Congratulations to Kai, a new article published!

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Exciting news from our group as Kai’s article, “Disruptive selection via pollinators and seed predators on the height of flowers on a wind-dispersed alpine herb” has been published in American Journal of Botany.

The research presented in the article is a thorough examination of the effect of pollinators and seed predators on selection on floral stalk height in the insect-pollinated and wind-dispersed, alpine, andromonoecious herb Pulsatilla alpina. By measuring the resource status of individuals and investigating the association between floral stalk height, floral morphology, and floral sex allocation, the study provides valuable insights into the costs and benefits of this trait.

One of the major findings of the study is that stalk height is a costly trait that affects female reproductive success via interactions with both mutualists and antagonists. The study also provides evidence for unusual disruptive selection on floral stalk height in P. alpina in terms of three components of reproductive success: fertilization rate, seed predation rate, and seed maturation rate. This research points to the fact that taller stalks have a higher fertilization rate, lower seed predation rate, and higher seed maturation rate compared to intermediate height stalks. Additionally, the study indicates that the investment in such stalks should likely be attributed largely to female rather than male components of reproductive success, which may help to explain the andromonoecious sexual system of this perennial herb.

Congratulations Kai!