HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Figures Only Full Text Free Full Text (PDF) Free Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (4) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Ben-David, R. Articles by Abbo, S. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Ben-David, R. Articles by Abbo, S. Agricola Articles by Ben-David, R. Articles by Abbo, S. Related Collections Other Legumes Plant Genetic Resources

PLANT GENETIC RESOURCES

Ecogeography and Demography of Cicer judaicum Boiss., a Wild Annual Relative of Domesticated Chickpea

^a The Robert H. Smith Institute of Plant Science and Genetics in Agriculture, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, P.O. Box 12, Rehovot 76100, Israel
^b Department of Biology, Faculty of Science and Science Education, University of Haifa-Oranim, Tivon 36006, Israel
^c Department of Biology, University of Gaziantep, 27310, Turkey

^* Corresponding author (abbo{at}agri.huji.ac.il)

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is a major pulse crop in the Indian subcontinent and other world regions and is characterized by narrow adaptation relative to other cool season food legumes. Comparative ecophysiology employing closely related wild species is a powerful tool to broaden the understanding of the genetic and physiological basis of crop adaptation. However, meager data are available on the ecological preferences of annual wild Cicer species. Moreover, the geographic range, its size, shape, and boundaries as well as its internal structure have never been studied for any of the wild Cicer taxa, thereby limiting our understanding of Cicer biology. Accordingly, this work focused on Israeli C. judaicum Boiss. a wild annual relative of chickpea. We defined the range of the species across the Mediterranean zone of Israel, characterized the ecogeographical profile of its habitats and studied two populated sites at the macro- and microsite levels in terms of plant density, frequency, and niche physical characteristics. Throughout the survey area the species is mostly confined to stony and rocky niches where competition with more aggressive annuals is small. This habitat preference dictates a patchy distribution pattern at all levels, from local niche to the region and beyond.