Phenotypic Variation and Diversity in Fruit, Leaf, Fatty Acid, and Their Relationships to Geoclimatic Factors in Seven Natural Populations of Malania oleifera Chun et S.K. Lee

Malania oleifera Chun et S.K. Lee is an endangered woody oil tree that produces nervonic acid, which closely related to brain development. The phenotypic variation and diversity in some representative traits natural populations are poorly understood. To investigate variation, their relationship with geoclimatic factors, we evaluated 21 of 97 sampled individuals from seven populations. Coefficient for widely ranged 0.05 (shape index fruit) 0.62 (water content dry kernel), average 0.18. Shannon–Wiener indices 1.91 kernel) 2.06 (leaf length leaf width), 1.94. 20 was significantly influenced by the population effect (p < 0.05). were reduced six principal components, collectively accounted 86.64% total variation. mainly divided into two groups: Group I, included four distributed throughout southern region having wider shorter leaves, larger fruit transverse diameters, higher fatty acid kernel, II left relative opposite characteristics those I. Trees leaves tend produce oblate shape heavier dried yielding more acids, population-level pairwise kernel morphological distance positively correlated (Mantel r = 0.39, p Annual humidity strongly (length/width, 0.78) but had a negative correlation weight (r ?0.84). gradually altered globose as longitude rainfall increased. environment became colder latitude increased, resulting steady decrease content. No significant isolation climatic geographical found variability. These results can have important implication genetic improvement, conservation resource management species future.