Nicotiana Floral Evolution

Anthony Ippolito, Wilson Fernandes, Tim Holtsford, Tina Merrels, Allena Volskay, Rainee Kaczorowski, Michael Wunsch, Jana U'Ren, Matt Krna and Jessica Cuba are studying floral evolution in Nicotiana Section Alatae, a monophyletic group with amazing diversity in floral traits.

Species	primary pollinators	mating system
N. longiflora	hawkmoths	Self-compatible (SC), facultative outcrosser but at least one population selfs regularly in the glasshouse
N. plumbaginifolia	hawkmoths	SC, autogamous & cleistogamous
N. alata	hawkmoths	Self-incompatible (SI)-enforced outcrossing
N. langsdorfii	hummingbirds, Bombus, Halictids	SI-enforced outcrossing but some populations studied by Bruce McClure are SC.
N. forgetiana	hummingbirds, Halictid bees	SI-enforced outcrossing
N. mutabilis	hummingbirds, others?	SI-(new flrs white, older ones pink)
N. bonariensis	small perching moths	SI-enforced outcrossing
N. sp. novo ?	hummingbirds, Halictids and small moths	SI-enforced outcrossing

Anthony Ippolito is the primary author of all projects without a name after them -- and his work faciltated everything below.

• Pre-reproductive isolation:
  • Do pollinators discriminate among parental floral forms?
  • Do post-pollination processes contribute to assortative mating among species?
• Post-reproductive isolation:
  • Are hybrids as fit as parental types in situ?
  • Environmental and GxE effects on hybrid fitness -- Matt Krna
• Sympatric speciation??:
  • Are pollinator preferences strong enough to cause assortative mating within a polymorphic F2 population and a genetic response in the F3?
• Molecular markers: SSR development
• Developmental morphology of this group is being studied by Allena Volskay.
• Nectar chemistry is being studied by Rainee Kaczorowski.
• Systematics: nrITS phylogenetics
• Environmental and GxE effects on floral and phenological traits -- Jana U'Ren.
• Correlations among floral traits: Pollinators' effects -- Jessica Cuba

• Pollinator preferences and relative fitness of Nicotiana alata, N. forgetiana and their F₁ hybrids
  • In review for Evolution
• Pollinator-mediated floral evolution and the potential for speciation in Nicotiana.
  • In review for PNAS