Linking Pollination and Herbivory: Selection from Herbivores on a Flower Color Polymorphism

群落内物种表达的性状反映了来自多种生物和非生物来源的综合选择压力。该项目将整合植食动物和传粉媒介施加的不同选择压力，以评估植物性状的一般特征。它将特别关注花的颜色，传统上认为这主要是对传粉者的反应。这项工作将研究加利福尼亚的一种野生萝卜，它表现出三种颜色的变化，初步数据表明，除了传粉者的反应外，拮抗食草动物可能对花色施加选择压力。传粉率和草食率将在研究区域的三色变种的实地研究中记录下来。这些信息将与田间和温室实验相结合，以检查草食动物的偏好和植物的表现与颜色有关。这项工作将说明如何理解微观进化尺度上遗传多样性的维持与宏观进化尺度上生物多样性的产生有关。

StraussDEB - 9807083Traits expressed by species within a community reflect an integration ofselection pressures from a variety of biotic and abiotic sources. Thisproject would integrate the different selective pressures imposed by bothherbivores and pollinators in evaluating the general features of planttraits. It will focus specifically on flower color, which hastraditionally been thought to respond primarily to pollinators. This workwill investigate a California wild radish that exhibits three color morphsand for which preliminary data indicate that antagonistic herbivores may beexerting selective pressures on flower colors in addition to pollinatorresponses. Pollination and herbivory rates will be documented in fieldstudies of the three-color morphs that occur in the study area. Thisinformation will be combined with field and greenhouse experiments thatwill examine herbivore preferences and plant performances relative tocolor. This work will illustrate how understanding the maintenance ofgenetic diversity at microevolutionary scales can be related to thegeneration of Biological diversity at macroevolutionary scales.