Skip to main content
Dryad

Floral density and co-occurring congeners alter patterns of selection in annual plant communities

Cite this dataset

Eisen, Katherine Elizabeth; Wruck, Amy Catherine; Geber, Monica Ann (2020). Floral density and co-occurring congeners alter patterns of selection in annual plant communities [Dataset]. Dryad. https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.mkkwh70w4

Abstract

While the evolution and diversification of flowers is often attributed to pollinator-mediated selection, interactions between co-occurring plant species can alter patterns of selection mediated by pollinators and other agents. The extent to which both floral density and congeneric species richness affect patterns of net and pollinator-mediated selection on multiple co-occurring species in a community is unknown and is likely to depend on whether co-occurring plants experience competition or facilitation for reproduction. We conducted an observational study of selection on four species of Clarkia (Onagraceae) and tested for pollinator-mediated selection on two Clarkia species in communities differing in congeneric species richness and local floral density. When selection varied with community context, selection was generally stronger in communities with fewer species, where local conspecific floral density was higher, and where local heterospecific floral density was lower. These patterns suggest that intraspecific competition at high densities and interspecific competition at low densities may affect the evolution of floral traits. However, selection on floral traits was not pollinator-mediated in C. cylindrica or C. xantiana, despite variation in pollinator visitation and the extent of pollen limitation across communities for C. cylindrica. As such, interactions between co-occurring species may alter patterns of selection mediated by abiotic agents of selection.

Methods

All procedures for data collection and processing are listed in the manuscript. The units for each variable are in the datadescriptors.csv file.

Usage notes

The uploaded files contain raw values and the standardized values that were used in the analyses in the paper. Missing values are marked with NA and occurred when plants were damaged in the field or when certain measurements were not recorded due to user error. There is a datadescriptors.csv file that contains descriptions of each column in all three data files.

Funding

National Science Foundation, Award: DGE-1650441

National Science Foundation, Award: DEB-1256288