Ecological genetics of Phrynocephalus vlangalii on the North Tibetan (Qinghai) plateau: correlation between environmental factors and population genetic variability.

摘要

Ecological genetics is the study of adaptation of natural populations to their physical and biological environments and the mechanisms by which they respond to environmental changes (Merrell 1981). The interplay between a genetically variable population and its ever-changing environment is the focus of attention in ecological genetics (Merrell 1981). Populations are dynamic units precisely adapted physiologically and genetically to their environments. They are sensitive to and responsive, within limits, to any change in their environmental conditions. To the extent that these phenotypes are controlled or influenced by genes or genotypes, natural selection will act indirectly on genes and genotypes. If the genotypes of individuals with different phenotypes differ, these genes and genotypes of the individuals favored by natural selection will tend to increase in relative frequency (Merrell 1981). In this way, natural selection brings about genetic changes in population genetics.