The Influence of Natural Variation in Population Size on Ecological and Quantitative Genetics of the Endangered Endemic Plant Hypericum Cumulicola

Manuscript electronical Premise of research. Genetic variation for ecologically important traits is necessary for populations to adapt to environmental change. Many authors have called for a greater emphasis on directly measuring quantitative genetic variation in rare species, which are expected to have reduced amounts of genetic variation due to genetic drift in small populations. The extent of among-population differentiation for quantitative traits may also help to evaluate the likelihood that genetic rescue/translocation will be a successful conservation strategy. Despite these merits, relatively few studies measure quantitative genetic variation for ecologically important traits as a function of population size.