Ecological context and metapopulation dynamics affect sex-ratio variation among dioecious plant populations.

ABSTRACT:

Background and aims

Populations of dioecious flowering plants commonly exhibit heterogeneity in sex ratios and deviations from the equilibrium expectation of equal numbers of females and males. Yet the role of ecological and demographic factors in contributing towards biased sex ratios is currently not well understood.

Methods

Species-level studies from the literature were analysed to investigate ecological correlates of among-population sex-ratio variation and metapopulation models and empirical data were used to explore the influence of demography and non-equilibrium conditions on flowering sex ratios.

Key results

The survey revealed significant among-population heterogeneity in sex ratios and this was related to the degree of sampling effort. For some species, sex-

SUBMITTER: Field DL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3631328 | biostudies-literature | 2013 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature