Geopolitics in a buttercup

Yu, Douglas W. and Ridley, Jo (2003) Geopolitics in a buttercup. Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 18 (4). pp. 163-165. ISSN 1872-8383

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Abstract

It is difficult to explain how mutualisms evolve and then persist in the face of selection for cheating behavior. A classic example of a mutualism is that between globeflowers Trollius europaeus and their specialist and obligate pollinating flies. Because the fly larvae eat globeflower seeds, the host plants effectively ‘pay babies to get babies’. In a new paper, Ferdy et al. use an adaptive dynamics model to show how globeflower morphology can so intensify fly larval kin competition that female flies are selected to lay small clutches of eggs, even at the cost of having to visit more flowers. Fewer eggs result in fewer seeds being eaten and, therefore, floral morphology alone could result in the evolution and maintenance of this mutualism.

Item Type:	Article
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Science > School of Biological Sciences
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Science > Research Centres > Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Organisms and the Environment
Depositing User:	EPrints Services
Date Deposited:	01 Oct 2010 13:37
Last Modified:	16 May 2023 10:30
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/514
DOI:	10.1016/S0169-5347(03)00035-1

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