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Phenological evolution in annual plants under light competition, changes in the growth season and mass loss

Silva, Willian T.A.F. LU orcid ; Hansson, Mats LU and Johansson, Jacob LU (2024) In Ecology and Evolution 14(4).
Abstract

Flowering time is an important phenological trait in plants and a critical determinant of the success of pollination and fruit or seed development, with immense significance for agriculture as it directly affects crop yield and overall food production. Shifts in the growth season, changes in the growth season duration and changes in the production rate are environmental processes (potentially linked to climate change) that can lead to changes in flowering time in the long-term due to selection. In contrast, biomass loss (due to, for example, herbivory or diseases) can have profound consequences for plant mass production and food security. We model the effects of these environmental processes on the flowering time evolutionarily stable... (More)

Flowering time is an important phenological trait in plants and a critical determinant of the success of pollination and fruit or seed development, with immense significance for agriculture as it directly affects crop yield and overall food production. Shifts in the growth season, changes in the growth season duration and changes in the production rate are environmental processes (potentially linked to climate change) that can lead to changes in flowering time in the long-term due to selection. In contrast, biomass loss (due to, for example, herbivory or diseases) can have profound consequences for plant mass production and food security. We model the effects of these environmental processes on the flowering time evolutionarily stable strategy (ESS) of annual plants and the potential consequences for reproductive output. Our model recapitulates previous theoretical results linked to climate change and light competition and makes novel predictions about the effects of biomass loss on the evolution of flowering time. Our analysis elucidates how both the magnitude and direction of the evolutionary response can depend on whether biomass loss occurs during the earlier vegetative phase or during the later reproductive phase and on whether or not plants are adapted to grow in dense, competitive environments. Specifically, light competition generates an asymetric effect of mass loss on flowering time even when loss is indiscriminate (equal rates), with vegetative mass loss having a stronger effect on flowering time (resulting in greater ESS change) and final reproductive output.

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Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
agriculture, flowering time, global warming, phenology, plant growth
in
Ecology and Evolution
volume
14
issue
4
article number
e11294
pages
17 pages
publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
external identifiers
  • pmid:38633520
  • scopus:85190701783
ISSN
2045-7758
DOI
10.1002/ece3.11294
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
147e779f-0dc4-4e4a-a320-c3772a4d556f
date added to LUP
2024-05-20 14:14:21
date last changed
2024-06-17 15:51:53
@article{147e779f-0dc4-4e4a-a320-c3772a4d556f,
  abstract     = {{<p>Flowering time is an important phenological trait in plants and a critical determinant of the success of pollination and fruit or seed development, with immense significance for agriculture as it directly affects crop yield and overall food production. Shifts in the growth season, changes in the growth season duration and changes in the production rate are environmental processes (potentially linked to climate change) that can lead to changes in flowering time in the long-term due to selection. In contrast, biomass loss (due to, for example, herbivory or diseases) can have profound consequences for plant mass production and food security. We model the effects of these environmental processes on the flowering time evolutionarily stable strategy (ESS) of annual plants and the potential consequences for reproductive output. Our model recapitulates previous theoretical results linked to climate change and light competition and makes novel predictions about the effects of biomass loss on the evolution of flowering time. Our analysis elucidates how both the magnitude and direction of the evolutionary response can depend on whether biomass loss occurs during the earlier vegetative phase or during the later reproductive phase and on whether or not plants are adapted to grow in dense, competitive environments. Specifically, light competition generates an asymetric effect of mass loss on flowering time even when loss is indiscriminate (equal rates), with vegetative mass loss having a stronger effect on flowering time (resulting in greater ESS change) and final reproductive output.</p>}},
  author       = {{Silva, Willian T.A.F. and Hansson, Mats and Johansson, Jacob}},
  issn         = {{2045-7758}},
  keywords     = {{agriculture; flowering time; global warming; phenology; plant growth}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{4}},
  publisher    = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
  series       = {{Ecology and Evolution}},
  title        = {{Phenological evolution in annual plants under light competition, changes in the growth season and mass loss}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ece3.11294}},
  doi          = {{10.1002/ece3.11294}},
  volume       = {{14}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}