Abstract
Abstract Low levels of genetic variability, inbreeding, and limited gene flow are three possible threats to small, isolated plant populations as exemplified by Quercus hinckleyi C.H. Muller. J. This scrub oak species has survived over the past 10,000 years in a region in which the climate has become increasingly xeric. While more prevalent after the last ice age, its US range is now limited to a handful of populations in one county in West Texas. This study examines the genetic diversity of the relict metapopulation and resultant conservation implications. We used microsatellites to genotype a total of 204 ramets collected from three locations in Presidio County, TX, that represent all known occurrences of Q. hinckleyi. Analyses of eight loci were used to determine levels of genetic variability, population structure and clonal growth. Genetic diversity for the sampled plants was high: for the total metapopulation, the mean number of alleles (Na) was 17.875; the mean observed heterozygosity (Ho) was 0.807;...
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