Coalescence Tree shapes under varying histories of population size change
The three
models show the expected trees for population that
remain constant [left], increase [middle],
or decrease [right]. Intuitively, in a
population of constant size, MRCAs will
be uniformly distributed over the time of the
tree. Increasing populations will tend to retain
older lineages, and decreasing populations will
tend to lose all but the most recent lineages.
Figure © 2013 by Sinauer; Text material © 2017 by Steven M. Carr