A selective advantage to immigrant genes in a <i>Daphnia</i> metapopulation

Ebert, Dieter; Haag, Christoph R.; Kirkpatrick, Mark; Riek, Myriam; Hottinger, Jürgen W.; Pajunen, V. Ilmari

doi:10.1126/science.1067485

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Journal article

A selective advantage to immigrant genes in a Daphnia metapopulation

Ebert, Dieter Zoologisches Institut, Universität Basel, Switzerland - Tvärminne Zoological Station, Hanko, Finland - Université de Fribourg, Département de Biologie, Unité d'Écologie et Évolution, Switzerland
Haag, Christoph R. Zoologisches Institut, Universität Basel, Switzerland - Tvärminne Zoological Station, Hanko, Finland - Université de Fribourg, Département de Biologie, Unité d'Écologie et Évolution, Switzerland
Kirkpatrick, Mark Section of Integrative Biology, University of Texas, Austin, USA
Riek, Myriam Zoologisches Institut, Universität Basel, Switzerland - Tvärminne Zoological Station, Hanko, Finland
Hottinger, Jürgen W. Zoologisches Institut, Universität Basel, Switzerland - Tvärminne Zoological Station, Hanko, Finland - Université de Fribourg, Département de Biologie, Unité d'Écologie et Évolution, Switzerland
Pajunen, V. Ilmari Tvärminne Zoological Station, Hanko, Finland - Division of Population Biology, Department of Ecology and Systematics, University of Helsinki, Finland

18.01.2002

Published in:

Science. - 2002, vol. 295, no. 5554, p. 485-488

English Immigrants to habitats occupied by conspecific organisms are usually expected to be competitively inferior, because residents may be locally adapted. If residents are inbred, however, mating between immigrants and residents results in offspring that may enjoy a fitness advantage from hybrid vigor. We demonstrate this effect experimentally in a natural Daphnia metapopulation in which genetic bottlenecks and local inbreeding are common. We estimate that in this metapopulation, hybrid vigor amplifies the rate of gene flow several times more than would be predicted from the nominal migration rate. This can affect the persistence of local populations and the entire metapopulation.

Faculty

Faculté des sciences et de médecine

Department

Département de Biologie

Language