Journal article
The scope of Baker's law
The New phytologist, Vol.208(3), pp.656-667
11/2015
Handle:
https://hdl.handle.net/2376/110980
PMID: 26192018
Abstract
Baker's law refers to the tendency for species that establish on islands by long-distance dispersal to show an increased capacity for self-fertilization because of the advantage of self-compatibility when colonizing new habitat. Despite its intuitive appeal and broad empirical support, it has received substantial criticism over the years since it was proclaimed in the 1950s, not least because it seemed to be contradicted by the high frequency of dioecy on islands. Recent theoretical work has again questioned the generality and scope of Baker's law. Here, we attempt to discern where the idea is useful to apply and where it is not. We conclude that several of the perceived problems with Baker's law fall away when a narrower perspective is adopted on how it should be circumscribed. We emphasize that Baker's law should be read in terms of an enrichment of a capacity for uniparental reproduction in colonizing situations, rather than of high selfing rates. We suggest that Baker's law might be tested in four different contexts, which set the breadth of its scope: the colonization of oceanic islands, metapopulation dynamics with recurrent colonization, range expansions with recurrent colonization, and colonization through species invasions.
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Details
- Title
- The scope of Baker's law
- Creators
- John R Pannell - Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, 1015, Lausanne, SwitzerlandJosh R Auld - Department of Biology, West Chester University, West Chester, PA, 19383, USAYaniv Brandvain - Department of Plant Biology, University of Minnesota, St Paul, MN, 55108, USAMartin Burd - School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, 3800, AustraliaJeremiah W Busch - School of Biological Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, 99164, USAPierre-Olivier Cheptou - CEFE UMR 5175, CNRS, Universite de Montpellier, Université Paul-Valery Montpellier, EPHE, CEFE 34293, Montpellier Cedex 05, FranceJeffrey K Conner - Kellogg Biological Station and Department of Plant Biology, Michigan State University, Hickory Corners, MI, 49060, USAEmma E Goldberg - Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St Paul, MN, 55108, USAAlannie-Grace Grant - Department of Biology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, 15260, USADena L Grossenbacher - Department of Plant Biology, University of Minnesota, St Paul, MN, 55108, USAStephen M Hovick - Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 43210, USABoris Igic - Department of Biological Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, 840 W Taylor St, M/C 067, Chicago, IL, 60607, USASusan Kalisz - Department of Biology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, 15260, USATheodora Petanidou - Laboratory of Biogeography and Ecology, Department of Geography, University of the Aegean, 81100 Mytilene, Lesvos, GreeceApril M Randle - Department of Environmental Science, University of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, 94117-1049, USARafael Rubio de Casas - Estación Experimental de Zonas Áridas, EEZA-CSIC, Carretera de Sacramento s/n, La Cañada de San Urbano, EEZA 04120, Almeria, SpainAnton Pauw - Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, 7602, South AfricaJana C Vamosi - Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N1N4, CanadaAlice A Winn - Department of Biological Science, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, 32306, USA
- Publication Details
- The New phytologist, Vol.208(3), pp.656-667
- Academic Unit
- Biological Sciences, School of
- Publisher
- England
- Identifiers
- 99900547039401842
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article