| Abstract Detail
Pollination Biology Summers, Holly [1], Raguso, Robert A. [2]. Intraspecific variation in floral display and breeding system in Oenothera flava (Onagraceae). Angiosperms have developed diverse strategies for sexual reproduction, but the evolutionary transitions between self-fertilization and outcrossing are still a topic og ongoing interest. The two subspecies of the North American mixed-mating Yellow Evening Primrose, Oenothera flava (Onagraceae), vary in floral display and degree of outcrossing. O. flava subspecies flava is a predominantly self-fertilizing annual common at low elevations in the western United States and Mexico. It produces yellow flowers about 2 cm in diameter with hypanthia up to 6 cm long. O. flava subspecies taraxacoides grows at higher elevations on discrete mountaintops in the American southwest and Mexico. This annual-to-perennial subspecies produces showy flowers (up to 20 cm long with a corolla diameter up to 8 cm) which emit high levels of nitrogenous scent compunds. These volatiles, common in hawkmoth-pollinated taxa, are not well studied. Disjunct populations of taraxacoides also display discrete variation in scent and morphology. Here I provide a case study of intraspecific variation in reproductive strategy by investigating 1) the mechanisms of pollinator attraction using comparative transcriptomics and volatile metabolomics, 2) interpopulation variation in floral development, examined through dissection of buds grown in a common garden from field-collected seeds, 3) adaptive value via field and laboratory pollinator behavioral trials and 4) the phylogenetic history of each subspecies using next generation sequence generated markers. Broader Impacts:
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1 - Cornell University, Plant Biology, 215 Tower Rd, W343 Mudd Hall, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA 2 - Cornell University, Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Room W355, Seeley G Mudd Hall, 215 Tower Road, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA
Keywords: Onagraceae Breeding system mating system floral size variation floral odor floral display Oenothera Transcriptome morphometrics.
Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Topics Session: 25 Location: Forsyth Room/Chase Park Plaza Date: Tuesday, July 12th, 2011 Time: 8:30 AM Number: 25003 Abstract ID:703 |