ORCID Profile
0000-0002-0361-8709
Current Organisation
University of Adelaide
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Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 14-10-2023
Publisher: Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions
Date: 26-10-2017
DOI: 10.58828/NUY00847
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-06-2019
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 22-01-2020
Abstract: The ersification dynamics of the Australian temperate flora remains poorly understood. Here, we investigate whether differences in plant richness in the southwest Australian (SWA) bio ersity hotspot and southeast Australian (SEA) regions of the Australian continent can be attributed to higher net ersification, more time for species accumulation, or both. We assembled dated molecular phylogenies for the 21 most species-rich flowering plant families found across mesic temperate Australia, encompassing both SWA and SEA regions, and applied a series of ersification models to investigate responses across different groups and timescales. We show that the high richness in SWA can be attributed to a higher net rate of lineage ersification and more time for species accumulation. Different pulses of ersification were retrieved in each region. A decrease in ersification rate across major flowering plant lineages at the Eocene–Oligocene boundary ( ca 34 Ma) was witnessed in SEA but not in SWA. Our study demonstrates the importance of historical ersification pulses and differential responses to global events as drivers of present-day ersity. More broadly, we show that ersity within the SWA bio ersity hotspot is not only the result of recent radiations, but also reflects older events over the history of this planet.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2021
Publisher: Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions
Date: 17-08-2022
DOI: 10.58828/NUY01037
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 09-02-2019
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2018
DOI: 10.1071/BT18059
Abstract: Stylidium species (triggerplants) are claimed to be protocarnivorous based on the presence of glandular hairs, observations of trapped small organisms, and induction of proteinase activity. However, these traits might serve alternative functions. We aimed to re-assess and quantify the degree of carnivory for Stylidium species in an ecological context, by comparing the natural abundance (δ15N) of Stylidium species with co-occurring carnivorous (Drosera species) and non-carnivorous plants in their natural habitats. We hypothesised that the δ15N signature of Stylidium species would more closely match co-occurring carnivorous plant species than their non-carnivorous counterparts if they rely on captured organisms as a nutrient source, since there is an increase in fractionation by 3–5 ‰ per trophic level. Our results show that the Stylidium species s led had δ15N signatures that matched more closely with co-occurring non-carnivorous plants than with carnivorous Drosera species. This does not support the claim that they rely on captured organisms as a nitrogen source, or the source is negligible. Other studies have shown that protocarnivorous species have a δ15N signature that is more similar to that of co-occurring carnivorous than that of non-carnivorous species. Therefore, our findings question the protocarnivory status of Stylidium species.
Publisher: Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions
Date: 24-06-2021
DOI: 10.58828/NUY01000
Publisher: Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions
Date: 17-08-2022
DOI: 10.58828/NUY01034
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 13-01-2021
Abstract: Cytonuclear discordance, commonly detected in phylogenetic studies, is often attributed to hybridization and/or incomplete lineage sorting (ILS). New sequencing technologies and analytical approaches can provide new insights into the relative importance of these processes. Hybridization has previously been reported in the Australian endemic plant genus Adenanthos (Proteaceae). Like many Australian genera, Adenanthos is of relatively ancient origin, and provides an opportunity to examine long-term evolutionary consequences of gene flow between lineages. Using a hybrid capture approach, we assembled densely s led low-copy nuclear and plastid DNA sequences for Adenanthos , inferred its evolutionary history, and used a Bayesian posterior predictive approach and coalescent simulations to assess relative contributions of hybridization and ILS to cytonuclear discordance. Our analyses indicate that strong incongruence detected between our plastid and nuclear phylogenies is not only the result of ILS, but also results from extensive ancient introgression as well as recent chloroplast capture and introgression between extant Adenanthos species. The deep reticulation was also detected from long-persisting chloroplast haplotypes shared between evolutionarily distant species. These haplotypes may have persisted for over 12 Ma in localized populations across southwest Western Australia, indicating that the region is not only an important area for old endemic lineages and accumulation of species, but is also characterized by persistence of high genetic ersity. Deep introgression in Adenanthos coincided with the rapid radiation of the genus during the Miocene, a time when many Australian temperate plant groups radiated in response to large-scale climatic change. This study suggests that ancient introgression may play an important role in the evolution of the Australian flora more broadly.
Publisher: Pensoft Publishers
Date: 23-06-2023
DOI: 10.3897/PHYTOKEYS.227.102279
Abstract: Flagelliflory refers to the production of inflorescences exclusively on long, whip-like branches which emerge from the main trunk and extend along the ground or below it. It is the rarest type of cauliflory and only a few cases have been reported in the world. Here, a new species of Annonaceae with flagelliflory is described and illustrated. The phylogenetic relationships of the new species were inferred using a hybrid-capture phylogenomic approach and we present some notes on its reproductive ecology and pollen characteristics. The new species, namely Desmopsis terriflora sp. nov. , is part of a clade composed of Mexican species of Stenanona with long, awned petals. Desmopsis terriflora is distinguished by its flageliflorous inflorescences, basely fused sepals, thick red petals, reduced number of ovules per carpel, pollen grains with a weakly rugulate to fossulate exine ornamentation, and its globose, apiculate fruits with a woody testa. The morphological characteristics of the flagella suggest that these are specialized branches rather than inflorescences, and the absence of ramiflory implies an exclusively reproductive function. The flowers are infrequently visited by insects, their potential pollinators being flies and ants.
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 28-08-2023
DOI: 10.1101/2023.08.26.554607
Abstract: The macroevolutionary processes that have shaped bio ersity across the temperate realm remain poorly understood and may have resulted from evolutionary dynamics related to ersification rates, dispersal rates, and colonization times, closely coupled with Cenozoic climate change. We integrated phylogenomic, environmental ordination, and macroevolutionary analyses for the cosmopolitan angiosperm family Rhamnaceae to disentangle the evolutionary processes that have contributed to high species ersity within and across temperate biomes. Our results show independent colonization of environmentally similar but geographically separated temperate regions mainly during the Oligocene, consistent with the global expansion of temperate biomes. High global, regional, and local temperate ersity was the result of high in - situ ersification rates, rather than high immigration rates or accumulation time, except for Southern China, which was colonized much earlier than other regions. The relatively common lineage dispersals out of temperate hotspots highlights strong source-sink dynamics across the cosmopolitan distribution of Rhamnaceae. The proliferation of temperate environments since the Oligocene may have provided the ecological opportunity for rapid in - situ ersification of Rhamnaceae across the temperate realm. Our study illustrates the importance of high in - situ ersification rates for the establishment of modern temperate biomes and bio ersity hotspots across spatial scales.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-2022
DOI: 10.1002/AJB2.1790
Abstract: Continental-scale disjunctions and associated drivers are core research interests in biogeographic studies. Here, we selected a species-rich Australian plant genus (Calytrix Myrtaceae) as a case study to investigate these patterns. Species of this endemic Australian starflower genus have a disjunct distribution across the mesic fringes of the continent and are largely absent from the arid center. We used high-throughput sequencing to generate unprecedented resolution and near complete species-level nuclear and plastid phylogenies for Calytrix. BioGeoBEARS and biogeographic stochastic mapping were used to infer ancestral areas, the relative contributions of vicariance and dispersal events, and directionality of dispersal. Present-day disjunctions in Calytrix are explained by a combination of scenarios: (1) retreat of multiple lineages from the continental center to the more mesic fringes as Australia became progressively more arid, with subsequent extinction in the center as well as (2) origination of ancestral lineages in southwestern Australia (SWA) for species-rich clades. The SWA bio ersity hotspot is a major ersification center and the most common source area of dispersals, with multiple lineages originating in SWA and subsequently spreading to the adjacent arid Eremaean region. Our results suggest that major extinction, as a result of cooling and drying of the Australian continent in the Eocene-Miocene, shaped the present-day biogeography of Calytrix. We hypothesize that this peripheral vicariance pattern, which is similar to the African Rand flora, may explain the disjunctions of many other Australian plant groups. Further studies with densely s led phylogenies are required to test this hypothesis.
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2018
DOI: 10.1071/SB17062
Abstract: A molecular study on Ptilotus nobilis (Lindl.) F.Muell. var. nobilis and P. exaltatus Nees var. exaltatus led to the conclusion that these taxa are conspecific, resulting in the synonymisation of the latter under the former as P. nobilis subsp. nobilis. In this study, we test previous taxonomic concepts in the P. nobilis–P. exaltatus species group by examining (1) the morphology of specimens in the herbarium and field, and (2) ecological and geographic partitioning of two widespread and broadly sympatric taxa in the group, using Maxent and CART models. We provide strong evidence supporting the reinstatement of P. exaltatus as distinct from P. nobilis, on the basis of multiple morphological characters and strong ecological and geographic partitioning, the latter showing how large-scale ecological data can be used to help resolve taxonomic issues. In addition, we raise P. nobilis subsp. angustifolius (Benl) Lally & W.R.Barker to the rank of species as P. angustifolius (Benl) T.Hammer and reinstate P. semilanatus (Lindl.) F.Muell. ex J.M.Black.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 30-08-2018
DOI: 10.1093/AOB/MCY163
Publisher: Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions
Date: 16-03-2017
DOI: 10.58828/NUY00819
Location: France
No related grants have been discovered for Francis Nge.