The pitcher trap is a striking example of convergent evolution across unrelated carnivorous plant lineages. Convergent traits that have evolved across pitcher plant lineages are essential for trap ...function, suggesting that key selective pressures are in action. Recent studies have also revealed patterns of divergent evolution in functional pitcher morphology within genera. Adaptations to differences in local prey assemblages may drive such divergence and, ultimately, speciation. Here, we review recent research on convergent and divergent evolution in pitcher plant traps, with a focus on the genus Nepenthes, which we propose as a new model for research into adaptive radiation and speciation.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NMLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Carnivorous pitcher plants (Nepenthes) are a striking example of a natural pitfall trap. The trap's slippery rim, or peristome, plays a critical role in insect capture via an aquaplaning mechanism ...that is well documented. While the peristome has received significant research attention, the conspicuous variation in peristome geometry across the genus remains unexplored. We examined the mechanics of prey capture using Nepenthes pitcher plants with divergent peristome geometries. Inspired by living material, we developed a mathematical model that links the peristomes' three-dimensional geometries to the physics of prey capture under the laws of Newtonian mechanics. Linking form and function enables us to test hypotheses related to the function of features such as shape and ornamentation, orientation in a gravitational field, and the presence of "teeth," while analysis of the energetic costs and gains of a given geometry provides a means of inferring potential evolutionary pathways. In a separate modeling approach, we show how prey size may correlate with peristome dimensions for optimal capture. Our modeling framework provides a physical platform to understand how divergence in peristome morphology may have evolved in the genus Nepenthes in response to shifts in prey diversity, availability, and size.
Summary
Endoparasitic plants are the most reduced flowering plants, spending most of their lives as a network of filaments within the tissues of their hosts. Despite their extraordinary life form, we ...know little about their biology. Research into a few species has revealed unexpected insights, such as the total loss of plastome, the reduction of the vegetative phase to a proembryonic stage, and elevated information exchange between host and parasite. To consolidate our understanding, we review life history, anatomy, and molecular genetics across the four independent lineages of endoparasitic plants. We highlight convergence across these clades and a striking trans‐kingdom convergence in life history among endoparasitic plants and disparate lineages of fungi at the molecular and physiological levels. We hypothesize that parasitism of woody plants preselected for the endoparasitic life history, providing parasites a stable host environment and the necessary hydraulics to enable floral gigantism and/or high reproductive output. Finally, we propose a broader view of endoparasitic plants that connects research across disciplines, for example, pollen–pistil and graft incompatibility interactions and plant associations with various fungi. We shine a light on endoparasitic plants and their hosts as under‐explored ecological microcosms ripe for identifying unexpected biological processes, interactions and evolutionary convergence.
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Summary
The University of Oxford Botanic Garden is the UK's oldest botanic garden, established as a physic garden in 1621 in which medicinal plants were grown for teaching purposes. Today, the garden ...holds a collection of over 5000 taxa, some of which have international conservation importance. The collections of Oxford Botanic Garden are discussed with a focus on their historic, conservation and research value, and their potential for engaging people with the importance of plants at a time when it has never been more urgent in the face of global challenges.
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5.
Astonishing Plants Thorogood, Chris
Trends in plant science,
September 2020, 2020-09-00, 20200901, Volume:
25, Issue:
9
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Our existence depends on plants, yet to many they are invisible, a phenomenon called ‘plant blindness’. Addressing this is crucial in the face of unprecedented biodiversity loss and extinction. ...Digital engagement with astonishing plants can break the perception that they are uninteresting and take us steps forward in addressing disengagement.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Langsdorffia is a poorly known genus of flowering plants unlike any other in appearance, resembling deep sea creatures, rather more than they do flowering plants. The scarcity, elusive nature, and ...remote locations of these plants indicate that further species may await discovery. Furthermore, little is known about the biology of most of the species already known to science. Langsdorffia, like other parasitic plants, is poorly represented in botanic garden collections, and should be a candidate for further research and conservation focus.
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We describe an extraordinary new species in the genus
Thismia
from the Terengganu State of Malaysia in the Malay Peninsula. The new species, which we name
Thismia sitimeriamiae
, is distinct from all ...other
Thismia
species known to science, most notably in its unique mitre configuration formed by the inner tepals and its floral surface morphology characterised by conspicuous orange trichomes. We discuss our findings in the context of underestimated species diversity in the genus
Thismia
and implications for their conservation. We recommend assigning
T. sitimeriamiae
the conservation status as Critically Endangered (CR) according to IUCN criteria.
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Species limits in the genus
are poorly understood, despite the plants' long history of use in traditional herbal medicine and food across their range. Here we present a taxonomic account for the ...genus
in Iraq, where several taxa have been reported, most of them doubtfully. Using herbarium specimens, images of living material, and taxonomic literature, we found evidence of only one species occurring with certainty in Iraq:
. We found no evidence for the occurrence of other
species in Iraq, including a putative new entity reported for the region. Our work highlights inconsistencies in the literature, and underscores the importance of examining multiple stable characters for delimiting species in the genus
.
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9.
1003. OROBANCHE RAPUM‐GENISTAE: Orobanchaceae Thorogood, Chris J; Rumsey, Fred J
Curtis's botanical magazine (1995),
December 2021, 2021-12-00, 20211201, Volume:
38, Issue:
4
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Summary
The distribution, ecology and taxonomic history of Orobanche rapum‐genistae Thuill. are discussed with particular reference to the British Isles and elsewhere in Europe where the plant has ...retracted markedly within its former range. The variation present within the species is described and the typical form is illustrated. The outlook for this sharply declining species is considered in the broader context of parasitic plant ecology and conservation.
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10.
The king of fruits Thorogood, Chris J.; Ghazalli, Mohd Norfaizal; Siti‐Munirah, Mat Yunoh ...
Plants, people, planet,
November 2022, 2022-11-00, 20221101, 2022-11-01, Volume:
4, Issue:
6
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
The durian (genus Durio) has aroused curiosity among botanists for centuries, and influenced local culture across Southeast Asia for millennia. Of the 30 described species of Durio, about a third ...produce edible fruits, yet just one (Durio zibethinus) is grown on a commercial scale. Several new species have been described recently, which may be a reservoir of important genetic resources. Meanwhile, unregulated durian cultivation triggered by rapidly growing demand and a high return on investment may pose a threat to natural forests. Here we review recent findings in the genus with a focus on Malaysia and Indonesia. We suggest that further research into obscure wild relatives and local cultivars, will be important in the context of growing international demand for durian, coupled with an increasing reliance on commercial cultivars of this economically and culturally important fruit. Finally we suggest greater attention should be given to the potential threat to biodiversity posed by illegal durian plantations in one of the most biodiverse regions of the planet.
Durian (genus Durio) telah menimbulkan rasa ingin tahu dalam kalangan ahli botani sejak berabad‐abad lamanya dan mempengaruhi budaya tempatan di rantau Asia Tenggara selama beribu tahun. Daripada 30 spesies Durio yang dihuraikan, kira‐kira satu pertiga menghasilkan buah yang boleh dimakan, namun hanya satu (Durio zibethinus) yang ditanam pada skala komersial. Beberapa spesies baharu telah dihuraikan kebelakangan ini, yang mungkin merupakan takungan sumber genetik yang penting. Sementara itu, penanaman durian secara tidak terkawal yang dicetuskan oleh permintaan yang semakin meningkat dan pulangan pelaburan yang tinggi mungkin menimbulkan ancaman kepada hutan semula jadi. Di sini kami menyemak semula penemuan terbaru genus ini dengan memfokuskan kepada Malaysia dan Indonesia. Kami mencadangkan bahawa penyelidikan lanjut ke atas kerabat liar dan kultivar tempatan yang masih tidak jelas, akan menjadi penting dalam konteks permintaan antarabangsa yang makin meningkat untuk durian, ditambah dengan peningkatan pergantungan pada klon‐klon komersial buah yang penting dari segi ekonomi dan budaya setempat. Akhir sekali, kami mencadangkan perhatian yang lebih, harus diberikan terhadap potensi ancaman kepada biodiversiti, yang diakibatkan oleh ladang durian haram, di satu daripada kawasan yang paling tinggi biodiversiti di planet ini.
The durian (genus Durio) has aroused curiosity among botanists for centuries, and influenced local culture across Southeast Asia for millennia. Of the 30 described species of Durio, about a third produce edible fruits, yet just one (Durio zibethinus) is grown on a commercial scale. Several new species have been described recently, which may be a reservoir of important genetic resources. Meanwhile, unregulated durian cultivation triggered by rapidly growing demand and a high return on investment may pose a threat to natural forests. Here we review recent findings in the genus with a focus on Malaysia and Indonesia. We suggest that further research into obscure wild relatives and local cultivars, will be important in the context of growing international demand for durian, coupled with an increasing reliance on commercial clones of this economically and culturally important fruit. Finally we suggest greater attention should be given to the potential threat to biodiversity posed by illegal durian plantations in one of the most biodiverse regions of the planet.
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DOBA, FZAB, GIS, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
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