Floral Color Variation in Drosera cistiflora Is Associated With Switches in Beetle Pollinator Assemblages.

ABSTRACT: Floral color shifts are thought to be one of the most common evolutionary transitions in plants, and pollinators are often proposed as important selective agents driving these transitions. However, shifts in flower color can also be related to neutral genetic processes or pleiotropy linked with selection via other biotic agents or abiotic factors. Here we ask whether abiotic factors or pollinators provide the best explanation for divergence in flower color among populations of the sundew Drosera cistiflora s.l. (Droseraceae). This species complex in the Greater Cape Floristic Region contains at least five distinctive floral color forms. Abiotic factors do not appear to play a significant role in color determination, as the forms are not specific to a single soil or vegetation type,

SUBMITTER: Johnson SD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7704453 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature