The genetic architecture of multiple mutualisms and mating system in Turnera ulmifolia

Abstract

AbstractPlants often associate with multiple arthropod mutualists. These partners provide important services to their hosts, but multiple interactions can constrain a plant’s ability to respond to complex, multivariate selection. Here, we quantified patterns of genetic variance and covariance among rewards for pollination, biotic defence, and seed dispersal mutualisms in multiple populations of Turnera ulmifolia to better understand how the genetic architecture of multiple mutualisms might influence their evolution. We phenotyped plants cultivated from 17 Jamaican populations for several mutualism and mating system-related traits. We then fit genetic variance-covariance (G) matrices for the island metapopulation and the 5 largest individual populations. At the metapopulation level, we observed significant positive genetic correlations among stigma-anther separation, floral nectar production, and extrafloral nectar production. These correlations have the potential to significantly constrain or facilitate the evolution of multiple mutualisms in T. ulmifolia and suggest that pollination, seed dispersal, and dispersal mutualisms do not evolve independently. In particular, we found that positive genetic correlations between floral and extrafloral nectar production may help explain their stable co-existence in the face of physiological trade-offs and negative interactions between pollinators and ant bodyguards. Locally, we found only small differences in G among our T. ulmifolia populations, suggesting that geographic variation in G may not shape the evolution of multiple mutualisms.