Hungarian Department of Biology and Ecology, Babeş-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
The Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Botany, Department of Invasion Ecology, Průhonice, Czech Republic.
Ann Bot. 2019 Jun 24;123(6):1043-1052. doi: 10.1093/aob/mcz012.
Fruit heteromorphism is considered to be a bet-hedging strategy to cope with spatially or temporally heterogeneous environments. The different behaviours of the fruit morphs of the same species might also be beneficial during naturalization, once the species has been introduced to a new range. Yet, no study to date has tested the association between fruit heteromorphism and global-scale naturalization success for a large set of plant species.
We compiled two large datasets on fruit heteromorphism in Asteraceae. One dataset was on native species in Central Europe (n = 321) and the other was on species frequently planted as ornamentals (n = 584). Using phylogenetic linear and logistic regressions, we tested whether heteromorphic species are more likely to naturalize outside their native range, and in more regions of the world than monomorphic species. We also tested whether the effect of heteromorphism is modulated by life history and height of the species.
We show that heteromorphic species were more likely to naturalize outside their native range. However, among the naturalized species, heteromorphic and monomorphic species did not differ in the number of world regions where they became naturalized. A short life span and tall stature both promoted naturalization success and, when life history and height were included in the models, the effect of fruit heteromorphism on the ability to naturalize became non-significant. Nevertheless, among tall plants, heteromorphic ornamental species were significantly more likely to become naturalized in general and in more regions than monomorphic species.
Our results provide evidence that in Asteraceae the production of heteromorphic fruits is associated with naturalization success. It appears, however, that not fruit heteromorphism per se, but a successful combination of other biological traits in fruit heteromorphic species, namely short life span and tall stature, contributes to their naturalization success.
果实异型性被认为是一种应对时空异质环境的风险分散策略。同一物种的不同果实形态在物种被引入新的分布区时,其行为也可能对自然化有益。然而,迄今为止,没有研究测试过果实异型性与大量植物物种的全球尺度自然化成功之间的关联。
我们编译了两个关于菊科果实异型性的大型数据集。一个数据集是关于中欧的本地物种(n=321),另一个是关于经常作为观赏植物种植的物种(n=584)。我们使用系统发育线性和逻辑回归,测试了异型种是否比同型种更有可能在其原生范围之外、在世界更多地区自然化。我们还测试了异型性的效果是否受到物种生活史和高度的调节。
我们表明,异型种更有可能在其原生范围之外自然化。然而,在自然化的物种中,异型种和同型种在它们自然化的世界区域数量上没有差异。短寿命和高大的身材都促进了自然化的成功,当生活史和高度被纳入模型时,果实异型性对自然化能力的影响变得不显著。然而,在高大的植物中,异型观赏植物总体上更有可能自然化,并且在更多的地区比同型种更有可能自然化。
我们的结果提供了证据,表明在菊科中,产生异型果实与自然化成功有关。然而,似乎不是果实异型性本身,而是果实异型种中其他生物特征的成功组合,即短寿命和高大的身材,有助于它们的自然化成功。