12, Xiao Yu12, Lv Yan-Wen12, He Zi-Han12, Yeh Francis C.3, Hu Xin-Sheng12ORCID
Affiliation:
1. College of Forestry and Landscape Architecture, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China 2. Guangdong Key Laboratory for Innovative Development and Utilization of Forest Plant Germplasm, Guangzhou 510642, China 3. Department of Renewable Resources, University of Alberta, 751 General Service Building, Edmonton, AB T6G 2H1, Canada
Abstract
Forest genetic conservation is typically species-specific and does not integrate interspecific interaction and community structure. It mainly focuses on the theories of population and quantitative genetics. This approach depicts the intraspecific patterns of population genetic structure derived from genetic markers and the genetic differentiation of adaptive quantitative traits in provenance trials. However, it neglects possible interspecific interaction in natural forests and overlooks natural hybridization or subspeciation. We propose that the genetic diversity of a given species in a forest community is shaped by both intraspecific population and interspecific community evolutionary processes, and expand the traditional forest genetic conservation concept under the community ecology framework. We show that a community-specific phylogeny derived from molecular markers would allow us to explore the genetic mechanisms of a tree species interacting with other resident species. It would also facilitate the exploration of a species’ ecological role in forest community assembly and the taxonomic relationship of the species with other species specific to its resident forest community. Phylogenetic β-diversity would assess the similarities and differences of a tree species across communities regarding ecological function, the strength of selection pressure, and the nature and extent of its interaction with other species. Our forest genetic conservation proposal that integrates intraspecific population and interspecific community genetic variations is suitable for conserving a taxonomic species complex and maintaining its evolutionary potential in natural forests. This provides complementary information to conventional population and quantitative genetics-based conservation strategies.
Funder
Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation National Natural Science Foundation of China South China Agricultural University
Subject
Plant Science,Ecology,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
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