Ecological genetics articles from across Nature Portfolio

The Tara Pacific program and expedition focused on coral reefs across the Pacific Ocean and used a coordinated sampling effort to address questions at multiple scales using a common suite of samples. Here, we highlight some of the Tara Pacific achievements, discussing the benefits of long-duration sea expeditions for investigating a wide array of research questions within a selected ecosystem.

Hybrid populations have long been perceived as a threat to distinct lineages and undervalued from a conservation perspective. Now, research suggests that hybrid populations may harbour gene combinations that improve their ability to cope with changing climate conditions.

The combination of highly resolved climatic and genomic data allows assessment of putative maladaptation of populations to climate change and can identify high-risk populations. Now, a study that accounts for migration and dispersal shows high maladaptation of a North American tree species in the northern and eastern distribution range.

A study in Science uses experimental and population genomic approaches to examine the molecular underpinnings of evolved pollution resistance in Gulf killifish.