Effect of coflowering Mimulus ringens on phenotypic selection on floral traits of gynodioecious Lobelia siphilitica

Abstract

Although interspecific competition for pollination is hypothesized to result in divergence in floral traits (i.e., character displacement), few studies have tested whether selection on these traits differs in the presence and absence of a competitor for pollination. We measured phenotypic selection on floral traits of Lobelia siphilitica L. growing in the presence and absence of Mimulus ringens L., a potential competitor for pollination. Because L. siphilitica is gynodioecious, we estimated selection separately for female and hermaphrodite plants. The presence of M. ringens did not decrease seed set of L. siphilitica. However, the presence of M. ringens did affect selection on daily display size of female L. siphilitica; there was significant selection for smaller daily displays in the absence of M. ringens, but nonsignificant selection for larger displays in the presence of M. ringens. In addition, selection on flower colour did not differ in the presence and absence of M. ringens, but did differ between female and hermaphrodite L. siphilitica. Consequently, our results suggest that the evolution of floral traits in L. siphilitica, but not the evolution of sexual dimorphism in these traits, can be affected by interactions for pollination with M. ringens.