Collaborative Research: New World Justicia s.l.: A microcosm for understanding covariation of floral traits and pollinators in a phylogenetic context.

这个项目将研究开花植物如何在进化过程中与动物传粉者相互作用。开花植物主导着大多数陆地生态系统，大多数依赖动物传粉者来完成它们的生命周期。生物学家假设，随着时间的推移，与传粉者的相互作用最终会增加开花植物的数量。然而，对于这可能是如何发生的，缺乏重要的细节。人们普遍认为，花的颜色、形状和大小反映了对传粉者的适应。然而，新出现的证据表明，花卉特征的微观变化也可能在推动新物种进化方面产生巨大影响。这个项目将研究不同的动物传粉者对水柳属植物花朵的生化、显微和宏观特征的影响。研究人员将确定原产于北美、中美洲和南美洲的木贼物种之间的进化关系，以分析特征数据，包括对传粉者行为的实地观察。该项目将培训高中生、本科生和研究生，包括代表性不足群体的成员和社区大学生，以及一名博士后研究助理。研究人员将通过科罗拉多大学博尔德自然历史博物馆和兰乔圣安娜植物园的教育展品，向公众宣传授粉生物学的生态和经济重要性。该项目将测试与开花植物繁殖成功密切相关的形态特征变异是相互关联的，并与动物访问者的功能群体相关的假说。研究人员将研究新大陆菊科植物(棘果科)的进化史，其约400个物种在繁殖所必需的微形态花卉特征方面表现出显著的多样性，包括花药、花粉和柱头，并支持一系列脊椎动物和无脊椎动物传粉者。研究结果将包括基于核基因组数据的新大陆木贼属物种的全面系统发育假说，对与传粉者类型相关的宏观和微观形态变异的定量分析，以及对这一广泛但特征不佳的谱系的分类范围的改善。研究将促进发现和描述科学上的新物种，建立标本馆研究馆藏，并扩大关于授粉动物的行为学信息。在五个新热带国家进行的有针对性的实地考察将加强美国和拉丁美洲科学家之间的国际合作，并促进对这一物种丰富的线路的调查。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project will investigate how flowering plants interact with animal pollinators over evolutionary time. Flowering plants dominate the majority of terrestrial ecosystems and most depend on animal pollinators to complete their lifecycle. Biologists hypothesize that the interaction with pollinators ultimately increases the number of flowering plants over time. However, important details are lacking about how this might be happening. Flower color, shape, and size are widely understood to reflect adaptation to pollinators. Yet, emerging evidence indicates that microscopic changes in floral features may also have large effects in driving new species to evolve. This project will investigate how biochemical, microscopic and macroscopic traits of flowers vary with different animal pollinators in the water-willow genus, Justicia. Researchers will determine the evolutionary relationships among Justicia species native to North, Central and South America to analyze trait data, including field-based observations of pollinator behavior. The project will train high school, undergraduate and graduate students, including members of under-represented groups and community college students, as well as a post-doctoral research associate. Researchers will provide outreach to the public about the ecological and economic importance of pollination biology through educational exhibits at the University of Colorado Boulder Museum of Natural History and Rancho Santa Ana Botanical Garden.This project will test the hypothesis that variation in morphological traits intimately involved with the reproductive success of flowering plants are inter-correlated and are associated with functional groups of animal visitors. Researchers will investigate the evolutionary history of New World Justicia (Acanthaceae; the Acanthus family), whose ca. 400 species show remarkable diversity in micro-morphological floral traits essential to reproduction, including anthers, pollen and stigmas, and support a range of vertebrate and invertebrate pollinators. Outcomes of the research will include a comprehensive phylogenetic hypothesis for New World Justicia species based on nuclear genomic data, a quantitative analysis of macro- and micro-morphological variation in relationship to pollinator type, and improved taxonomic circumscriptions for this widespread yet poorly characterized lineage. Research will facilitate the discovery and description of species new to science, build herbarium research collections, and expand ethological information about pollinating animals. Targeted fieldwork in five Neotropical countries will strengthen international collaborations among US and Latin American scientists and facilitate investigation of this species-rich lineage.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.