Annals of botany最新文献

{"title":"Diversity of fungi attached to birds corresponds to the habitat ecologies of their avian dispersal vectors.","authors":"Niko R Johansson, Ulla Kaasalainen, Jouko Rikkinen","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf077","DOIUrl":"10.1093/aob/mcaf077","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Animal-mediated transport of propagules is an important aspect of dispersal in many organisms, but severely understudied in fungi. Birds appear as natural dispersal vectors for many fungi, as they are often both mobile and migratory, potentially providing directed transport of fungal propagules to suitable sites for establishment. However, information of which fungal taxa are transported by which bird vectors is lacking.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>By using environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding of feather and feet swabs collected from bird species with two contrasting habitat ecologies (European Robin Erithacus rubecula and Goldcrest Regulus regulus), we identify and compare fungal diversity attached to these birds.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>We identified over 600 fungal taxa attached to and potentially transported by the birds. Differences in the fungal assemblages of the two bird species corresponded with species-specific patterns in the natural histories of transported fungi and the bird vector.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Our findings show that bird-mediated transport can be important for a variety of fungal taxa, especially at medium to long transport distances. Taxa particularly affected includes plant pathogens, saprobic macrofungi and sorediate macrolichens, especially those with specific habitat requirements.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-05-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143966385","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Bark investment is key to forest expansion into African savannas by conferring resistance t fire and seasonal drought.","authors":"Julieta A Rosell, Susanne Vetter, Mark E Olson, Michelle Greve","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf019","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcaf019","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Forest expansion into savannas is widespread even though fire and seasonal drought provide environmental conditions against encroachment by forest specialists. A distinct suite of species can establish under savanna trees forming bush clumps and facilitating forest establishment. Understanding the functional traits of clump-forming species is crucial for uncovering encroachment mechanisms and devising management strategies. Bark likely plays a key role in enabling clump initiation. Fire tolerance can be achieved by accumulation of outer bark thickness (OBT), height and/or stem diameter (SD), while drought resistance may be enhanced by greater inner bark thickness (IBT), associated with water and carbohydrate storage.</p><p><strong>Methodology: </strong>We selected representative savanna, clump-forming, and closed-canopy species (\"ecological categories\") at two South African sites experiencing forest expansion and differing in rainfall and fire frequency. We compared OBT-SD and IBT-SD allometries across ecological categories and sites and examined whether categories separated along axes reflecting fire/drought resistance (OBT and IBT) and resource allocation strategy (density and water content, leaf size).</p><p><strong>Key findings: </strong>OBT-SD scaling of clump-forming species was more similar to savanna than forest species, and savanna species at the more fire-prone savanna had steeper OBT-SD scaling, consistent with high OBT providing fire protection in early clump formation. Similar IBT-SD slope across groups was consistent with similar metabolic needs, while higher intercepts in savanna and clump-forming species indicated higher water storage. \"Cheap\" low-density tissues in savanna species allow fast accumulation of SD and OBT and resistance to fire topkill. Closed-canopy species had denser tissues and thin stems and bark for a given height, while the clump-forming species were intermediate.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Bark and probably other traits are key in the capacity of some species to form bush clumps. Identifying these traits and the mechanisms underlying clump formation is essential for managing encroached savannas and grasslands.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143969640","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"'Ruminate' endosperm - why and from where? A commentary on 'The development of the embryo and ruminate endosperm in an early-divergent angiosperm, Asimina triloba (Annonaceae)'.","authors":"Joseph H Williams","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf056","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcaf056","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143957433","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Does flower size follow the 'island rule'? A commentary on 'Flower size evolution in the Southwest Pacific'.","authors":"Marcos Méndez","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf053","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcaf053","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143963497","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"How can life-history traits influence dispersal ability? A commentary on 'Intraspecific variation in seed dispersal between annual and perennial populations'.","authors":"Riccardo Ciarle, Kevin C Burns","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf048","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcaf048","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143963507","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Invasive plants have a delayed and longer flowering phenology than native plants in an ecoregional flora.","authors":"Adrián Lázaro-Lobo, Borja Rendueles Fernández, Eduardo Fernández-Pascual, Víctor González-García, Borja Jiménez-Alfaro","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf078","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcaf078","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Flowering phenology has been suggested as an important factor to explain invasions of non-native plant species. Invasive species success may be enhanced by flowering at different times (the vacant niche hypothesis) or flowering for longer periods (the niche breath hypothesis) than native species. However, comprehensive regional assessments of the flowering phenology of invasive and native floras are lacking in the literature. In this study, we evaluated the flowering phenology of invasive and native plant species pools to test the above-mentioned hypotheses within a biogeographically meaningful region.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We investigated the start, end, and length of flowering between the invasive and native floras that occur at the same elevation range in the Cantabrian Mixed Forests ecoregion (NW Iberian Peninsula), a biogeographical hotspot for invasive plants in SW Europe. We also accounted for species habitat preferences and climatic and biogeographic origin of the invasive species.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>We found a mismatch in flowering time between the ecoregional invasive and native floras. Invasive species had a delayed and longer flowering phenology compared to native species. These differences in flowering time were more pronounced in man-made habitats and in invaders from temperate and tropical regions.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Our results are consistent with the vacant niche hypothesis; the asynchrony in flowering time could allow invaders to exploit a temporally empty niche. Our results are also consistent with the niche breath hypothesis, suggesting that invasive species exhibit a longer flowering period than natives, which may allow them to have prolonged access to resources. Future studies should explore the phenological patterns of invasive and native species across biogeographically relevant regions to enhance our understanding of large-scale invasion events.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143969641","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Herbariomic approach solved identity crisis of the putatively extinct Armeria arcuata Welw. ex Boiss. & Reut. (Plumbaginaceae).","authors":"Thomas Abeli, Giulia Albani Rocchetti, David Draper, Eric J Gouda, Laurence Loze, Isabel Marques, Gonzalo Nieto Feliner, Lorenzo Peruzzi, Anastasia Stefanaki, Manuel Tiburtini, Salvatore Tomasello","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf042","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcaf042","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Herbaria are powerful sources of data and material nowadays that can be used for analyses other than taxonomic purposes. Improved techniques of DNA extraction from old herbarium specimens combined with modern and relatively cheap genomic tools, allow the reassessment of the identity of important specimens with potential consequences on species conservation status. In this study, we used a genomic approach applied to type herbarium specimens from the mid-19th century to elucidate the taxonomic identity of Armeria arcuata and correctly identify a living plant (code: 1984BL00463) cultivated at the Utrecht University Botanic Gardens, which was suggested to represent the last individual of the Portuguese endemic A. arcuata.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>DNA was extracted from historical herbarium specimens of A. arcuata, the living specimen at Utrecht Botanic Gardens, and selected specimens of seven other Armeria species. Genomic sequencing was conducted on chloroplast and nuclear ribosomal DNA regions, using Illumina and Nanopore technologies. Phylogenetic analyses were then performed to compare the sequences extracted.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>While the chloroplast genome highlights similarities of 1984BL00463 with the Armeria maritima group including the South American A. curvifolia, the nrDNA suggests a relationship of 1984BL00463 with A. caespitosa. Our results suggest that 1984BL00463 differs substantially from the type specimens of A. arcuata and may have a hybrid origin. Therefore, A. arcuata is declared extinct. Our results support that A. arcuata was a hybrid, one of whose progenitors was a sand-dune coastal species, A. pungens, but are inconclusive as to whether it was an established or an ephemeral hybrid.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Armeria arcuata is confirmed as extinct, while the Utrecht specimen represents a distinct lineage, potentially of hybrid origin too. This study highlights the importance of genomic tools in re-evaluating the status of rare or extinct species, demonstrating how herbarium and living botanical collections can complement conservation efforts and resolve taxonomic ambiguities. The approach presented here can inform similar studies on other putatively extinct taxa, guiding conservation priorities and strategies for biodiversity preservation.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143963498","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The winner takes it all: a single genotype of Kalanchoe ×houghtonii is a global invader.","authors":"Joan Pere Pascual-Díaz, Neus Besolí, Jordi López-Pujol, Neus Nualart, Iván Pérez-Lorenzo, Ronen Shtein, Laura Valenzuela, Sònia Garcia, Daniel Vitales","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf076","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcaf076","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Invasive alien plant species pose a global challenge, and their impact is amplified by globalisation and the accelerating pace of climate change. In mild-climate regions, drought-tolerant invasive plants showing broad environmental tolerance have a competitive advantage. One example is Kalanchoe ×houghtonii (Crassulaceae), popularly known as \"mother of millions\". It is a hybrid resulting from the interploid cross between K. daigremontiana and K. delagoensis, both native to Madagascar. Kalanchoe ×houghtonii, propagated as an ornamental plant, has emerged as a global invader in less than a century. Four morphotypes of this hybrid have been identified, with different ploidy levels and varying invasive capacities. Here we aim to investigate the genomic variability behind the invasion success of Kalanchoe ×houghtonii.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We sampled 57 accessions of Kalanchoe ×houghtonii, K. daigremontiana, K. delagoensis and closely related taxa, including old herbarium materials, from all over the world. We analysed genome size, chromosome numbers, sequenced the whole genome, analysed the complete plastome sequence of each accession, and studied the diversity of the ribosomal RNA genes. We also performed a detailed phylogenomic study using nuclear BUSCO genes.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>Our study reveals genetic and cytogenetic variability between morphotypes, and shows that a single tetraploid genotype (morphotype A) dominates all populations, emerging as the first reported clonal hybrid capable of colonising mild-climate regions world-wide . Morphotype A shows a striking genetic uniformity, high phenotypic plasticity, and extremely high rates of vegetative reproduction, representing an example of a \"general-purpose genotype\".</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The astonishing reproductive capacity, broad adaptability and the speed at which K. ×houghtonii is colonising new regions by clonal spread highlight the importance of understanding hybridisation and polyploidy in the invasion of ecosystems. Our findings underscore the need to recognize and monitor the potential invasive risks of new hybrids developed through ornamental plant breeding .</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143957948","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The costs of reproduction can and do differ between the sexes.","authors":"John R Pannell","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf073","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcaf073","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Measuring costs of male versus female reproduction in cosexual species is challenging because the currency and timing of allocation may differ between the two sexual functions. In contrast, costs of male versus female reproduction can be measured indirectly in dioecious species in terms of sex-specific life-history trade-offs with growth and survival. Yet despite abundant evidence for life-history differences between males and females, there remains confusion over how such differences should be interpreted.</p><p><strong>Scope: </strong>Here, I address misconceptions in interpreting potential differences in the costs of reproduction between the sexes, drawing attention to the relevance of (1) theories of sex-allocation versus life-history evolution and (2) observations of sex-ratio variation.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>Sex-allocation theory predicts a mother's investment in sons versus daughters and is thus relevant to primary sex ratios at the seed stage. Life-history theory is relevant to trade-offs between, for example, reproduction and survival, and is thus relevant to secondary sex ratios of adults affected by sex-biased mortality. The preponderance of species with male- compared to female-biased secondary sex ratios points to a frequently greater cost of reproduction for females.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Male and female costs of reproduction often differ, but there remain unanswered questions about why one sex (most often the female function) should often be more expensive than the other. A correct understanding of theoretical predictions will help future research to address such questions.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143956774","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Allelic value in gene regulation - implications for gene editing.","authors":"Mazahar Moin, Mayank Rai, Wricha Tyagi","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf072","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcaf072","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Gene editing has emerged as the most precise trait modification tool in plant breeding. However, an understanding of what to target and in which genetic background to obtain the intended phenotype is still emerging. This perspective presents an analytical overview of traits targeted, particularly in tomato and rice, where extensive data on gene editing is available in the public domain.</p><p><strong>Scope: </strong>The available gene editing data on allelic values for a given molecular pathway in crops like tomato and rice is revisited. The phenotypes of edits generated across genetic backgrounds were assessed and compared with available resequencing and phenotypic data. The traits evaluated in the current perspective were de novo domestication, grain quality, fruit color, yield-related traits and stress tolerance to check whether the data available gives significant leads to address these traits via editing in other crops. The rationale for editing a particular gene lies in the understanding of the diverse alleles generated, and in this perspective, we attempted to discern both the advancements made and the bottlenecks encountered.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The effectiveness of gene editing relies significantly on the roles of alleles generated in regulating specific genetic pathways. It is essential to conduct functional validation of the targeted allele across multiple distinct genetic backgrounds to ascertain its utility. The influence an allele exerts on a given trait is contingent upon factors like the nature of the trait, the position of the gene within a given pathway, and the genetic background in which it has been/will be tested. This perspective highlights how editing has led to a range of phenotypic variations influenced by the genetic background, with certain lines achieving the desired phenotype alongside pleiotropic effects, whereas others do not manifest the expected phenotype. This challenge may be addressed by prioritizing the identification of the right candidate and specific motifs in the regulatory regions as potential targets rather than directly intervening in coding sequences.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143959595","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}