Genome-wide genetic diversity yields insights into genomic responses of candidate climate-selected loci in an Andean wetland plant.

Assessing population evolutionary potential has become a central tenet of conservation biology. Since adaptive responses require allelic variation at functional genes, consensus has grown that genetic variation at genes under selection is a better surrogate for adaptive evolutionary potential than neutral genetic diversity. Although consistent with prevailing theory, this argument lacks empirical support and ignores recent theoretical advances questioning the very concept of neutral genetic diversity.

Pesticide contamination drives adaptive genetic variation in the endemic mayfly Andesiops torrens within a semi-arid agricultural watershed of Chile.

Agrichemical contamination can provoke evolutionary responses in freshwater populations. It is a particularly relevant issue in semi-arid regions due to the sensitivity of endemic species to pollutants and to interactions with temperature stress. This paper investigates the presence of pesticides in rivers within a semi-arid agricultural watershed of Chile, testing for their effects on population genetic characteristics of the endemic mayfly Andesiops torrens (Insecta, Ephemeroptera).

Landscape connectivity among remnant populations of guanaco ( Müller, 1776) in an arid region of Chile impacted by global change.

Connectivity between populations plays a key role in the long-term persistence of species in fragmented habitats. This is of particular concern for biodiversity preservation in drylands, since water limited landscapes are typically characterized by little suitable habitat cover, high habitat fragmentation, harsh matrices, and are being rapidly degraded at a global scale. In this study, we modelled landscape connectivity between 11 guanaco populations in Chile's arid Norte Chico, a region that supports the last remnant coastal populations of this emblematic herbivore indigenous to South America.