Natural Selection and Genetic Constraints on Flowering Phenology in an Invasive Plant

2010 ◽  
Vol 171 (9) ◽  
pp. 960-971 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert I. Colautti ◽  
Spencer C. H. Barrett
Keyword(s):  
Natural Selection ◽  
Invasive Plant ◽  
Flowering Phenology ◽  
Genetic Constraints

scholarly journals Latitudinal pattern of flowering synchrony in an invasive wind-pollinated plant

2018 ◽  
Vol 285 (1884) ◽  
pp. 20181072 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shiyun Qiu ◽  
Xiao Xu ◽  
Shuangshuang Liu ◽  
Wenwen Liu ◽  
Jing Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Invasive Plants ◽  
Invasive Plant ◽  
Seed Set ◽  
Climatic Factors ◽  
Flowering Phenology ◽  
Invasion Success ◽  
Flowering Synchrony ◽  
Latitudinal Pattern

Flowering synchrony can play an important role in plants' reproductive success, which is essential for the successful establishment and spread of invasive plants. Although flowering synchrony has been found to be closely related to climatic factors, the effects of variation in such factors along latitudinal gradient on flowering synchrony and the role of flowering synchrony in the reproductive success of invading populations remain largely unexplored. In a 2-year field study, we examined the latitudinal variation of flowering phenology, especially flowering synchrony, in an invasive plant, Spartina alterniflora , along coastal China, and its relationship with population seed set across three climatic zones. We found that first flowering date was delayed, and flowering synchrony increased with increasing latitude. Flowering synchrony was negatively related to temperature during flowering season but not to soil properties or precipitation, suggesting that climate has shaped the latitudinal pattern of flowering synchrony. Moreover, a positive correlation between flowering synchrony and seed set across latitudes indicates the possible role of flowering synchrony in the latitudinal pattern of sexual reproduction in S. alterniflora . These results suggest that, in addition to the effects of climate on the growth of invasive species, climatic factors can play an important role in the invasion success of alien plants by regulating the flowering synchrony and thus the reproductive success of invasive plants.

scholarly journals Phenological shifts of native and invasive species under climate change: insights from the Boechera–Lythrum model

2017 ◽  
Vol 372 (1712) ◽  
pp. 20160032 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert I. Colautti ◽  
Jon Ågren ◽  
Jill T. Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Rocky Mountain ◽  
Flowering Phenology ◽  
Lythrum Salicaria ◽  
Genetic Constraints ◽  
Floral Phenology ◽  
Phenological Shifts ◽  
Delayed Flowering

Warmer and drier climates have shifted phenologies of many species. However, the magnitude and direction of phenological shifts vary widely among taxa, and it is often unclear when shifts are adaptive or how they affect long-term viability. Here, we model evolution of flowering phenology based on our long-term research of two species exhibiting opposite shifts in floral phenology: Lythrum salicaria , which is invasive in North America, and the sparse Rocky Mountain native Boechera stricta . Genetic constraints are similar in both species, but differences in the timing of environmental conditions that favour growth lead to opposite phenological shifts under climate change. As temperatures increase, selection is predicted to favour earlier flowering in native B. stricta while reducing population viability, even if populations adapt rapidly to changing environmental conditions. By contrast, warming is predicted to favour delayed flowering in both native and introduced L. salicaria populations while increasing long-term viability. Relaxed selection from natural enemies in invasive L. salicaria is predicted to have little effect on flowering time but a large effect on reproductive fitness. Our approach highlights the importance of understanding ecological and genetic constraints to predict the ecological consequences of evolutionary responses to climate change on contemporary timescales. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Human influences on evolution, and the ecological and societal consequences’.

Flowering phenology influences bee community dynamics in old fields dominated by the invasive plant Centaurea stoebe

2016 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 497-507 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brendan D. Carson ◽  
Christine A. Bahlai ◽  
Jason Gibbs ◽  
Douglas A. Landis
Keyword(s):  
Community Dynamics ◽  
Invasive Plant ◽  
Flowering Phenology ◽  
Old Fields ◽  
Centaurea Stoebe ◽  
Bee Community

scholarly journals Evolutionary rescue and the limits of adaptation

2013 ◽  
Vol 368 (1610) ◽  
pp. 20120080 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graham Bell
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Natural Selection ◽  
Relative Fitness ◽  
Population Declines ◽  
Genetic Constraints ◽  
Evolutionary Rescue ◽  
Large Populations ◽  
Effective Selection ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Number Of Individuals

Populations subject to severe stress may be rescued by natural selection, but its operation is restricted by ecological and genetic constraints. The cost of natural selection expresses the limited capacity of a population to sustain the load of mortality or sterility required for effective selection. Genostasis expresses the lack of variation that prevents many populations from adapting to stress. While the role of relative fitness in adaptation is well understood, evolutionary rescue emphasizes the need to recognize explicitly the importance of absolute fitness. Permanent adaptation requires a range of genetic variation in absolute fitness that is broad enough to provide a few extreme types capable of sustained growth under a stress that would cause extinction if they were not present. This principle implies that population size is an important determinant of rescue. The overall number of individuals exposed to selection will be greater when the population declines gradually under a constant stress, or is progressively challenged by gradually increasing stress. In gradually deteriorating environments, survival at lethal stress may be procured by prior adaptation to sublethal stress through genetic correlation. Neither the standing genetic variation of small populations nor the mutation supply of large populations, however, may be sufficient to provide evolutionary rescue for most populations.

scholarly journals Phylogenetically diverse native systems are more resistant to invasive plant species on Robben Island, South Africa

Genome ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 217-228
Author(s):  
Kowiyou Yessoufou ◽  
Bezeng S. Bezeng ◽  
Orou G. Gaoue ◽  
Thato Bengu ◽  
Michelle van der Bank
Keyword(s):  
Invasive Species ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Invasive Plant ◽  
Biotic Interactions ◽  
Flowering Phenology ◽  
Invasion Success ◽  
Alien Invasive Species ◽  
Ecological Niches ◽  
Phylogenetic Structure ◽  
Robben Island

Alien invasive species are problematic both economically and ecologically, particularly on islands. As such, understanding how they interact with their environment is necessary to inform invasive species management. Here, we ask the following questions: What are the main functional traits that correlate with invasion success of alien plants on Robben Island? How does phylogenetic structure shape biotic interactions on the island? Using multiple approaches to explore these questions, we found that alien invasive species flower later during the year and for longer period, although flowering phenology was sensitive to alternative starting date. Additionally, we observed that alien invasive species are mostly abiotically pollinated and are generally hermaphroditic whilst their native counterparts rely on biotic pollinators, flower earlier, and are generally dioecious, suggesting that alien invasive and native species use different ecological niches. Furthermore, we found a facilitative interaction between an alien invasive legume and other invasive plants as predicted by the invasional meltdown hypothesis, but this does not influence the phylogenetic structure of plant communities. Finally, phylogenetically diverse set of native species are less receptive to alien invasive species. Collectively, our findings reveal how biotic interactions and phylogenetic relatedness structure alien invasive – native co-existence.

scholarly journals Temperature and Rainfall Are Separate Agents of Selection Shaping Population Differentiation in a Forest Tree

Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1145
Author(s):  
João Costa e Silva ◽  
Brad Potts ◽  
Peter A. Harrison ◽  
Tanya Bailey
Keyword(s):  
Natural Selection ◽  
Population Differentiation ◽  
Natural Populations ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Direct Consequence ◽  
Arid Environment ◽  
Forest Tree ◽  
Machine Learning Algorithms ◽  
Multiple Sources ◽  
Genetic Constraints

Research highlights: We present evidence indicating that covariation of functional traits among populations of a forest tree is not due to genetic constraints, but rather selective covariance arising from local adaptation to different facets of the climate, namely rainfall and temperature. Background and Aims: Traits frequently covary among natural populations. Such covariation can be caused by pleiotropy and/or linkage disequilibrium, but also may arise when the traits are genetically independent as a direct consequence of natural selection, drift, mutation and/or gene flow. Of particular interest are cases of selective covariance, where natural selection directly generates among-population covariance in a set of genetically independent traits. We here studied the causes of population-level covariation in two key traits in the Australian tree Eucalyptus pauciflora. Materials and Methods: We studied covariation in seedling lignotuber size and vegetative juvenility using 37 populations sampled from throughout the geographic and ecological ranges of E. pauciflora on the island of Tasmania. We integrated evidence from multiple sources: (i) comparison of patterns of trait covariation within and among populations; (ii) climate-trait modelling using machine-learning algorithms; and (iii) selection analysis linking trait variation to field growth in an arid environment. Results: We showed strong covariation among populations compared with the weak genetic correlation within populations for the focal traits. Population differentiation in these genetically independent traits was correlated with different home-site climate variables (lignotuber size with temperature; vegetative juvenility with rainfall), which spatially covaried. The role of selection in shaping the population differentiation in lignotuber size was supported by its relationship with fitness measured in the field. Conclusions: Our study highlights the multi-trait nature of adaptation likely to occur as tree species respond to spatial and temporal changes in climate.

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