biostudies-literatureUnknown288(1958)Sadras VOTechnologies, from molecular genetics to precision agriculture, are outpacing theory, which is becoming a bottleneck for crop improvement. Here, we outline theoretical insights on the wheat phenotype from the perspective of three evolutionary and ecologically important relations-mother-offspring, plant-insect and plant-plant. The correlation between yield and grain number has been misinterpreted as cause-and-effect; an evolutionary perspective shows a striking similarity between crop and fishes. Both respond to environmental variation through offspring number; seed and egg size are conserved. The offspring of annual plants and semelparous fishes, lacking parental care, are subject to mother-offspring conflict and stabilizing selection. Labile reserve carbohydrates do not fit the current moProceedings. Biological sciences20211259https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC8424313biostudies-literatureEvolutionary and ecological perspectives on the wheat phenotype.PMC8424313Sadras VOfalseEvolutionary and ecological perspectives on the wheat phenotype.Technologies, from molecular genetics to precision agriculture, are outpacing theory, which is becoming a bottleneck for crop improvement. Here, we outline theoretical insights on the wheat phenotype from the perspective of three evolutionary and ecologically important relations-mother-offspring, plant-insect and plant-plant. The correlation between yield and grain number has been misinterpreted as cause-and-effect; an evolutionary perspective shows a striking similarity between crop and fishes. Both respond to environmental variation through offspring number; seed and egg size are conserved. The offspring of annual plants and semelparous fishes, lacking parental care, are subject to mother-offspring conflict and stabilizing selection. Labile reserve carbohydrates do not fit the current mo2021-01-01T00:00:00Z2021 Sep2026-03-12T23:41:26.075Z2022-02-11T11:27:14.577ZS-EPMC84243133449307910.1098/rspb.2021.1259