Next SOL Seminar Online will be presented by Rebecca Hilgenhof on Morphological trait evolution in the mega-diverse genus Solanum L. & the key to tame the monster
Abstract. Despite the large size of the genus, Solanum has been thought to be relatively conserved in its floral diversity because all members of the genus are buzz-pollinated with a consistent floral ‘Bauplan’ linked to the generalist pollination strategy by buzzing bees. Vegetative traits vary much more, however, reflecting the diverse habitats occupied by Solanum species with high levels of polymorphism observed even within species. This is in contrast to the general evolutionary theory that reproductive characters are expected to show higher evolutionary rates because they evolve under sexual selection. I set to quantify rates of morphological evolution across Solanum using 16 vegetative and reproductive traits recorded from taxonomic monographs and online resources, and a supermatrix phylogeny of Solanum based on two nuclear and seven plastid regions. Results show high transition rates in six reproductive and two vegetative characters: corolla colouration, filament-anther ratio, anther length, filament length, fruit colour, stone cells in fruits, trichome type and leaf type. The higher rates of morphological evolution in traits linked to pollination indicate an unexpected strong role of pollinator-mediated selection in the buzz-pollinated group. I also present a freely available multi-access key to Solanum clades and to 342 species of non-spiny solanums (members of Thelopodium clade & Clade I), which I constructed, based on the morphological data gathered during my study.
When? Friday 18th September, 4 pm (GMT+1)
The zoom link to join the meeting is https://cuboulder.zoom.us/j/94333146166 Meeting ID: 943 3314 6166, password: Solanaceae
Watch this talk again here: https://youtu.be/exnNezltJy8
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