Variability of morphological needle traits of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) among populations from mountain and lowland regions of Poland

Abstract

The main goal of this work was to examine interpopulational needle traits variability of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) from four mountain, one foothill and three lowland, natural populations located in Poland. This choice of locations was motivated by the presumed different origins of mountainous populations and the necessity to demonstrate how closely they are related to lowland populations.Variation in the studied populations was determined using seven morphological traits of needles: 1 -needle length, 2 -number of stomatal rows on the flat side of a needle, 3 -number of stomata per 2 mm of needle length on the flat side, 4 -number of stomatal rows on the convex side of a needle, 5 -number of stomata per 2 mm of needle length on the convex side, 6 -number of serrations per 2 mm of the needle length on the left side and 7 -number of serrations per 2 mm of the needle length on the right side.Biometric data were analysed statistically, and it was found that (i) needle traits differentiate studied populations; (ii) the postulated division of the population into two groups is reflected in the obtained results; and (iii) a particularly strong relationship was found between two relict pine populations from the Pieniny (Sokolica, Kazalnica, Czertezik) and Tatra Mts. (Wielke Koryciska), which may be the result of the common origins and history of these two populations.

Genetic resources of relict populations of Pinus sylvestris (L.) in Western Carpathians assessed by chloroplast microsatellites

“…Glacial refugia generally possess a large part of a species' allelic richness, and the conservation of these relict populations is therefore crucial for the preservation of a species' genetic resources (Comps et al 2001). These populations deserve conservation efforts because they are well adapted to local specific conditions (locally adapted haplotypes), as is demonstrated by their genetic features in the presented results, as well as by the morphological features of the cones (Staszkiewicz 1968(Staszkiewicz , 1993 and differentiation of the needles (Urbaniak et al 2009). In the species-poor Tatra forests, they are also an important component of the landscape.…”

“…(4 populations from Poland) ( Table 1). The Tatra populations of Scots pine were considered as relict and as representing the generations of trees that survived the glaciation (Latałowa et al 2004;Staszkiewicz 1968Staszkiewicz , 1993Jankovska and Pokorny 2008). From each population, needles were collected from 30 randomly selected individuals of Scots pine.…”

“…This species of pine is characterized by a wide geographical range and extremely high tolerance to various environmental conditions (Labra et al 2006;Pravdin 1969;Tóth et al 2017b). In the northern Tatras (in Poland) there are few populations of P. sylvestris, which are considered as the Holocene relics or even glacial relics (Staszkiewicz 1968(Staszkiewicz , 1993Jankovska and Pokorny 2008). As has been suggested based on the palynological (Latałowa et al 2004) and genetic records (Tóth et al 2017a, b), one of the glacial refugium could exist in the Carpathians and their northern foreland.…”