The establishment of reproductive isolation is considered to be an ultimate result of ecological speciation, but empirical evidence for the latter is limited. We hypothesized that in the absence of inter-specific gene flow and with subtle environmental differences, local adaptation will not require trade-offs in performance across environments and therefore will not result in reproductive isolation

Direct seeding in the restoration of degraded areas requires less financial investment and facilitates the use of greater diversity of species from different functional groups than traditional planting of seedlings. However, the application of this technique in the ecological restoration of post-mined areas in grassland environments is still poorly investigated. This study evaluated seed germination

The causal pathways of the anthropogenic disturbance effect on the above-ground vegetation, seed bank, and seed rain can provide information to understand the dynamic of natural regeneration in order to predict changes in the community assemblage. However, due to the spatial and temporal complexity of the natural regeneration process, these pathways have rarely been tested empirically. Therefore, to

Former and present cultivation of plant species impacts their distribution patterns and today's composition of floras. If native and feral populations are overlapping, the local status of a species remains often questionable. The musk strawberry (Fragaria moschata) is such an example: It is native to Central Europe but has been extensively cultivated until the end of 19th century. The border between

Spatial genetic structure (SGS) studies contribute to our understanding of gene flow and species dispersal. Only a few studies have linked the spatio-temporal pattern of SGS and intra-specific interactions. Black poplar (Populus nigra L.) is a threatened pioneer riparian tree species along many rivers across Europe. We studied its SGS in cohorts of varying ages at a fine-scale (i.e. at distances including

Tripleurospermum is a typically Mediterranean genus with ca. 40 species. It is widespread and diverse in Turkey with ca. 32 taxa, of which 12 are provided anatomical traits of both leaf and achene/cypsela, previously. In addition, the leaf anatomy of endemic T. baytopianum as well as the achene anatomy of endemic T. rosellum var. album with diploid cytotype are presented from Turkey. In this study

In tropical dry forests, fire is a common disturbance and seed traits may drive regeneration of plant populations during these events. In this study, we aimed to (i) investigate whether the seed coat and/or fruit endocarp impose physical dormancy, (ii) check whether physical dormancy confers seed tolerance to heat shocks and (iii) verify whether heat shocks break physical dormancy among woody species

Multiple environmental cues may break seed physical dormancy (PY) in fire-prone ecosystems, but disentangling the roles of such cues remains challenging. Current research has mostly focused on the role of high temperatures (heat shocks) in PY alleviation, while post-fire environmental conditions are less understood. Here, we examined the role of post-fire temperature fluctuation on seed germination

Valerianaceae provides a model clade for examining diversification in floral shape, especially involving size, bilateral symmetry, asymmetry, and handedness. Fedia species have pink, strongly bilaterally symmetrical corollas while Valerianella species generally have white, near-radially symmetrical corollas. In this study we examine the early floral ontogeny of Valerianella locusta and Fedia graciliflora

We present a comparative study of the flora and vegetation of marble outcrops and their nearby migmatite matrix from mountains in central Argentina. In all, we sampled 50 sites and recorded the cover-abundance of all vascular plants present according to the Braun-Blanquet cover-abundance scale. In addition, rock fragments were collected for chemical analysis (Ca2+, Mg2+, K and Na). Three plant communities

In the Brazilian Cerrado, Coelocephalapion weevils induce galls on the leaves of Croton antisyphiliticus (Euphorbiaceae). Gall induction results in dozens of extrafloral nectaries (EFNs) being produced on the gall surface. This plant has a low number of EFNs at the margin of its healthy leaves. The interaction weevil-plant induces the overproduction of EFNs on the galls. The presence of glands on leaves

The perennial angiosperm holoparasite Cynomorium coccineum L. (Cynomoriaceae) was found infecting the roots of halophytes in a Mediterranean coastal salt marsh in Egypt. The parasite consists of a subterranean rhizome, which carries haustoria and sends aboveground annual inflorescences. Although the published research on the botany and taxonomy of C. coccineum dates back to approximately 150 years

In the laboratory, non-chlorophyllic (orthodox) fern spores are long-lived. However, their potential longevity might not reflect ecological longevity, which determines their viability within the natural soil spore bank. Our aim was to compare ecological (in a semi-natural soil bank) and potential (storage in laboratory–suboptimal conditions) longevity and vigour of fern spores over a period of five

Survival during burial is dependent upon a seed's ability to resist pathogen pressure and physiological aging. Several studies support a positive interspecific relationship between seed survival in soil and seed coat thickness. Our research attempted to understand if a similar intraspecific relationship occurs in Rudbeckia mollis (Asteraceae) seeds of different mass. Seeds were collected in August

Vascular epiphytes in temperate zones are allegedly rare due to climatic constraints, such as drought and freezing temperatures during winter. Here, we investigate how abundance and seasonal growth of epiphytic polypod ferns in Western Europe are influenced by annual rainfall and temperature. We recorded abundances and growth of epiphytic polypod ferns over two years at three sites along a rainfall

Numerous elevational gradients of phenotypic variation in plants were described, and usually treated as results of selection as a null hypothesis. However, effects of selection are difficult to disentangle from chance events and population evolutionary history. We aimed to do this on the example of Caucasian Primulavulgaris using a genome screening approach. Additionally, we wanted to understand if

Plant-parasitic nematodes can manipulate their host-plant tissues to induce the neoformation of structures called “galls”. These structures confer protection for the nematode colonies against biotic and abiotic factors, as well as guarantee food supplies, while the feeding stimulus lasts. Ditylenchus gallaeformans induces galls on leaves of several Miconia species (Melastomataceae) of the Brazilian

Intraspecific variability of anatomical leaf traits is usually determined on the basis of median sections and interpreted as adaptive. We hypothesized that anatomical traits may relate to the position within the leaf, reflecting functional coordination e.g., between transport and gas exchange capacities and between supporting tissue and the supported leaf weight. Anatomical variation may thus be partly

The costs of Biscutella laevigata adaptation, a facultative metallophyte, to an environment polluted with heavy metals were established by analyzing the differences in embryological processes between plants from two populations in Southern Poland (a mountain, in the Tatra Mountains and calamine, in Bolesław). Disturbances in male and female lineage development occurred in plants from both populations

The aim of the present study was to compare a relatively large number of native plant species from salt-affected coastal habitats with respect to their Na+ and K+ accumulation capacity and electrolyte level in leaves. Sampling sites (77 in total) were chosen during field survey in coastal habitats located at geographically distant places along the Baltic Sea in the territory of Latvia, Estonia, Denmark

Globoid leaf galls with an abaxial concavity are induced by an undescribed species of Meunieriella Kieffer, 1909 (Cecidomyiidae) in Avicennia schaueriana Stapf & Leechm. ex Moldenke (Acanthaceae), a plant extremely adapted to mangroves. The gall-inducers may potentiate anatomical adaptations of host plants for producing a better shelter and food. We expected that some A. schaueriana important adaptations

Nigella damascena (Ranunculaceae) is a common Mediterranean species traditionally used as condiment and healing herb. Its perianth dimorphism has been known since 1591. In all modern accessions examined to date, a single allele of the NdAP3–3 gene characterized by a MITE insertion has been found to be responsible for the mutant morph, lacking a corolla. Based on herbarium collections, we aimed at (i)

Habenaria rhodocheila is different from other species in the genus as it has bright yellow-orange, orange-red or red floral colors and grows in subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forests. It is listed as a level II protected plant in China. This study focused on details of the pollination mechanism, including floral structure, the pollinator and its behavior, the pollination process, and fruit set

The chemical profile and phytotoxicity of the essential oil (EO) extracted from the invasive weed Solanum rostratum Dunal was investigated. GC/MS analysis led to the identification of 29 constituents, with phytol, cholesterol trimethylsilyl ether, adipic acid, bis (2-ethylhexyl) ester, and muurola-4, 10(14)‑dien‑1β-ol being abundant in the oil. Phytotoxic assay showed that the EO exhibited significant

We studied two Agave species differing in microhabitat; when adult, A. striata is light-tolerant and A. salmiana is drought-tolerant. However, both species establish under nurse plants. The aim of this work was to investigate the ecophysiological mechanisms of these two species to tolerate different shade and water conditions at the seedling stage. Seedlings were grown for six months under two water

Wood density is one of the main functional traits affecting demographic rates of tropical trees. However, little is known about how this translates into abundance of trees in local assemblages. I hypothesized that: (1) higher wood density would generally result in better adaptation to prevailing environmental conditions in seasonally dry semideciduous forests, which would translate into numerical dominance

Hoya floral characters are highly elaborate and associated with a complex and specialised pollination mechanism. The pollination of two Hoya species has been studied previously, but little is known about the specific nature and interactions between flower morphology, pollinators, and their environment. Here we investigate the pollination of Hoya pottsii, where pollinaria are transferred onto several

Polyploidization is an important speciation and evolution mechanism in ferns. Initially, new cytotypes face challenges in maintaining themselves within the majority cytotype populations. Unlike in most even-ploidy cytotypes, fern triploids are often apomictic or infertile, due to genetic imbalance. An interesting opportunity to study these phenomena has emerged with the discovery of triploid bracken

Calycanthus (Calycanthaceae), a genus for which three species are described, belongs to an early diverging lineage of angiosperms. As far as known, all species have highly specialized sap beetle (Nitidulidae) pollination systems. While the floral scent is likely to play a key role in attracting the beetles to the flowers, its chemistry is not known for any of the species of this genus. Herein, we analyzed

Litter is a vital component of ecosystem functionality, which is inherently linked to net primary productivity and global biogeochemical cycles. To better understand the drivers that modify net primary productivity, we need to disentangle the processes that underly changes in the generation of litter. We employed structural equation models (SEMs) to test for the direct and indirect effects of biodiversity

Plant adaptation to sea level rise has important implications for conservation and shoreline protection. However, it has received much less attention than other global changes. Here I explored adaptation of one of the dominant plants in European saltmarshes to sea level rise and whether this adaptation is mediated by successional stages. Different successional stages have distinct characteristics such

Trichomes of 60 taxa of tribe Marrubieae were investigated using light and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) in order to assess their importance in generic delimitation. In general, two main types of trichomes were observed: glandular (capitate, peltate or branched) and non-glandular (simple or branched) trichomes. The results revealed trichome micromorphology as useful for taxon delimitation within

Annatto (Bixa orellana L.) is the only species that produces bixin, a red pigment extracted from its seeds and used as a natural dye. Little is known about the distribution and the anatomical and ultrastructural aspects of the glands that secrete and accumulate these carotenoid pigments, considered as an idioblast. We used light and transmission as well as scanning electron microscopy to examine the

Seed morphology of 19 species of Chlorophytum (Asparagaceae) collected from different regions of India were studied. The seeds are diverse in shape, size, color, weight, surface architectural pattern, and hilum characters. These characters are used for preparation of key for identification of the taxa. The study reveals that morphology of seed clearly distinguishes Chlorophytum kolhapurense from C

Plantago australis is considered to be obligately cleistogamous. Here we present evidence based on field work, herbarium collections and literature to show that this species produces both chasmogamous and cleistogamous flowers. We also hypothesise that the species is ambophilic.

The Brazilian Cerrado is a biodiversity hotspot because of its high levels of species richness, endemism, and degree of threat. Plant inventories and quantitative vegetation analyses in Cerrado have contributed to clarifying species richness, differentiation of community composition among areas, community structure across time, and biogeographic patterns. Here we perform a science mapping analysis

A sampling of angiosperms across a broad spectrum of families and generas was done to determine if angiosperms from the ANA grade basal angiosperms to the Zingiberales of the monocots and Apiales of the eudicots had an endodermis with demonstrable Casparian bands in shoots because the literature has a paucity of demonstrable images, especially for key basal plants. In the Amborellales, Amborella had

Few plants can survive and grow equally well in salty and salt-free substrates (i.e., habitat-indifferent halophytes). Such plants provide a good opportunity to understand physiological and biochemical mechanisms underlying salinity tolerance. In this study, we investigated the environmental salinity impacts on several physiological and biochemical features of Suaeda vermiculata, a habitat-indifferent

The ecological performance of different plant species in a given ecosystem is associated with their functional traits. Plants may adopt ecological strategies to optimize resources’ acquisition and use in resource-poor environments, such as sandplain (restinga) forests. The CSR theory points out the three main types of ecological strategies observed in plants: competitors ("C"); tolerant to stresses

The incorporation of ontogenetic studies into the study of the evolution of the coniferous ‘seed scale’ over the past decades has yielded novel interpretation of the same. In this context the development of the ‘seed scale’ of Araucariaceae is especially interesting because they have an extensive fossil record dating back to the Mesozoic. Therefore, we report the development of the Araucaria araucana

This article enumerates the anatomy of the leaves, petioles and stems of Ocotea nutans (Lauraceae) illustrated with optical and scanning electron micrographs. The anatomical markers include the presence of sclerenchyma in the midrib and the absence of trichomes in the leaves. The presence of brachysclereids and prismatic crystals in the petioles and stems is new to the genus Ocotea and reported here

The genus Spondias has a wide variety of sexual systems, with complete monoecious to polygamodioecious species. Spondias macrocarpa (Anacardiaceae) is an endemic species from Brazil, previously described as hermaphroditic, and considered vulnerable due to massive deforestation. However, to our knowledge, no further details on the breeding system or morphological studies are available. Herewith, we

Asplenium L. (Aspleniaceae) is a large fern genus whose systematics is based mainly in leaf and reproductive characters. In Aspleniaceae, the root anatomy allows delimit the two genera, Asplenium and Hymenasplenium Hayata. Various root subtypes are recognized in Asplenium, according to the layers and number of asplenium sclereids that constitute the inner cortex. In order to assess the potential use

Sunlight exposures have resulted in periderm coverages on more than 40 species of tall, long-lived columnar cactus species in the Americas. Periderm coverages start on equatorial surfaces and eventually cover all surfaces. Periderm coverages lead to tissue morbidity and eventual cactus death. After more than 80% of periderm coverage on saguaro (Carnegiea gigantea) cacti, the probability of cactus death

Phorophytes are assumed to act as facilitators for epiphytes, but empirical evidence indicates that they also act as amensalists. While few epiphytes can colonize most phorophytes, some epiphytes (such as orchids) appear in few phorophytes and/or have low population sizes, suggesting that are strongly phorophyte-limited. We assume that phorophyte type must determine the structure of the interaction

Variegated leaf plants are a group of plants with stable patterns of differently colored leaf areas. The variously colored patches on the surface of the leaves have important biological functions in plant reproduction and adaptation to the environment. Apart from that, these plants have attracted interest as valuable ornamental plants. In this study, 1710 species with variegated leaves belonging to

Epiphytes living in the canopy face the problem of being exposed to varying levels of air humidity, temperature and insolation, according to both local climate and growing site conditions. This study addresses interrelationships between a) vertical distribution of Tillandsia species on phorophytes of Ilha-Grande Island in tropical Brazil; b) micrometeorological conditions at the different epiphyte

Mimosa, one of the most species-rich genera in the Leguminosae, exhibits a high diversity of trichomes. These structures are considered crucial to the taxonomy of the genus and are commonly used to delimit infrageneric groups. Barneby (1991) provided an important reference in the understanding of trichomes in Mimosa, but some terminology still needs to be clarified and standardized. The present study

We studied a previously unreported form of mirror-image flowers in Rhabdothamnopsis sinensis (Gesneriaceae) endemic to China. The style in R. sinensis remains straight throughout the blooming period, while the basal part of the floral tube bends either to the left or right side, causing the style to lean towards the right or left side of the floral tube. R. sinensis has two epipetalous fertile stamens

The eophylls (first photosynthetic leaves) of palm trees play crucial roles in seedling establishment, although information concerning their development and ecophysiology remain scarce. This work sought to evaluate eophyll development and the effects of shading on young plants of the neotropical oil palm Attalea vitrivir. Eophyll ontogenesis was characterized, and the effects of shading levels (0,

Members of the bromeliads exhibit a great morphological diversity of reproductive organs. In this study, we comparatively analyzed the ovule and ovary anatomy of 23 species, including all Bromeliaceae subfamilies; additionally, the ancestral character optimization for six traits of the ovule was performed. In species with superior ovaries, the carpel displays a homogeneous mesophyll and species with

The interaction between hemiparasites and their host plants is an important structuring mechanism for plant communities. The mistletoe Struthanthus flexicaulis (Loranthaceae) is widely distributed in the campo rupestre ecosystem and likely has an important role in structuring the communities of which its hosts are part. The main goals of this study were to investigate the effects of parasitism by S

Revisiting biogeographical patterns is the first step towards fully assessing the natural history and conservation of particular lineages, an important effort in species-rich groups from heterogeneous or undercollected areas, such as South American Malvaceae. Here, we compile, synthetize and discuss a manually revisited distribution database built for species of three subfamilies of Malvaceae—Byttnerioideae

Studies of fruit or seed heteromorphism (the presence of two or more fruit or seed morphs within an individual) provide valuable information about the influence of environmental variation on the evolution of reproductive strategies. Such heteromorphisms are more likely to be favoured by selection in annual species, because short-lived plants are in a disadvantaged position to gather information about

Plant species are mostly delimited solely by morphological characteristics, but this method has drawbacks and may result in identification errors. Pollination and ecological speciation studies may serve as additional tools for species delimitation. Sinningia lutea and S. allagophylla are species hitherto considered synonyms, and recent accounts suggest that the taxa present overlapping morphological

Herbaceous perennials in a forest ecosystem play a role in seasonal nutrient cycling. Asarum canadense L. (wild ginger) and Hydrophyllum virginianum L. (Virginia waterleaf) are perennial herbaceous plants with different seasonal growth patterns native to mesic hardwood forests. Both flower early, but A. canadense leaves persist after flowering while H. virginianum senesces and produces a second flush

Palaearctic steppes are among the largest continuous terrestrial natural habitats of the world with high biodiversity at multiple scales. Steppe grasslands and adjacent forest steppes are characteristic landscape elements from Central and Eastern Europe to Northern China across the whole temperate zone of Eurasia with some floristically similar regions in North Africa, Anatolia, and Iran. The origin

In riparian forests, light and water are two important factors for plant acclimation to different environments. We evaluated the effect of different light and irrigation regimes on the effective quantum yield of photosystem II (фPSII), the maximum quantum efficiency of photosystem II (Fv/Fm), and the electron transfer rate (ETR) of Magnolia pugana seedlings that come from wild and cultivated plants