Re: _Drosera_ evolution (long)

Liane Cochran-Stafira (lcochran@midway.uchicago.edu)
Tue, 13 Jun 1995 11:00:33 -0500

>
>
>To give two examples:
>
>
>
>> Flowers can only be important in terms of evolution in species which
>> produce seed sexually.
>
>
>Flowers are only important for sexual reproduction and sexual
>reproduction is the only way in which genetic variation and hence
>evolution can occur at the rate it does. Also, as far as I know no-one
>has ever changed suggested that seed result from asexual reproduction.
>

I agree that asexual reproduction does not contribute to genetic
recombination and gentic variation, but seeds CAN be produced asexually by
the process of APOMIXIS in a number of plant species, for example -
dandelions. The flowers in these plants do not play a role in terms of
providing the genetic variability for evolution.

Liane

Liane Cochran-Stafira
Dept. of Ecology and Evolution
The University of Chicago
1101 East 57th Street
Chicago, Illinois 60637-5415
phone: 312-702-1930
e-mail: lcochran@midway.uchicago.edu