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Abstract Detail



Systematics

Hayes, Daniel [1], McDonnell, Angela [2], Cantley, Jason T. [3], Martine, Christopher [4].

Evolutionary significance of hybridization in Australian spiny solanums: Evidence from interspecific greenhouse crossing studies.

Phylogenetic analyses of the 25+ taxa of the Solanum subgenus LeptostemonumS. dioicum Group” of the Australian Monsoon Tropics (AMT) infer that the group has undergone recent and rapid speciation. While some authors have suggested that hybridization is uncommon among the extant species, numerous recent field collections have been made of specimens appearing to represent intermediate forms. Given that most of the taxa are geographically isolated and distributed across much of the northern quarter of the Australian continent, experimental assessment of interspecific hybridization rates required an ex situ study design. To test the likelihood of hybrid fruit/seed set across the species of the S. dioicum Group, we collected thousands of seeds from wild plants, established hundreds of individuals in culture, and conducted 4,496 controlled crosses testing for intra- and interspecific hybridization among four dioecious and twelve andromonoecious taxa. We then quantified rates of seed set across all 1,574 resultant fruits and tested a subset of seeds from each cross for germinability. The results offer support for the recent nature of speciation events driven by geographic isolation whereby populations occupied and adapted to specific ecological niches across the AMT. Our findings provide further evidence that Australian Solanum is an excellent model system for studying the evolution of the AMT flora and the role of geographic barriers to reproduction associated with fluctuations in regional climate.


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1 - 203 Biology Building, Lewisburg, 17837, United States
2 - Bucknell University, Biology, 1 Dent Drive, Bucknell University Biology Department, Lewisburg, PA, 17837, United States
3 - San Francisco State University, Biology, 1600 Holloway Ave, San Francisco, CA, 94132, USA
4 - Bucknell University, Bucknell University, 1 Dent Drive, Lewisburg, PA, 17837, United States

Keywords:
Hybridization
Solanum
Australia
andromonoecy
Speciation
Solanaceae.

Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 45, Systematics IV--Caryophs to Euasterids 2
Location: 111/Mayo Civic Center
Date: Wednesday, July 25th, 2018
Time: 4:45 PM
Number: 45012
Abstract ID:589
Candidate for Awards:None


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