Branco, Sara2019-07-162019-07-162009Branco, Sara (2009). Are oaks locally adapted to serpentine soils? In 6th International Conference on Serpentine Ecology. Coll Atlantic, Bar Harbor, ou Northeastern Naturalist. ISSN 1092-6194. 16:5, p. 329-340http://hdl.handle.net/10198/19435Serpentine soils are extreme habitats known to be involved in processes of local adaptation and speciation of plants. Here I use a greenhouse reciprocaltransplant experiment to compile baseline data for describing patterns of serpentine local adaptation in Quercus ilex subsp. ballota (Holm Oak). I also tested the role of mycorrhizal fungi on the establishment and growth of seedlings on serpentine and non-serpentine soil. Non-serpentine seedlings grew more than serpentine seedlings in all treatments. Plants grew more on non-serpentine soil and mycorrhizal fungi positively infl uenced seedling growth. I did not fi nd evidence of better seedling performance in their home environment, suggesting the absence of local adaptation. However, I document signifi cant growth differences between serpentine and nonserpentine seedlings, which suggest physiological differences between seedlings from these two soil origins.engOakSerpentine soilconference paper10.1656/045.016.0524