| NSF Org: |
DEB Division Of Environmental Biology |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | March 6, 2009 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | February 13, 2012 |
| Award Number: | 0842161 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Samuel Scheiner
DEB Division Of Environmental Biology BIO Directorate for Biological Sciences |
| Start Date: | March 1, 2009 |
| End Date: | February 28, 2013 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $99,777.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $121,769.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
FY 2010 = $7,000.00 FY 2011 = $7,492.00 FY 2012 = $7,500.00 |
| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
245 BARR AVE MISSISSIPPI STATE MS US 39762 (662)325-7404 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
245 BARR AVE MISSISSIPPI STATE MS US 39762 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): |
EVOLUTIONARY ECOLOGY, EVOLUTIONARY GENETICS |
| Primary Program Source: |
01001011DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT 01001112DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT 01001213DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT |
| Program Reference Code(s): |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.074 |
ABSTRACT
Understanding the mechanisms that lead to the origin of new species is a primary goal of evolutionary biology. Although new species have traditionally been viewed as originating in isolation from close relatives, recent data suggest that unique evolutionary entities can diverge even with high levels of gene flow. Although both genetic and ecological factors contribute to divergence of new taxa, the balance and roles of connectivity and isolation in diverging populations remain poorly understood. This project uses molecular genetic, ecological, and morphological data to understand patterns of divergence resulting from the balance between isolation and interbreeding in many populations of two endemic Lotus species in the California Channel Islands. These islands are close to each other and mainland California, but contain many unique species not found on the mainland.
This project contributes to the documentation of biodiversity and understanding of the underlying processes that generate new species. Such understanding is needed for effective conservation and management of biological diversity and the ecosystem services it supports. This study will clarify how natural processes influence connectivity and divergence in ecological communities of islands, with applications also to similar continental regions. The research also offers interdisciplinary research training for many undergraduate and graduate students and significant outreach to agencies and NGOs that are charged with conservation and management of biodiversity.
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PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
In this collaborative project with the University of Northern Colorado and the University of South Dakota, genetic and morphological data were analyzed to understand how plant species colonize and evolve on the California Channel Islands. Most of the native flora of the Channel Islands is shared with mainland California, suggesting a high rate of dispersal, but 15% are endemic, suggesting infrequent dispersal and gene flow in at least some species. For this study, genetic variation was measured using three types of molecular markers in 29 populations of Acmispon (formerly the genus Lotus) argophyllus and Acmispon dendroideus, also known as deerweeds, endemic to the Channel Islands and nine populations of related taxa from the islands and mainland California. The resulting data indicate that morphological differences among populations and species do not always match with levels of genetic divergence, that seeds have dispersed multiple times to the Channel Islands as well as among islands, and that these species have hybridized when they came into contact on San Clemente and Santa Catalina. Acmispon argophyllus var. niveus is so strongly divergent that it should be recognized as a new species, rather than a variant of A. argophyllus. These data also suggest that conservation of these species should focus on preserving unique variation within populations and across all of the islands because of the high degree of genetic structure observed. Four undergraduate students and two graduate students at Mississippi State University participated in the project. Three of the undergraduate students successfully moved into graduate or professional programs, having been aided by their experience with this project. Additionally, two of these students have won multiple awards for presentations based on their research in this project. Two publications and more than 20 research presentations have resulted from this project thus far, two additional papers are in review, and several others are in preparation. A workshop on conservation genetics was held at the California Native Plant Society meeting in 2012 and was attended by 24 participants from private, state and federal agencies, including the Denver Botanic Garden, Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, Catalina Island Conservancy, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, San Diego County, Santa Clara County Water District, Point Reyes National Seashore, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and, U.S. Navy. Workshop attendees were trained in interpreting genetic data to better manage rare and endangered plants, and have established relationships with the project leaders to ensure correct interpretation of genetic data related to specific management activities.
Last Modified: 05/17/2013
Modified by: Lisa E Wallace
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