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Low Levels Of Population Genetic Structure In Pinus Contorta (Pinaceae) Across A Geographic Mosaic Of Co-Evolution, T. L. Parchman, Craig Benkman, B. Jenkins, C. A. Buerkle

Craig Benkman

Premise of the study : Population genetic analyses provide information on the population context in which evolutionary processes operate and are important for understanding the evolution of geographically variable traits. Earlier studies showed that cone structure of lodgepole pine in the Rocky Mountains diverged among populations because of geographic variation in co-evolutionary interactions involving mammalian and avian seed predators. Analyses of population genetic variation are needed to determine whether this divergence has arisen despite extensive gene flow and whether populations to the east and west of the Rocky Mountains have evolved convergent phenotypes independently. Methods : We investigated genetic structuring …