Genetic connectivity and evolution in Crepis

Islands play a central role in the study of plant evolution in the Mediterranean. Mayol et al. analyse the impact of varying patterns of habitat occupancy on genetic diversity and structure in Crepis triasii, an endemic plant from the eastern Balearic Islands, and find that genetic diversity is highly structured and positively correlated with population connectivity in the landscape. The results support the importance of restricted gene flow and drift as drivers of plant evolution in Mediterranean continental islands, and emphasize the importance of gene flow in preventing genetic erosion and maintaining the evolutionary potential of populations.