Life Sciences Commons^™

The Ecology And Evolution Of Species Rarity In Oaks (Quercus Spp.), Yingtong Wu

Dissertations

Rare species are susceptible to extinction due to ecological and genetic factors. Understanding the distribution, ecology, and evolution of rare species can provide useful information for effective conservation. To investigate species rarity, this dissertation focuses on a species-rich and ecologically diverse genus, Quercus (oaks). In Chapter 1, I aimed to understand how interactions between hosts and soil microbes contribute to habitat restriction in oak species. I performed a soil inoculum experiment on two pairs of sister oak species that show habitat divergence. I found that host-specific soil microbes contribute to habitat divergence and exclusion among sister species of oaks, but …