Migration

In population genetics, migration (also known as gene flow) is the transfer of alleles or genes
from one population to another.
Migration into or out of a population may be responsible for a marked change in allele
frequencies (the proportion of members carrying a particular variant of a gene). Immigration may
also result in the addition of new genetic variants to the established gene pool of a particular
species or population.
There are a number of factors that affect the rate of gene flow between different populations.
One of the most significant factors is mobility, as greater mobility of an individual tends to give
it greater migratory potential. Animals tend to be more mobile than plants, although pollen and
seeds may be carried great distances by animals or wind.
For example, if a species of grass grows on both sides of a highway, pollen is likely to be
transported from one side to the other and vice versa. If this pollen is able to fertilize the plant
where it ends up and produce viable offspring, then the alleles in the pollen have effectively been
able to move from the population on one side of the highway to the other.
Maintained gene flow between two populations can also lead to a combination of the two gene
pools, reducing the genetic variation between the two groups. It is for this reason that gene flow
strongly acts against speciation, by recombining the gene pools of the groups, and thus, repairing
the developing differences in genetic variation that would have led to full speciation and creation
of daughter species.
Physical barriers to gene flow are usually, but not always, natural. They may include impassable
mountain ranges, oceans, or vast deserts. In some cases, they can be artificial, and even man-
made barriers.
Barriers to gene flow need not always be physical. Species can live in the same environment, yet
show very limited gene flow due to limited hybridization or hybridization yielding unfit hybrids.
Female choice can also play a role in hindering gene flow. Asymmetric recognition of local and
nonlocal songs has been found between two populations of black-throated blue warblers in the
United States, one in the northern United States (New Hampshire) and the other in the southern
United States (North Carolina). Males in the northern population respond strongly to the local
male songs but relatively weakly to the nonlocal songs of southern males. In contrast, southern
males respond equally to both local and nonlocal songs. The fact that northern males exhibit
differential recognition indicates that northern females tend not to mate with “heterospecific”
males from the south; thus it is not necessary for the northern males to respond strongly to the
song from a southern challenger. A barrier to gene flow exists from South to North as a result of
the female preference.
Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) refers to the transfer of genes between organisms in a manner
other than traditional reproduction, either through hybridization, antigenic shift, or reassortment
is sometimes an important source of genetic variation. Viruses can transfer genes between
species. Bacteria can incorporate genes from other dead bacteria, exchange genes with living
bacteria, and can exchange plasmids across species boundaries. "Sequence comparisons suggest
recent horizontal transfer of many genes among diverse species including across the boundaries
of phylogenetic "domains". Thus determining the phylogenetic history of a species cannot be
done conclusively by determining evolutionary trees for single genes."
Dispersal

It is an ecological process that involves the movement of an individual or multiple individuals

away from the population in which they were born to another location, or population, where they
will settle and reproduce. The two most common forms of dispersal are: natal and adult
dispersal. Natal dispersal is the first movement of an organism from its birth site to the site in
which it first attempts to reproduce. Adult dispersal entails changing location in space after
reaching reproductive maturity, usually involving movement from one habitat patch to another.
Another type of dispersal that does not fall into these two categories is gamete dispersal, which
is especially common for non-motile adult individuals, such as plants. Relocation to a new site is
a usual part of the life cycle of many plants and animals and is viewed as an adaptive trait in life
history.

Species distribution

Often, in addition to knowing the number and density of individuals in an area, ecologists will
also want to know their distribution. Species dispersion patterns—or distribution patterns—
refer to how the individuals in a population are distributed in space at a given time.

The individual organisms that make up a population can be more or less equally spaced,
dispersed randomly with no predictable pattern, or clustered in groups. These are known as
uniform, random, and clumped dispersion patterns, respectively.
  Uniform dispersion. In uniform dispersion, individuals of a population are spaced more
or less evenly. One example of uniform dispersion comes from plants that secrete toxins
to inhibit growth of nearby individuals—a phenomenon called allelopathy. We can also
find uniform dispersion in animal species where individuals stake out and defend
territories.

 Random dispersion. In random dispersion, individuals are distributed randomly, without

a predictable pattern. An example of random dispersion comes from dandelions and other
plants that have wind-dispersed seeds. The seeds spread widely and sprout where they
happen to fall, as long as the environment is favorable—has enough soil, water, nutrients,
and light.

 Clumped dispersion. In a clumped dispersion, individuals are clustered in groups. A

clumped dispersion may be seen in plants that drop their seeds straight to the ground—
such as oak trees—or animals that live in groups—schools of fish or herds of elephants.
Clumped dispersions also happen in habitats that are patchy, with only some patches
suitable to live in.

As you can see from these examples, dispersion of individuals in a population provides more
information about how they interact with each other—and with their environment—than a simple
density measurement.