Abstract Detail

Bryology and Lichenology

Silva e Costa, Juliana [1], Cornett, Justin [2], Luizi-Ponzo, Andrea Pereira [1], McLetchie, Nicholas [3].

Does sex ratio in Plagiochila porelloides correlate with fertilization and environmental variables?

There are many studies on population sex ratios in bryophytes, mostly on mosses and many report female bias sex ratios. Few studies explore variation in sex ratios within species, test for the expected relationship between sex ratio and reproduction and, surprisingly, even fewer report on the relationship between sex ratios and environmental variation. Using the liverwort Plagiochila porelloides, we tested for sex ratio heterogeneity among populations, a relationship between sex ratio and fertilization success, and correlations between sex ratio and light environment, topography, and species richness. We assessed sex ratios and fertilization success using 50 cm transects in 29 populations. For environment factors we 1) estimated light intensity and canopy openness, 2) measured slope and aspect, and 3) calculated species richness along these transects. The expressed sex ratios are heterogeneous, varying from all male to all female but was overall male bias (0.375 ♀:1 ♂, an unexpected pattern in bryophytes), and associated with fertilization. Sex ratio was not significantly associated with any of the environmental factors evaluated. The male bias sex ratio found in this species, which belongs to an ecologically understudied and one of the most specious liverwort genera, may challenge the general expectation of female bias sex ratios in bryophytes.

1 - Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Department of Botany, Juiz de Fora, MG, 36036-900, Brazil
2 - University of Kentucky, Department of Biology, Lexington , 40506, USA
3 - University Of Kentucky, Department Of Biology, 101 Morgan Build., Lexington, KY, 40506, United States

Keywords:
Sex Ratio
Light
reproductive biology.

Presentation Type: Poster
Number: PBL004
Abstract ID:482
Candidate for Awards:None