title: The role of polyploidy in shaping morphological diversity in natural populations of Phlox amabilis.
abstract: Studies of natural populations of polyploids increasingly highlight complex patterns of variation in ploidy and geographic distribution of cytotypes. As our understanding of the complexity of polyploidy grows, our understanding of the morphological correlates of polyploidy should expand as well. Here we examine in what ways, and to what degree, polyploidy affects the overall phenotype of a species across its distribution when there are three ploidies and geographic complexity in cytotype distribution.
  
  
  
  We measured 31 morphological traits from stems, leaves, and flowers from up to 25 individuals from 11 sites across the distribution of Phlox amabilis. Chromosome counts and flow cytometry confirmed and expanded upon earlier research documenting diploid, tetraploid, and hexaploid populations, and also identified a site with two ploidies. Univariate and multivariate statistics were used to characterize the morphological effects of polyploidy.
  
  
  
  We detected significant associations between morphology and ploidy in 11 traits spread across vegetative and reproductive structures. Generally, diploid individuals differed from polyploid individuals to a greater extent, and in different ways, than tetraploid and hexaploid plants differed from each other. Multivariate morphometrics demonstrated that the two primary axes of overall variation are driven by morphological traits associated with polyploidy, and individuals of different ploidies can be discriminated with 95% success.
  
  
  
  Polyploidy plays a major role in shaping overall morphological diversity in natural populations of P. amabilis.
authors: Herbarium and Department of Plant Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824 USA.
authors: Matthew T
authors: MT
authors: Chansler
authors: Herbarium and Division of Biology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas 66506 USA.
authors: Carolyn J
authors: CJ
authors: Ferguson
authors: Research, Conservation, and Collections, Desert Botanical Garden, 1201 North Galvin Parkway, Phoenix, Arizona 85008 USA.
authors: Shannon D
authors: SD
authors: Fehlberg
authors: Herbarium and Department of Plant Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824 USA alan@msu.edu.
authors: L Alan
authors: LA
authors: Prather
mesh_terms: D001130:Arizona; D035264:Flowers / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000235:genetics; D019684:Magnoliopsida / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000235:genetics*; D010641:Phenotype; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000235:genetics; D018547:Plant Stems / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000235:genetics; D011123:Polyploidy
keywords: Phlox; Polemoniaceae; cytotypic variation; multivariate morphometrics; phenotypic diversity; plant morphology; polyploidy