The idea of pollination syndromes has been largely discussed but no formal quantitative
evaluation has yet been conducted across angiosperms. We present the first systematic …

Since Darwin, the diversity of flowers has been attributed to selection by pollinators.
Although pollinators commonly act as selective agents on floral traits, determining the extent …

Orchids are the most diverse family of angiosperms, with over 25 000 species, more than
mammals, birds and reptiles combined. Tests of hypotheses to account for such diversity …

Adaptive radiation plays a fundamental role in our understanding of the evolutionary
process. However, the concept has provoked strong and differing opinions concerning its …

Pollinator-driven diversification is thought to be a major source of floral variation in plants.
Our knowledge of this process is, however, limited to indirect assessments of evolutionary …

Abstract Background and Aims 'Pollination syndromes' are suites of phenotypic traits
hypothesized to reflect convergent adaptations of flowers for pollination by specific types of …

The family Ranunculaceae, a member of early-diverging eudicots that is increasingly being
used as a model for the study of plant developmental evolution, has been the focus of …

Although not 'a professed botanist', Charles Darwin made seminal contributions to
understanding of floral and inflorescence function while seeking evidence of adaptation by …

Phylogenetic niche conservatism (PNC) is the tendency of lineages to retain their niche‐
related traits through speciation events. A recent surge in the availability of well‐sampled …

Adaptive radiation is a response to natural selection and ecological opportunity involving
diversification of species and associated adaptations. Although evolutionary biologists have …