On the relationship between plant species diversity and genetic diversity of Plantago lanceolata (Plantaginaceae) within and between grassland communities

Aims and Methods The relationship between genetic diversity and species diversity and the underlying mechanisms are of both fundamental and applied interest We Used amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and vegetation records to investigate the association between genetic diversity of Plantago lanceolata and plant species diversity using 15 grassland communities in central Germany We Used correlation whether relationships and partial correlation analyses to examine between genetic and species diversity were direct or mediated by environmental differences between habitats Important Findings Both within- and between-population genetic diveisity of P lanceolata were significantly positively correlated with plant species diversity within and between sites Simple and partial correlations revealed that the positive correlations indirectly resulted from the effects of abiotic habitat characteristics oil plant species diversity and, Via abundance, on genetic diversity of P lanceolata Thus, they did not reflect a direct causal relationship between plant Species diversity and genetic diversity of P lanceolata, as would have been expected based oil the hypothesis of a positive relationship between plant species diversity and niche diversity