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Background and Aims Sorbus domestica (Rosaceae) is one of the rarest deciduous tree species in Europe and is characterized by a scattered distribution. To date, no large-scale geographic studies on population genetics have been carried out. Therefore, the aims of this study were to infer levels of molecular diversity across the major part of the European distribution of S. domestica and to determine its population differentiation and structure. In addition, spatial genetic structure was examined together with the patterns of historic and recent gene flow between two adjacent populations. Methods Leaf or cambium samples were collected from 17 populations covering major parts of the European native range from north-west France to south-east Bulgaria. Seven nuclear microsatellites and one chloroplast minisatellite were examined and analysed using a variety of methods. Key Results Allelic richness was unexpectedly high for both markers within populations (mean per locus: 3·868 for nSSR and 1·647 for chloroplast minisatellite). Moreover, there was no evidence of inbreeding (mean Fis = -0·047). The Italian Peninsula was characterized as a geographic region with comparatively high genetic diversity for both genomes. Overall population differentiation was moderate (FST = 0·138) and it was clear that populations formed three groups in Europe, namely France, Mediterranean/Balkan and Austria. Historic gene flow between two local Austrian populations was high and asymmetric, while recent gene flow seemed to be disrupted. Conclusions It is concluded that molecular mechanisms such as self-incompatibility and high gene flow distances are responsible for the observed level of allelic richness as well as for population differentiation. However, human influence could have contributed to the present genetic pattern, especially in the Mediterranean region. Comparison of historic and recent gene flow may mirror the progress of habitat fragmentation in eastern Austria

Background Local adaptation is a key driver of phenotypic and genetic divergence at loci responsible for adaptive traits variations in forest tree populations. Its experimental assessment requires rigorous sampling strategies such as those involving population pairs replicated across broad spatial scales. Methods A hierarchical Bayesian model of selection (HBM) that explicitly considers both the replication of the environmental contrast and the hierarchical genetic structure among replicated study sites is introduced. Its power was assessed through simulations and compared to classical 'within-site' approaches (FDIST, BAYESCAN) and a simplified, within-site, version of the model introduced here (SBM). Results HBM demonstrates that hierarchical approaches are very powerful to detect replicated patterns of adaptive divergence with low false-discovery (FDR) and false-non-discovery (FNR) rates compared to the analysis of different sites separately through within-site approaches. The hypothesis of local adaptation to altitude was further addressed by analyzing replicated Abies alba population pairs (low and high elevations) across the species' southern distribution range, where the effects of climatic selection are expected to be the strongest. For comparison, a single population pair from the closely related species A. cephalonica was also analyzed. The hierarchical model did not detect any pattern of adaptive divergence to altitude replicated in the different study sites. Instead, idiosyncratic patterns of local adaptation among sites were detected by within-site approaches. Conclusion Hierarchical approaches may miss idiosyncratic patterns of adaptation among sites, and we strongly recommend the use of both hierarchical (multi-site) and classical (within-site) approaches when addressing the question of adaptation across broad spatial scales.

Background and Aims Sorbus domestica (Rosaceae) is one of the rarest deciduous tree species in Europe and is characterized by a scattered distribution. To date, no large-scale geographic studies on population genetics have been carried out. Therefore, the aims of this study were to infer levels of molecular diversity across the major part of the European distribution of S. domestica and to determine its population differentiation and structure. In addition, spatial genetic structure was examined together with the patterns of historic and recent gene flow between two adjacent populations. Methods Leaf or cambium samples were collected from 17 populations covering major parts of the European native range from north-west France to south-east Bulgaria. Seven nuclear microsatellites and one chloroplast minisatellite were examined and analysed using a variety of methods. Key Results Allelic richness was unexpectedly high for both markers within populations (mean per locus: 3·868 for nSSR and 1·647 for chloroplast minisatellite). Moreover, there was no evidence of inbreeding (mean Fis = -0·047). The Italian Peninsula was characterized as a geographic region with comparatively high genetic diversity for both genomes. Overall population differentiation was moderate (FST = 0·138) and it was clear that populations formed three groups in Europe, namely France, Mediterranean/Balkan and Austria. Historic gene flow between two local Austrian populations was high and asymmetric, while recent gene flow seemed to be disrupted. Conclusions It is concluded that molecular mechanisms such as self-incompatibility and high gene flow distances are responsible for the observed level of allelic richness as well as for population differentiation. However, human influence could have contributed to the present genetic pattern, especially in the Mediterranean region. Comparison of historic and recent gene flow may mirror the progress of habitat fragmentation in eastern Austria