> >Or maybe their speedy evolution
> >hasn't given them time to get well organized at the gene regulation and
> >expression level.
>
> Then Lentibuariaceae must have evolved at an even greater speed, with
> _Utricularia_ having "forgotten" how to form "normal" vegetative parts!
What I'm saying is that if evolution goes too fast, then maybe
we'll see lots of mutations (as is the case with the pygmies) and
reversions to ancient formulas. If the species are rather stable in
their present form (whatever it is, with or without "normal" vegetative
parts), maybe that means that their evolution was slow enough to permit
a parallel evolution of good control on gene expression and regulation.
That is, there was enough time for these controls to keep up with the
morphological evolution, which doesn't seem to be the case in the
pygmies.
Fernando Rivadavia
Sao Paulo, Brazil