Data from: Post-fire response and genetic diversity in Erica coccinea: connecting population dynamics and diversification in a biodiversity hotspot

Understanding the proceses of biological diversification is a central
topic in evolutionary biology. The South African Cape fynbos, one of the
major plant biodiversity hotspots out of the tropics, has prompted several
hypotheses about the causes of generation and maintenance of biodiversity.
Fire has been traditionally invoked as a key element to explain high
levels of biodiversity in highly speciose fynbos taxa, such as the genus
Erica. In this study, we have implemented a microevolutionary approach to
elucidate how plant-response to fire may contribute to explain high levels
of diversification in Erica. By using microsatellite markers, we
investigated the genetic background of seeder (fire-sensitive) and
resprouter (fire-resistant) populations of the fynbos species Erica
coccinea. We found higher within-population genetic diversity and higher
among-population differentiation in seeder populations and interpreted
these higher levels of genetic diversification as a consequence of the
comparatively shorter generation times and faster population turnover in
the seeder form of this species. Considering that genetic divergence among
populations may be seen as the initial step to speciation, the parallelism
between these results and the pattern of biodiversity at the genus level
offers stimulating insights into understanding causes of speciation of the
genus Erica in the Cape fynbos.