Morphological plasticity and adaptation level of distylous Primula nivalis in a heterogeneous alpine environment.

ABSTRACT: Plant populations at high elevation face extreme climatic conditions and resource limitations. The existence of distylous species at different elevations can help us investigate their adaptation to high altitudes, the evolution of their morphological characteristics, as well as their responses to limited resources. Here, 17 populations of Primula nivalis at different elevations were evaluated regarding variations in plant morphological characteristics, biomass allocation, and morphological plasticity in a heterogeneous environment. Our results demonstrate that heterogeneous environments can affect plant morphological characteristics and resource allocation in each sexual morph of these plants. Moreover, environmental variations reduced morphological plasticity in the two plant morphs, and

SUBMITTER: Abdusalam A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6317488 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature