A chemical prespective on the evolution of variation in 'Eucalyptus globulus'

Abstract

It is becoming increasingly easy to generate genotypic data but much harder to gather an equivalent amount of phenotypic information, particularly for chemical traits. In this study of 'Eucalyptus globulus' ssp. 'globulus', we measured about 60 chemical leaf traits of trees growing in a common garden to address the following questions: (1) how much variation is there between geographic regions, populations within regions and within populations? (2) How do chemical traits vary over the species' geographic range? (3) If so, does 'E. globulus' ssp. 'globulus' exhibit distinct chemotypes - plants that are morphologically similar but which differ chemically? (4) Are the affinities between 'E. globulus' ssp. 'globulus' and closely related subspecies apparent in the chemical variation? Variation among trees within populations contributed most variation in leaf chemistry followed by variation between geographic regions. For many traits, variation among populations within proposed races and variation among proposed races within geographic regions explained little of the total variation. There was a cline in the concentration of secondary chemicals with the lowest concentrations in Tasmanian populations and the highest in those from eastern Victoria, with intermediate concentrations in populations from Bass Strait Islands. We identified three chemotypes, characterised by specific terpenes and formylated phloroglucinol compounds. The frequency of occurrence of these chemotypes showed a geographic pattern also, with "chemotype 1" predominating in Tasmania, while "chemotypes 2 and 3" occurred at highest frequency in eastern Victoria. We suggest that the chemotypes reflect introgression between 'E. globulus' ssp. 'globulus' and the three closely related subspecies - 'E. globulus' ssp. 'bicostata', E. globulus' ssp. 'maidenii' and 'E. globulus' ssp. 'pseudoglobulus'. Although the formation of land-bridges with fluctuating sea levels has no doubt shaped the evolutionary history of all four subspecies, we propose that the migratory swift parrot ('Lathamus discolor'), an important pollinator and a species closely associated with 'E. globulus', has helped shape the evolution of the four tree subspecies.