Different spatial scales of adaptation in the climbing behavior of Peromyscus maniculatus: geographic variation, natural selection, and gene flow

Abstract

Individuals of P. m. rufinus sampled from montane conifer forest and conifer woodland in Arizona were better climbers than P. m. sonoriensis sampled from conifer woodland and desert habitats in Nevada, a result consistent with the hypothesis that natural selection has produced large-scale adaptation in climbing behavior. However, the climbing ability of P. m. sonoriensis from conifer woodland habitats on isolated mountaintops in Nevada has not evolved in response to natural selection to the degree expected, and populations sampled from desert grassland habitat, adjacent to woodland P. m. rufinus in Arizona, have climbing abilities that are not significantly different from conifer woodland populations: a combination of historical events and insufficient time to respond to selection appears to have influenced geographic variation and the spatial scale of adaptation in climbing ability. -from Author