Title
The ancestral flower of angiosperms and its early diversification
Author
Hervé Sauquet
Laboratoire Écologie, Systématique, Évolution, Université Paris-Sud, CNRS UMR 8079
Susana Magallón
Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
... show all
Abstract
Recent advances in molecular phylogenetics and a series of important palaeobotanical discoveries have revolutionized our understanding of angiosperm diversification. Yet, the origin and early evolution of their most characteristic feature, the flower, remains poorly understood. In particular, the structure of the ancestral flower of all living angiosperms is still uncertain. Here we report model-based reconstructions for ancestral flowers at the deepest nodes in the phylogeny of angiosperms, using the largest data set of floral traits ever assembled. We reconstruct the ancestral angiosperm flower as bisexual and radially symmetric, with more than two whorls of three separate perianth organs each (undifferentiated tepals), more than two whorls of three separate stamens each, and more than five spirally arranged separate carpels. Although uncertainty remains for some of the characters, our reconstruction allows us to propose a new plausible scenario for the early diversification of flowers, leading to new testable hypotheses for future research on angiosperms.
Keywords
PhylogeneticsPlant evolution
Object type
Language
English [eng]
Persistent identifier
phaidra.univie.ac.at/o:783717
Appeared in
Title
Nature Communications
Volume
8
From page
16047
Publication
Springer Nature
Version type
Date issued
2017
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Rights
Rights statement
© The Author(s) 2017
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