Quantifying niche overlap and transgression in allopolyploid hybrids: Case study of Sorbus subgenus Aria

Q: What does this research mean for the field?

Apomictic hybrid entities exhibit diverse niche occupation strategies and can occupy environmental niche space at and beyond the limits of their parental taxa, potentially conserving marginal evolutionary adaptations. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.INCREMENTAL. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

Christie Philipp; Martin Feulner; Kevin Karbstein; Norbert Meyer; Alfons Weig; Manuel J. Steinbauer

doi:10.1093/aob/mcag280

September 3, 2026Annals of BotanyOpen Access

Quantifying niche overlap and transgression in allopolyploid hybrids: Case study of Sorbus subgenus Aria

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Key Points

To determine whether apomictic hybrid lineages in Sorbus subgenus Aria occupy intermediate, marginal, or transgressive ecological niches relative to parental taxa, and whether niche shifts relate to ploidy.
Assessed 762 occurrences of two parental taxa (Sorbus aria and S. collina), seven triploid entities, and single genotypes in the Franconian Jura, Germany, with sample sizes ranging from 11 to 453 individuals per entity.
Profiled genetic structure using MIG-seq and evaluated niche differentiation via Sørensen similarity and PCA-derived hypervolumes.
Environmental niche space was transgressive in three hybrid entities, significantly shifted toward parental niche margins in one entity, and remained intermediate in the others.
Transgressive shifts occurred toward milder temperatures and drier microclimates, with tetraploid S. collina occupying significantly warmer and wetter environments than other cytotypes.
Triploid entities diverged from diploid S. aria primarily along microtopographic gradients defined by the second PCA axis.

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Implication

Ecological analysis reveals transgressive niche shifts in apomictic hybrid Sorbus, indicating that asexual reproduction preserves novel adaptations beyond parental environmental limits.

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Philipp et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a9bd3f16b95aff0620eb3b8 https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcag280

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Quantifying niche overlap and transgression in allopolyploid hybrids: Case study of Sorbus subgenus Aria

Key Points

No abstract yet

Implication

Discussion

Cite This Study

Quantifying niche overlap and transgression in allopolyploid hybrids: Case study of Sorbus subgenus Aria

Key Points

No abstract yet

Implication

Discussion

Cite This Study

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