Coexisting Sedges Are Functionally Similar, But Are They Distantly Related In Evolutionary History?
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Date
2018-04Author
Weiher, Evan R.
Wilke, Hayden
Susen, McKayla
Wilke, Hayden
Susen, McKayla
Schafer, Tabitha M.
Petersen, Molly
Nelsen, Karlee
Mares, Eryn
Ishihara, Charles
Graf, Kacie
Carlson, Elizabeth
O'Keefe, Kerry
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
A classic study lead by Jeannine Cavender-Bares (Cavender-Bares et al. 2004) showed that
coexisting oak trees in Florida tend to be more functionally similar and more phylogenetically
diverse compared to a random model. This means that certain functional traits associated
with habitat filtering evolved convergently multiple times for these oaks.
It is not known if other plants have undergone similar evolutionary and ecological selection.
This drove the 2017 summer research cohort to determine if Wisconsin sedges have a similar
evolutionary history as Florida oaks. We aim to apply Cavender-Bares’ method of measuring
functional similarity to our study of coexisting sedges. Sedges (genus Carex) are a
hyperdiverse genus (~160 species in Wisconsin) that live in every habitat throughout the state,
making them a strong candidate for measuring and comparing functional traits across a large
environmental range.
Subject
Posters
Sedge plants
Forest habitats
Oak trees
Permanent Link
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1793/79876Description
Color poster with text, images, and table.