Oct 8th, 2021 - Jay Goldberg

Next SolSeminar will be presented by Jay Goldberg on A Sticky Situation: The mechanisms underlying a natural trichome dimorphism in Datura wrightii

Abstract. Western Jimson Weed (Datura wrightii) has a remarkable trichome dimorphism. Some plants are sticky and covered with glandular trichomes, whereas others produce non-glandular trichomes and feel velvety to the touch. Both morphs coexist in populations across California, suggesting that this is an evolutionary stable dimorphism. In this talk Jay will discuss two mechanisms that may be acting on dimorphic D. wrightii: negative frequency-dependent selection (NFDS) and associational effects between neighboring plants. By analyzing changes in morph frequency for over 30 populations over a 20-year period, Jay was able to show that NFDS is acting to maintain the D. wrightii trichome dimorphism. Correlations with herbivory also suggest that two specialist herbivores – each preferring a different morph – are responsible. His data also show that these two herbivores underlie associational effects between neighboring D. wrightii within dimorphic populations – although it is unclear if these effects contribute to the maintenance of this stable dimorphism.

When? Friday Oct 8th 4 pm (GMT+1)

The zoom link to join the meeting is https://cuboulder.zoom.us/j/94333146166 Meeting ID: 943 3314 6166, password: Solanaceae

Watch this talk in TouTube: https://youtu.be/MxPVa6JNyXk