Divergence and Genetic Structure in Adjacent Grass Populations. I. Quantitative Genetics

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Abstract
Additive genetic variances and covariances were estimated for life history and morphological traits in two adjacent populations of the grass, Holcus lanatus L. Significant phenotypic differentiation was found between the two populations for four of the 15 morphological attributes measured. Significant differences in genetic architecture were found between the two populations for 11 of the 13 traits for which genetic variance components could be calculated. Estimates of genetic correlations also showed considerable divergence between the populations. The genetic divergence was much larger than would have been anticipated from simple measures of phenotypic differentiation. These results show that, even in plant species with relatively large population sizes, differences in genetic variance-covariance patterns can occur between adjacent populations.