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Evolutionary history of two endemic Appalachian conifers revealed using microsatellite markers

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Abstract

Fraser fir (Abies fraseri [Pursh] Poir.) and intermediate fir (Abies balsamea [L.] Mill. var. phanerolepis Fern.) exist in small populations in the Appalachian highlands of the southeastern United States. We used ten nuclear microsatellite markers to quantify genetic variation within Fraser fir and intermediate fir, and to examine their evolutionary relationships with the widespread balsam fir (Abies balsamea [L.] Mill.). We found little genetic differentiation among these taxa, suggesting that Fraser fir might best be classified as a variety of balsam fir. The results further appear to reject the hypothesis that intermediate fir was of hybrid origin between two comparatively distantly related species. Low levels of genetic diversity suggest that intermediate fir and Fraser fir have undergone at least some genetic degradation since post-Pleistocene isolation. The results may prove important for in situ and ex situ gene conservation efforts for Fraser fir and intermediate fir, which are imperiled by an exotic insect and by global climate change.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Bernard Daigle of the National Tree Seed Centre at Natural Resources Canada for providing several provenances of balsam fir and subalpine fir; Catherine Clark for sharing her intermediate and balsam fir foliage samples; Jianfeng Li for laboratory help; and Craig Echt and two anonymous reviewers for their thoughtful comments on the manuscript. This work was supported by the College of Natural Resources, the Christmas Tree Genetics Program, the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources, and the Graduate School at North Carolina State University. It also was supported in part through Research Joint Venture Agreement 08-JV-11330146-078 between the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station, and North Carolina State University.

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  1. Kevin M. Potter

    Present address: Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources, Forest Sciences Laboratory, North Carolina State University, 3041 Cornwallis Road, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27709, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695-8002, USA

    Kevin M. Potter & John Frampton

  2. Southern Institute of Forest Genetics, USDA Forest Service, Southern Research Station, 23332 Mississippi 67, Saucier, MS, 39574, USA

    Sedley A. Josserand & C. Dana Nelson

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  1. Kevin M. Potter
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Correspondence to Kevin M. Potter.

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Potter, K.M., Frampton, J., Josserand, S.A. et al. Evolutionary history of two endemic Appalachian conifers revealed using microsatellite markers. Conserv Genet 11, 1499–1513 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10592-009-9980-3

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