Key message The GWAS and testing with Yr gene linked markers identified 109 loci including 40 novel loci for all-stage and adult plant stage resistance to stripe rust in 459 US contemporary hard winter wheat genotypes. Abstract Stripe rust is a destructive wheat disease, caused by Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici ( Pst ). To identify sources of stripe rust resistance in US contemporary hard winter wheat, a panel of 459 Grea...

Key message Multi-environmental characterization of flag leaf morphology traits in the US winter wheat revealed nine stable genomic regions for different flag leaf-related traits including a major region governing flag leaf angle. Abstract Flag leaf in wheat is the primary contributor to accumulating photosynthetic assimilates. Flag leaf morphology (FLM) traits determine the overall canopy structure and capacity to intercept t...

Many prior studies have uncovered evidence for local adaptation using reciprocal transplant experiments. However, these studies are rarely conducted for a long enough time to observe succession and competitive dynamics in a community context, limiting inferences for long‐lived species. Furthermore, the genetic basis of local adaptation and genetic associations with climate has rarely been identified. Here, we report on a long‐...

Big bluestem ( A ndropogon gerardii ) is an ecologically dominant grass with wide distribution across the environmental gradient of U.S. Midwest grasslands. This system offers an ideal natural laboratory to study population divergence and adaptation in spatially varying climates. Objectives were to: (i) characterize neutral genetic diversity and structure within and among three regional ecotypes derived from 11 prairies across...

In this study, we used a comparative genome scan to examine patterns of population differentiation with respect to host plant use in Hesperotettix viridis, a Nearctic oligophagous grasshopper locally specialized on various Asteraceae including Solidago, Gutierrezia, and Ericameria . We identified amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) loci with significantly elevated F ST (outlier loci) in multiple different‐host and sa...