Population genetics has made great strides in applying statistical analysis and mathematical modelling to understand how genes mutate and spread through populations over time. But real populations also live in space. Streams, mountains and other geographic features often divide populations, limit migration or otherwise influence gene flow. This book examines the processes that determine geographic patterns of genetic variation, providing a comprehensive guide to their study and interpretation. "Geographical Genetics" focuses on the mathematical relationships of spatial statistical measures of patterns to stochastic processes. It also develops the probability and distribution theory of various spatial statistics for analysis of population genetic data, detailing exact methods for using various spatial features to make precise inferences about migration, natural selection and other dynamic forces. The book also reviews the experimental literature on the types of spatial patterns of genetic variation found within and among populations. And it makes a strong connection between observed measures of spatial patterns and those predicted theoretically.
Along the way, it introduces readers to the mathematics of spatial statistics, applications to specific population genetic systems and the relationship between the mathematics of space-time processes and the formal theory of geographical genetics. Written by a leading authority, this is a comprehensive treatment of geographical genetics. It is a useful guide to the theory, techniques and applications of a field that will play an increasingly important role in population biology and ecology.