Allozyme differentiation among populations, stands, and cohorts in Monterey pine

Abstract
Four- to six-year-old trees were sampled from 9 to 10 stands in each of three natural populations of Monterey pine (Pinusradiata D. Don) and studied for genetic diversity at 37 allozyme loci. Among loci, Nei's gene diversity ranged from 73 to 100% within stands, 0 to 10% between stands within populations, and 0 to 27% between populations; average values were 94.9, 1.6, and 3.5%, respectively. F-statistic analyses (B. S. Weir and C. C. Cockerham. 1984. Evolution (Lawrence, Kans.), 38: 1358–1370) indicated higher levels of stand and population differentiation than did Nei's diversity statistics: 2.6 ± 0.7 and 6.2 ± 2.6%, respectively. Homozygotes were significantly in excess relative to expectations under random mating (FIS = 0.065). Most loci showed highly significant variation of allele frequencies among populations; Nei's genetic distance averaged 0.014. Genetic and geographic distances among stands were correlated only at Año Nuevo. Introgression of genes from knobcone pine (Pinusattenuata Lemm.) was evident in the one stand where the species were sympatric. Contrary to inferences from growth and morphological characters, allozyme frequencies and other biochemical characters suggest that the Año Nuevo population diverged prior to Cambria and Monterey. Differentiation among three cohorts was studied at 10 loci. Allele frequencies varied nonsignificantly between cohorts; mean fixation indices, however, decreased monotonically with cohort age, from 0.081 in embryos to 0.038 in 5-year-old trees to −0.119 in 14- to 17-year-old trees. Selection for the more outbred progeny was the outcome of stand development.