Landscape genetics of Solidago virgaurea ecotypic populations in Yakushima Island, Japan. Solidago virgaurea

This study aims to address a scientific question about how environmental, geographic and temporal isolation mechanisms play roles in early stage of ecological speciation in Solidago virgaurea. The goldenrod is a common species in our study sites in Japan, and occurs in various environments where morphologically and physiologically differentiated ecotypic populations are maintained. In the Yakushima Island, southern part of the Japanese Archipelago, there is the world smallest Solidago taxon of S. minutissima in alpine vegetation, which diverged from lowland Solidago populations. We are interested in how the life traits such as plant size, reproductive efforts, flowering times as well as landscape mosaic in complex topography are having impacts on population isolation, to maintain the phenotypic diversity in Yakushima Island.