Most of the known facts of anthropogenic hybridization of poplar with native taxa are observed in disturbed (ruderal) territories. In the Siberian region, their areas are steadily growing and, at the same time, they become centers of hybridization of the cultivar Populus × sibirica G.V. Krylov & G.V. Grig. ex A.K. Skvortsov with native P. nigra L., and pose a threat to local population gene pools. The purpose of this work is to consider the features of hybridization of Populus × sibirica with P. nigra in disturbed habitats. To achieve the goal set by the authors in 2020–2022, two populations of hybrids were studied in the vicinity of the city of Novokuznetsk (Kuzbass). Materials obtained earlier in the same area when studying the variability in plantations of P. nigra and P. × sibirica were used for comparative study and analysis. Hybrids, both in natural and disturbed habitats, inherit from the Siberian poplar the differentiation of crown shoots obtained by the latter from the ancestors of sections Tacamahaca Mill. In contrast to plantations in natural habitats, hybrids in disturbed areas showed variability in terms of the development of basal glands both at the endogenous and individual levels. Populations of hybrids under these conditions are characterized by a significantly higher phenotypic diversity due to the absence of stabilizing selection. Survival of “different-quality” hybrids under these conditions leads to the absence of prevailing phenotypes in the populations and the absence of asymmetry characteristic of hybridization.
Keywords: anthropogenic hybridization, disturbed habitats, phenotypic diversity, population, Populus × sibirica, Populus nigra, variabilityAll articles can be accessed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC BY 4.0).