Investigating past range dynamics for a weed of cultivation, Silene vulgaris Megan E. Sebasky1, Stephen R. Keller2 & Douglas R. Taylor1 1Department of Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 2Department of Plant Biology, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont Keywords Abstract Glacial refugia, last glacial maximum, MaxEnt, phylogeography, postglacial Since the last glacial maximum (LGM), many plant and animal taxa have expansion, Silene vulgaris, species distribution expanded their ranges by migration from glacial refugia. Weeds of cultivation model. may have followed this trend or spread globally following the expansion of agri- culture or ruderal habitats associated with human-mediated disturbance. We Correspondence tested whether the range expansion of the weed Silene vulgaris across Europe fit Megan E. Sebasky and Douglas R. Taylor, the classical model of postglacial expansion from southern refugia, or followed Department of Biology, University of Virginia, 485 McCormick Road, PO Box 400328, known routes of the expansion of human agricultural practices. We used spe- Charlottesville, VA 22904. cies distribution modeling to predict spatial patterns of postglacial expansion Tel: 434-982-5217; and contrasted these with the patterns of human agricultural expansion. A pop- Fax: 434-982-5626; ulation genetic analysis using microsatellite loci was then used to test which E-mails:
[email protected] and scenario was better supported by spatial patterns of genetic diversity and struc-
[email protected] ture. Genetic diversity was highest in southern Europe and declined with increasing latitude. Locations of ancestral demes from genetic cluster analysis Funding Information were consistent with areas of predicted refugia. Species distribution models National Science Foundation (Grant/Award Number: ‘MCB1022128’).