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Published on: October 25, 2024
Populations of aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) with different evolutionary histories differ in their climate
Burke T Greer1, Christopher Still1, Glenn T Howe2
1Forest Ecosystems and Societ yOregon State University 321 Richardson Hall Corvallis Oregon 97331; Department of Geography University of California Santa Barbara 1832 Ellison Hall Santa Barbara California 93106.
Abstract:
Quaking aspens (Populus tremuloides Michx.) are found in diverse habitats throughout North America. While the biogeography of aspens' distribution has been documented, the drivers of the phenotypic diversity of aspen are still being explored. In our study, we examined differences in climate between northern and southwestern populations of aspen, finding large-scale differences between the populations. Our results suggest that northern and southwestern populations live in distinct climates and support the inclusion of genetic and phenotypic data with species distribution modeling for predicting aspens' distribution.
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