Pollination and seed dispersal by animals are key drivers of terrestrial biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. Effective mutualistic interactions rely heavily on temporal and functional- trait matching between plants and animals. While global warming is known to induce shifts in plant traits, the extent and direction in which higher temperatures may systematically alter flower and fruit traits across species in natural habitats remains poorly understood. Using elevation as a proxy for temperature across natural populations, we conducted a meta-analysis evaluating 21 quantitative functional traits (15 floral, 6 fruit) across 82 studies and 161 species. Standardized mixed-effects linear regression models revealed widespread, systemic responses to elevational temperature gradients in both reproductive structures. In flowers, higher temperatures were systematically associated with changes in petal and sepal width and length (and hence morphology), longevity, nectar volume, number of flowers, and inflorescence length. In fruits, elevation was associated with changes in vitamin C content, crop size, weight and width. Taken together, these results demonstrate that warming temperatures exert widespread, multi-axis effects on the morphology, availability, timing, and nutritional quality of both flowers and fleshy fruits. Given that flower and fruit traits are developmentally linked and co-determine animal visitor dynamics, these temperature-driven phenotypic shifts are likely to propagate cascading disruptions throughout plant–pollinator and plant–frugivore interaction networks under continued climate change.
Omer Nevo, Evangelia Linda Chronopoulou, Anna E. Azeroth et al.· bioRxiv· 0 citations
Neotropical seasonally dry biomes are amongst the world's most threatened ecosystems and are predicted to lose more biodiversity with climate change. The capacity of natural populations to respond to these changes depends on their genetic variation, but is poorly understood in most Neotropical seasonally dry forest species. Here, we used genome‐wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data for 109 individuals across 12 Colombian populations of Enterolobium cyclocarpum, a widespread deciduous legume tree found in seasonally dry tropical forests, human‐disturbed and open landscapes from Central and Northern South America, to (1) explore population structure across the landscape, (2) determine local adaptation to heat and drought stress, and (3) assess genomic offset and adaptive potential under future climate change. Our results suggest clear genomic differentiation among regions and populations, as well as an uneven spatial distribution of adaptive alleles associated with drought and heat stress, together suggesting different degrees of local adaptation to climate across the landscape. Furthermore, all regions investigated (i.e., Caribbean, inter‐Andean valleys, and Orinoquía) showed limited adaptive potential under future climate change scenarios. For some regions, gene flow may help buffer the effects of environmental change by bringing in adaptive alleles, however, this will likely be insufficient to counteract predicted mal‐adaptation in certain regions, such as in the Orinoquía. Our results suggest that both barriers to gene flow (e.g., orography) and varying heat and drought stress conditions have shaped the genomic composition and adaptive potential of the species. Enterolobium cyclocarpum populations have adapted locally to current climate, but this adaptation may not be sufficient to cope with future climate change, particularly where population connectivity is low. Our findings have relevance for the conservation of species in highly threatened Neotropical biomes, such as seasonally dry tropical forests, which are expected to experience rising temperatures and greater drought under future climate change.
Francisco J. Velásquez-Puentes, W. Durka, Colin E. Hughes et al.· Evolutionary Applications· 0 citations
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