Genetic variation in Banksia saxicola (Proteaceae), a rare Australian plant with a markedly disjunct distribution

Banksia saxicola A.S. George (Proteaceae) is a rare Australian endemic, fou nd in only two locations in Victoria that are separated by approximately 50 0 kms: the Grampians and Wilson's Promontory National Parks. The organisati on of genetic variation between and within populations at the two locations was assessed using the Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism (AFLP) techn ique. Two populations were sampled in the Grampians National Park and one p opulation was sampled at Wilson's Promontory. The three populations were ge netically divergent from each other, in particular the Grampians and Wilson 's Promontory populations, and this relates to the ancient geographic isola tion of these two regions. The Wilson's Promontory population had lower gen etic diversity than either Grampians populations, consistent with its small er population size. The findings are important for strategies to conserve B . saxicola.