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Ecological Genetics and Air Pollution pp 33–59Cite as

Ecological Genetics and Chemical Modifications of the Atmosphere

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Abstract

The influence of atmospheric pollutants on vegetation has been studied since the middle of the 19th century and numerous cases have demonstrated deleterious effects, ranging from subtle growth reductions to the destruction of entire ecosystems. It is thus surprising that such a powerful environmental stress was not identified earlier as a potent force for the natural selection of air pollution resistance under field conditions. The first reference to such a possiblity is the observation by Dunn (1959) that Lupinus populations in Los Angeles were more resistant to the local photochemical smog than populations originating from cleaner locations. This observation remained largely unrecognized until the early 1970s, when the first systematic attempts were made to detect the evolution of resistance to SO2 in herbaceous species in polluted areas. In this respect, Bradshaw and McNeilly (1981) have drawn a parallel with their own research on the evolution of resistance to heavy metals, noting the work of Prat (1934) on copper resistance in Silene dioica populations from copper mines in Czechoslovakia, that remained forgotten in the literature for some 20 years.

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Authors
  1. J. Nigel B. Bell
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  2. Mike R. Ashmore
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  3. G. B. Wilson
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Desert Research Institute and Department of Environmental and Resource Sciences, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, Nevada, 89506-0220, USA

    George E. Taylor Jr.

  2. Ecological Studies Program, Electric Power Research Institute, 3412 Hillview Avenue, Palo Alto, California, 94303, USA

    Louis F. Pitelka

  3. Department of Botany and Plant Science, University of California-Riverside, Riverside, California, 92521, USA

    Michael T. Clegg

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© 1991 Springer-Verlag New York Inc.

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Bell, J.N.B., Ashmore, M.R., Wilson, G.B. (1991). Ecological Genetics and Chemical Modifications of the Atmosphere. In: Taylor, G.E., Pitelka, L.F., Clegg, M.T. (eds) Ecological Genetics and Air Pollution. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-3060-1_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-3060-1_3

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4612-7780-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4612-3060-1

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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