Abstract
The successful management of biodiversity in a changing world requires an increased knowledge of how genetic variation in traits of adaptive significance is maintained in natural populations and how this variation affects population viability. In this project, we will use the perennial herb Primula farinosa as a model system to explore the relationship between genetic variation in adaptive traits and population viability in a changing environment. Combining demographic studies in permanent plots, field experiments, common-garden experiments and stochastic demographic models, we will (1) determine how variation in abiotic environmental factors and grazing influence the genetic structure of plant populations, (2) examine how local abiotic factors, climatic variation and grazing influence plant demography, and (3) explore how adaptive genetic variation among and within populations influence population viability and survival in landscapes subject to changes in climate and land use. Based on the results, we will formulate and communicate recommendations on how the importance of adaptive genetic variation can be assessed and how this information can be integrated in viability analyses, conservation planning and management design.
Sweden