An ancient eelgrass clone in the Baltic

Citation
Tbh. Reusch et al., An ancient eelgrass clone in the Baltic, MAR ECOL-PR, 183, 1999, pp. 301-304
Citations number
24
Categorie Soggetti
Aquatic Sciences
Journal title
MARINE ECOLOGY-PROGRESS SERIES
ISSN journal
01718630 → ACNP
Volume
183
Year of publication
1999
Pages
301 - 304
Database
ISI
SICI code
0171-8630(1999)183:<301:AAECIT>2.0.ZU;2-O
Abstract
We report that an eelgrass bed Zostera marina L. at the Aland Islands, nort hern Baltic Sea, is dominated by a. single genotype which extends over an a rea of approximately 160 x 40 m. In total, 47 individuals were sampled and genotyped for 6 highly polymorphic microsatellite loci. Forty-four of the r amets revealed the same 6-locus genotype, including 3 identical heterozygou s loci. They were thus assigned to the same genet (= clone). To our knowled ge, it represents the largest marine plant identified thus far. Based on es timates of horizontal rhizome growth rates, this clone may be more than 100 0 yr old. The remarkable phenotypic plasiticity of a single genotype which dominates this site illustrates that there is no simple one-to-one relation ship between genetic diversity and population persistence in changing and s tressful environments.