Phylogeographic, popultion genetic and ecological analyses in the Central Asian Hordeum species and in Hordeum californicum from North America

• Applicant: Dr. Frank R. Blattner, since 2/2012
• Subject Area: Evolution and Systematics of Plants and Fungi
• Term: from 2010 to 2015
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 181494274

The barley genus Hordeum (Poaceae) occurs with 33 species in temperate regions of the world. Due to its distribution and the occurrence of different ploidy levels it is a model for research on temperate grass evolution. An integrated approach of phylogeny, age estimation, phylogeography, population demography and ecological niche modelling provided new insights into speciation processes in Hordeum and their interplay with ecology and demography. During the last years we were able to clarify the evolutionary history of distinct Hordeum species groups. Three diploid clades are still to be analysed, among them the species from Central Asia, and North American H. californicum. These taxa are important for understanding the evolution of the genus as they link the species from the Old and the New World, where Hordeum populations experienced quite different histories. In the course of this project I intend to analyse the phylogeography, population demography, ecological niches and their evolution in the diploid Central Asian Hordeum species and H. californicum. Furthermore I intend to close large geographical sample gaps by new collections during four research trips. This project will essentially contribute to the first exhaustive phylogeographic and population demographic analysis of an entire genus.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Ehemalige Antragstellerin: Dr. Sabine Jakob, until 2/2012