The mating system of an hydrophilous angiosperm Posidonia australis (Posidoniaceae)

The hydrophilous seagrass Posidonia australis has a wide range of multilocus outcrossing rates (t), which vary from 0 to 0.89, with "apparent'' outcrossing rates varying from 0 to 0.42 among the seven populations sampled. This pattern of outcrossing rate indicates that water pollination (hydrophily) is less uniform than wind pollination and more similar to animal pollination in its variability. Variation in levels of outcrossing between populations may be due to differences in water movement; for example, open bays have greater pollen dispersal and higher outcrossing rates. Considerable pollen movement within meadows was inferred from a high frequency of nonmaternal alleles in the pollen pool. The distribution of genetic diversity among populations (GST = 0.229) suggests moderate gene flow on the local scale. These results demonstrate that successful submarine cross-pollination occurs in the hydrophile P. australis, which has a diverse mating system with populations that range from predominantly inbred to predominantly outcrossed.