Effects of altitude on the mating system of alpine plant

The mating system is associated with genetic relationships, and genetic variation within population. To a large extent, the mating system effects on population quantity and genetic composition for natural selection. Besides the biological characters of plant itself, the mating system is evolved with the changeable environment. Altitude is one of the vertically regular environmental factors, which effects on mating system of alpine plant. The evolutionary model of mating system reveals that the trend of mating system changes from outcross to selfing along with increasing altitude. In extreme environments, alpine plant always experiences polyploidization to adapt the harsh environments. This study reviewed the regular influences of altitude on the plant mating system for the following aspects, including the number and species of pollinator, model of pollination and life history of plant, flower component and so on.