ABSTRACT
Genetic variation in natural plant populations is structured in time and space. Both the development and maintenance of population genetic structure are due to interactions among a complex suite of evolutionary factors. Tropical tree communities present an excellent system within which to examine the effects of reproductive biology on genetic organization. The chapter provides the results of allozyme analyses of 16 species of tropical shrubs and trees common to the moist forest of Barro Colorado Island, Republic of Panama. It examines Associations between assumed pollen and seed mobility and measures of intersite genetic diversity. The results indicate that high levels of allozyme variation are maintained within populations of tropical trees and that among-site variation is low. The majority of the variation is found within populations, although a small, but statistically significant, amount of variation is found among populations. This supports the argument that gene flow is high among locations separated by as much as 2–3 kilometers.
