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Sexually selected traits are often condition-dependent and are expected to be affected by genome-wide distributed deleterious mutations and inbreeding. However, sexual selection is a powerful selective force that can counteract inbreeding through purging of deleterious mutations. Inbreeding and purging of the inbreeding load for sexually selected traits has rarely been studied across natural popul
Background and AimsApomictic species (with asexual seed production) make up for 20-50 % of all taxonomically recognized species in northern Europe, but the phylogenetic relationships of apomictic species and the mode of evolution and speciation remain largely unknown and their taxonomy is consequently disputed.MethodsIn the present study, plastid psbD-trnT sequences (349 accessions) and 12 nuclear
Abstract A recent study by Väli et al. (2008) highlights that microsatellites will often provide a poor prediction of the genome-wide nucleotide diversity of wild populations, but does not fully explain why. To clarify and stress the importance of identity disequilibrium and marker variability for correlations between multilocus heterozygosity and genome-wide genetic variability, we performed a si
The timing of annual life-history events affects survival and reproduction of all organisms. A changing environment can perturb phenological adaptations and an important question is if populations can evolve fast enough to track the environmental changes. Yet, little is known about selection and evolutionary potential of traits determining the timing of crucial annual events. Migratory species, wh
Migration is an important event in the life history of many animals, but there is considerable variation within populations in the timing and final destination. Such differential migration at the population level can be strongly determined by individuals showing different consistencies in migratory traits. By tagging individual cyprinid fish with uniquely coded electronic tags, and recording their
Animals with color vision use color information in intra- and interspecific communication, which in turn may drive the evolution of conspicuous colored body traits via natural and sexual selection. A recent study found that the transparent wings of small flies and wasps in lower-reflectance light environments display vivid and stable structural color patterns, called "wing interference patterns" (
SUMMARY: Parasite prevalence is an important variable in many evolutionary and ecological studies. In birds, haemosporidian blood parasites have been in focus of many comparative analyses. Because low prevalence is difficult to estimate precisely and that studies finding low prevalence are more likely to remain unpublished, our knowledge of parasite prevalence is biased towards highly infected tax
The evolution of striking phenotypes on islands is a well-known phenomenon, and there has been a long-standing debate on the patterns of body size evolution on islands. The ecological causes driving divergence in insular populations are, however, poorly understood. Reduced predator fauna is expected to lower escape propensity, increase body size and relax selection for crypsis in small-bodied, ins
In studies of haemosporidian systematics and taxonomy, a combination of microscopic examination and molecular identification has been recommended. The yellow wagtail (Motacilla flava) is a frequently used species in studies of host-parasite interactions; blood parasites of this bird have been well studied using microscopic examination of blood films, but data on molecular characterization of the p
We present a comparison of feather stable isotope (C-13, N-15) patterns representing the habitat and diet conditions for two subspecies of willow warblers Phylloscopus trochilus that breed in parapatry, but winter in different regions of sub-Saharan Africa. Previous analyses have shown that on average winter moulted innermost primaries (P1) show subspecific differences in N-15 values, although ind
Range shifts can rapidly create new areas of geographic overlap between formerly allopatric taxa and evidence is accumulating that this can affect species persistence. We review the emerging literature on the short- and long-term consequences of these geographic range shifts. Specifically, we focus on the evolutionary consequences of novel species interactions in newly created sympatric areas by d
Distribution of habitats and vegetation types]. In this third and last article in a series based on various analyses of data from the survey of the vascular flora of the province of Skåne, southern-most Sweden, completed 1987–2007, the geographic distribution of various habitats and vegetation types is mapped and discussed based on the number of characteristic species reported from each grid-squar
During moult, stressors such as malaria and related haemosporidian parasites (e.g. Plasmodium and Haemoproteus) could affect the growth rate and quality of feathers, which in turn may compromise future reproduction and survival. Recent advances in molecular methods to study parasites have revealed that co-infections with multiple parasites are frequent in bird-malaria parasite systems. However, th
The regulation of the structural composition and complexity of the mycelium of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi is not well understood due to their obligate biotrophic nature. The aim of this study was to investigate the structure of extraradical mycelium at high and low availability of carbon (C) to the roots and phosphorus (P) to the fungus. We used monoxenic cultures of the AM fungus Rhizophag
In this first article in a series based on various analyses of data from the survey of the vascular flora of the province of Skåne, southern-most Sweden, completed 1987–2007, the geographic distribution of total species richness (excluding taxa with only casual occurrences), red-listed species, rapidly declining species, recent immigrants and the Nature Conservation Value of species is mapped and
BACKGROUND: Phosphoglucose isomerase (PGI, EC 5.3.1.9) is an essential metabolic enzyme in all eukaryotes. An earlier study of the PgiC1 gene, which encodes cytosolic PGI in the grass Festuca ovina L., revealed a marked difference in the levels of nucleotide polymorphism between the 5' and 3' portions of the gene.METHODS: In the present study, we characterized the sequence polymorphism in F. ovina
A decisive set of steps in the terrestrial carbon (C) cycle is the fixation of atmospheric C by plants and the subsequent C-transfer to rhizosphere microorganisms. With climate change winters are expected to become milder in temperate ecosystems. Although the rate and pathways of rhizosphere C input to soil could be impacted by milder winters, the responses remain unknown. To address this knowledg
Evolutionary genomics has recently entered a new era in the study of host-pathogen interactions. A variety of novel genomic techniques has transformed the identification, detection, and classification of both hosts and pathogens, allowing a greater resolution that helps decipher their underlying dynamics and provides novel insights into their environmental context. Nevertheless, many challenges to
