Electronic Resource
Palo Alto, Calif.
:
Annual Reviews
Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics
36 (2005), S. 107-124
ISSN:
1543-592X
Source:
Annual Reviews Electronic Back Volume Collection 1932-2001ff
Topics:
Biology
Notes:
The predominantly wind-pollinated order Poales includes about one third of all monocot (Angiosperm) species, with c. 20,000 species dominating modern savanna and steppe vegetation. Recent improvements in understanding relationships within the order allow phylogenetic optimizations of habitat preferences and adaptive character states, enabling exploration of the factors that have influenced evolution in this successful order. Poales probably originated in the late Cretaceous in wet nutrientĐ??poor sunny habitats. By the Paleogene the lineage had diversified into swamps, the forest understory, epiphytic habitats, and nutrient-poor heathlands. The Neogene saw major diversifications of the grasses and possibly the sedges into fire-adapted vegetation in seasonal climates and low atmospheric CO2. Diversification into these habitats was facilitated by morphological features such as the sympodial habit and physiological factors that allowed frequent evolution of CO2-concentrating mechanisms.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.36.102403.135635
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