The link between genetic diversity and species diversity: patterns and processes in grassland plants

• Applicant: Dr. Walter Durka
• Subject Area: Ecology and Biodiversity of Plants and Ecosystems
• Term: from 2008 to 2015
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 61417157

Species diversity (SD) and genetic diversity (GD) are fundamental levels of biodiversity that span from genes to ecosystems. Thus, sustainable management and land use must target both, SD and GD. However, the two have mostly been studied independently, despite a number of potential connections. We propose to analyze patterns and processes linking SD and GD in European cultural grassland ecosystems within the framework of the biodiversity exploratories. We focus on molecular markers and neutral processes like gene flow and drift which allow to analyze historic and current processes at the landscape level. First, in a multi-site and multi-species approach we analyze correlation patterns between species diversity of grassland sites and genetic diversity at neutral molecular markers (AFLP) of nine grassland species from three functional groups. We hypothesize that positive correlations between species and genetic diversity depend on colonization/extinction and gene-flow/drift equilibria. Thus, we expect to find such correlations for species with low to intermediate dispersal capacity. Second, we relate landscape structure and land use intensity to genetic diversity in the same nine grassland species within a GIS platform. Using a landscape genetics approach we thus identify landscape features, both current and historic, that are critical for the maintenance of GD and SD. We hypothesize that historic habitat continuity is more important than current landscape structure for both SD and GD. Third, we investigate the outcome of a process that directly links SD and GD via pollination facilitation. We test whether pollination and seed set of, and gene flow among experimental low density target plants is facilitated by resident species diversity of pollinator-dependent plant species. We hypothesize that pollination facilitation exists but depends on the pollinator specificity of the plant pollination syndrome.

• DFG Programme: Infrastructure Priority Programmes
• Subproject of: SPP 1374: Biodiversity Exploratories