Incorporating Ecological Niche Analysis in Evolutionary Studies

Ricardo Gaytán-Legaria and Antonio González-Rodríguez

Published May 2024 in International Oaks No. 35: 59–70

Abstract

Since Darwin, the influence of environmental factors on the evolutionary processes of species has been underlined, especially for areas with high species richness, such as the tropics. Mexican oaks offer an opportunity as a model group for evaluating the association between the degree of ecological specialization and evolutionary patterns in a context of high species richness. As an example, here we considered differences in niche affinities and breadth of three closely related section Quercus (White Oak) species (Quercus deserticola, Q. glaucoides, and Q. peduncularis) distributed in the central and southern parts of Mexico, to determine if niche differences are associated with values of population genetic diversity and structure, and with the distributional responses of the species throughout periods of historical climate changes.

Differences in genetic diversity and structure were found between the three species, as were differences between potential distribution through time. Niche breadth was associated with genetic structure and heterozygosity, with the more ecologically generalist species having lower values of genetic structure and higher levels of heterozygosity, possibly due to higher gene flow and demographic stability over time. Meanwhile, species with narrower niches showed higher levels of genetic structure, reflecting historical population isolation.

Finally, ecological niche divergence was confirmed for these closely related species. This supports previous hypotheses that oak communities are composed of distantly related species whereas closely related species tend to have different climatic affinities.

Keywords

niche breadth, phylogeography, niche divergence, Mexican transition zone

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