C₄ photosynthesis provided an immediate demographic advantage to populations of the grass Alloteropsis semialata

center dot C-4 photosynthesis is a key innovation in land plant evolution, but its immediate effects on population demography are unclear. We explore the early impact of the C-4 trait on the trajectories of C-4 and non-C-4 populations of the grass Alloteropsis semialata. center dot We combine niche models projected into paleoclimate layers for the last 5 million years with demographic models based on genomic data. center dot The initial split between C-4 and non-C-4 populations was followed by a larger expansion of the ancestral C-4 population, and further diversification led to the unparalleled expansion of descendant C-4 populations. Overall, C-4 populations spread over three continents and achieved the highest population growth, in agreement with a broader climatic niche that rendered a large potential range over time. The C-4 populations that remained in the region of origin, however, experienced lower population growth, rather consistent with local geographic constraints. Moreover, the posterior transfer of some C-4 -related characters to non-C-4 counterparts might have facilitated the recent expansion of non-C-4 populations in the region of origin. center dot Altogether, our findings support that C-4 photosynthesis provided an immediate demographic advantage to A. semialata populations, but its effect might be masked by geographic contingencies.