RANDOM GENETIC DRIFT DURING CYCLICAL AMEIOTIC PARTHENOGENESIS

The classical models of population genetics assume sexual reproduction and do not apply to organisms in which parthenogenetic reproduction i s alternated with sexual recombination. Under cyclic parthenogenesis, variation in rates or frequencies of parthenogenetic reproduction amon g clones produces selection that is independent of processes occurring in the sexual phases. In this paper I examine how selection during cy clic parthenogenesis influences random genetic drift and leads to a lo ss of variance among clones. To illustrate these effects, computer sim ulations are presented demonstrating the response of effective clone n umber and equilibrium clone diversity to selection and mutation.