Flower Diversification Across "Pollinator Climates": Sensory Aspects of Corolla Color Evolution in the Florally Diverse South American Genus Jaborosa (Solanaceae).

ABSTRACT: Flower phenotype may diverge within plant lineages when moving across "pollinator climates" (geographic differences in pollinator abundance or preference). Here we explored the potential importance of pollinators as drivers of floral color diversification in the nightshade genus Jaborosa, taking into account color perception capabilities of the actual pollinators (nocturnal hawkmoths vs. saprophilous flies) under a geographic perspective. We analyzed the association between transitions across environments and perceptual color axes using comparative methods. Our results revealed two major evolutionary themes in Jaborosa: (1) a "warm subtropical sphingophilous clade" composed of three hawkmoth-pollinated species found in humid lowland habitats, with large white flowers that clu

SUBMITTER: More M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7750315 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature