@article{fdi:010053525,
  title = {{S}election for earlier flowering crop associated with climatic variations in the {S}ahel},
  author = {{V}igouroux, {Y}ves and {M}ariac, {C}{\'e}dric and {D}e {M}ita, {S}t{\'e}phane and {P}ham, {J}ean-{L}ouis and {G}erard, {B}. and {K}apran, {I}. and {S}agnard, {F}. and {D}eu, {M}. and {C}hantereau, {J}. and {A}li, {A}. and {N}djeunga, {J}. and {L}uong, {V}. and {T}huillet, {A}nne-{C}{\'e}line and {S}aidou, {A}. {A}. and {B}ezan{\c{c}}on, {G}illes},
  editor = {},
  language = {{ENG}},
  abstract = {{C}limate changes will have an impact on food production and will require costly adaptive responses. {A}dapting to a changing environment will be particularly challenging in sub-{S}aharan {A}frica where climate change is expected to have a major impact. {H}owever, one important phenomenon that is often overlooked and is poorly documented is the ability of agro-systems to rapidly adapt to environmental variations. {S}uch an adaptation could proceed by the adoption of new varieties or by the adaptation of varieties to a changing environment. {I}n this study, we analyzed these two processes in one of the driest agro-ecosystems in {A}frica, the {S}ahel. {W}e performed a detailed study in {N}iger where pearl millet is the main crop and covers 65% of the cultivated area. {T}o assess how the agro-system is responding to recent recurrent drought, we analyzed samples of pearl millet landraces collected in the same villages in 1976 and 2003 throughout the entire cultivated area of {N}iger. {W}e studied phenological and morphological differences in the 1976 and 2003 collections by comparing them over three cropping seasons in a common garden experiment. {W}e found no major changes in the main cultivated varieties or in their genetic diversity. {H}owever, we observed a significant shift in adaptive traits. {C}ompared to the 1976 samples, samples collected in 2003 displayed a shorter lifecycle, and a reduction in plant and spike size. {W}e also found that an early flowering allele at the {PHYC} locus increased in frequency between 1976 and 2003. {T}he increase exceeded the effect of drift and sampling, suggesting a direct effect of selection for earliness on this gene. {W}e conclude that recurrent drought can lead to selection for earlier flowering in a major {S}ahelian crop. {S}urprisingly, these results suggest that diffusion of crop varieties is not the main driver of short term adaptation to climatic variation.},
  keywords = {},
  booktitle = {},
  journal = {{P}los {O}ne},
  volume = {6},
  numero = {5},
  pages = {e19563},
  ISSN = {1932-6203},
  year = {2011},
  DOI = {10.1371/journal.pone.0019563},
  URL = {https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010053525},
}