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Recruitment and migration patterns reveal a key role for seed banks in the meta-population dynamics of an aquatic plant

Tomowski, Maxi ; Lozada-Gobilard, Sissi LU ; Jeltsch, Florian and Tiedemann, Ralph (2023) In Scientific Reports 13.
Abstract

Progressive habitat fragmentation threatens plant species with narrow habitat requirements. While local environmental conditions define population growth rates and recruitment success at the patch level, dispersal is critical for population viability at the landscape scale. Identifying the dynamics of plant meta-populations is often confounded by the uncertainty about soil-stored population compartments. We combined a landscape-scale assessment of an amphibious plant’s population structure with measurements of dispersal complexity in time to track dispersal and putative shifts in functional connectivity. Using 13 microsatellite markers, we analyzed the genetic structure of extant Oenanthe aquatica populations and their soil seed banks... (More)

Progressive habitat fragmentation threatens plant species with narrow habitat requirements. While local environmental conditions define population growth rates and recruitment success at the patch level, dispersal is critical for population viability at the landscape scale. Identifying the dynamics of plant meta-populations is often confounded by the uncertainty about soil-stored population compartments. We combined a landscape-scale assessment of an amphibious plant’s population structure with measurements of dispersal complexity in time to track dispersal and putative shifts in functional connectivity. Using 13 microsatellite markers, we analyzed the genetic structure of extant Oenanthe aquatica populations and their soil seed banks in a kettle hole system to uncover hidden connectivity among populations in time and space. Considerable spatial genetic structure and isolation-by-distance suggest limited gene flow between sites. Spatial isolation and patch size showed minor effects on genetic diversity. Genetic similarity found among extant populations and their seed banks suggests increased local recruitment, despite some evidence of migration and recent colonization. Results indicate stepping-stone dispersal across adjacent populations. Among permanent and ephemeral demes the resulting meta-population demography could be determined by source-sink dynamics. Overall, these spatiotemporal connectivity patterns support mainland-island dynamics in our system, highlighting the importance of persistent seed banks as enduring sources of genetic diversity.

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organization
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type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Scientific Reports
volume
13
article number
11269
publisher
Nature Publishing Group
external identifiers
  • pmid:37438408
  • scopus:85164541479
ISSN
2045-2322
DOI
10.1038/s41598-023-37974-5
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
0a7429dd-37d1-407a-8455-f87138c9ce36
date added to LUP
2023-08-25 14:08:26
date last changed
2024-04-20 01:50:58
@article{0a7429dd-37d1-407a-8455-f87138c9ce36,
  abstract     = {{<p>Progressive habitat fragmentation threatens plant species with narrow habitat requirements. While local environmental conditions define population growth rates and recruitment success at the patch level, dispersal is critical for population viability at the landscape scale. Identifying the dynamics of plant meta-populations is often confounded by the uncertainty about soil-stored population compartments. We combined a landscape-scale assessment of an amphibious plant’s population structure with measurements of dispersal complexity in time to track dispersal and putative shifts in functional connectivity. Using 13 microsatellite markers, we analyzed the genetic structure of extant Oenanthe aquatica populations and their soil seed banks in a kettle hole system to uncover hidden connectivity among populations in time and space. Considerable spatial genetic structure and isolation-by-distance suggest limited gene flow between sites. Spatial isolation and patch size showed minor effects on genetic diversity. Genetic similarity found among extant populations and their seed banks suggests increased local recruitment, despite some evidence of migration and recent colonization. Results indicate stepping-stone dispersal across adjacent populations. Among permanent and ephemeral demes the resulting meta-population demography could be determined by source-sink dynamics. Overall, these spatiotemporal connectivity patterns support mainland-island dynamics in our system, highlighting the importance of persistent seed banks as enduring sources of genetic diversity.</p>}},
  author       = {{Tomowski, Maxi and Lozada-Gobilard, Sissi and Jeltsch, Florian and Tiedemann, Ralph}},
  issn         = {{2045-2322}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{Nature Publishing Group}},
  series       = {{Scientific Reports}},
  title        = {{Recruitment and migration patterns reveal a key role for seed banks in the meta-population dynamics of an aquatic plant}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-37974-5}},
  doi          = {{10.1038/s41598-023-37974-5}},
  volume       = {{13}},
  year         = {{2023}},
}