In nearly all cases, each species’ closest relatives occur in a similar niche on a different island
Tag - diversification
Erin Zimmerman
Morphology is most informative in reconstructing early tracheophyte evolution
More so than reproductive or anatomical features, morphology defines evolutionary relationships among early vascular plants.
Temporal patterns of Brassicaceae diversification
Huang et al. propose that whole genome duplication events serve as a constant pump for continuous and high species diversification.
Alun Salt
Scaly Tree Ferns Have Slow and Steady Diversification
Did the Cyatheaceae become such a diverse family slowly over time, or in spurts? The largest molecular sampling yet points to gradual accumulation of species.
Fi Gennu
Molecular phylogenetics and historical biogeography of the tribe Lilieae
Revealing the role played by the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) for organismal diversification and biogeography of plants in the Northern Hemisphere, Huang et al. assess phylogenetic relationships and divergence time, and...
Alex Assiry
Thirty clues to the exceptional diversification of flowering plants
As angiosperms became one of the megadiverse groups of macroscopic eukaryotes, they forged modern ecosystems and promoted the evolution of extant terrestrial biota. Unequal distribution of species among lineages...
Unmasking cryptic biodiversity in polyploids
Up to one-quarter of flowering plant species may have escaped recognition due to processes such as autopolyploidy-whole genome duplication events where polyploids may be morphologically identical to their diploid...
A puzzle with uniform flowers
Normally you would expect organs to change across evolutionary time. However, this is not always the case, and some clades can be species-rich, but still have very similar flowers.
Floral nectar tubes in Pelargonium
Co-evolutionary matches between lengths of floral nectar tubes and pollinator proboscises is associated with speciation in several lineages, including Pelargonium (Geraniaceae), a genus renowned for morphological...
botanyone
Aridification as driver of plant evolution
Aridification has been a major force in cycad evolution, says José Said Gutiérrez-Ortega. It helps to explain why cycads were capable to adapt and diversify in the modern habitats, even when they originated in the early...
José Said Gutiérrez-Ortega
Environmental niche divergence among dune shrub sister species
Geographic distributions of species are constrained by their ecological requirements. Chozas et al. study the distribution, environmental responses and evolutionary relationships of the three species of the genus...
Phylogenetic insights into the evolution of Saxifragales habitat shifts
Species-level phylogeny and habitat evolution data are applied to the hyper-diverse angiosperm clade Saxifragales to reveal that habitat shifts are very rare. Saxifragales lineages are likely to remain rooted within...
Secondary phloem diversity and evolution in Bignonieae
This study explores phloem evolution in the species-rich Bignonieae (Bignoniaceae) tribe.
Phylogenetic relationships in Epidendroideae (Orchidaceae)
Freudenstein and Chase analyse seven loci from 310 genera of epidendroids and find increased resolution and support for many groups.
