The abstract is read at the publisher; the summary is JClub's.
Peripatric speciation during the Pleistocene best explains the geographical and climatic radiation of Ranunculus sect. Euromontani in the European Alpine System, with allopolyploidy limited to the Alps.
- Why it matters: Mountain chains create isolation and ecological gradients that can generate new species, but the relative roles of allopatric versus sympatric mechanisms in this Alpine radiation were unclear.
- What they did: The study sequenced 1249 nuclear gene loci from 81 samples using target enrichment for phylogenomics, biogeography, species delimitation, and SNP-based structure, plus flow cytometry for ploidy and morphometrics for selected pairs.
- The result: The core section contains 12 monophyletic species, likely diversified 1.39 million years ago, with founder-event speciation most common and allopolyploidy occurring only in the Alps.
The findingWhy it mattersWhat they didThe result
AI summary of the abstract · may contain errors · not medical advice · read the paper.