Commercial Harvesting Has Driven the Evolution of Camouflage in an Alpine Plant.
Curr Biol
; 31(2): 446-449.e4, 2021 01 25.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-33220721
Color in nature mediates numerous among and within species interactions,1 and anthropogenic impacts have long had major influences on the color evolution of wild animals.2 An under-explored area is commercial harvesting, which in animals can exert a strong selection pressure on various traits, sometimes greater even than natural selection or other human activities.3,4 Natural populations of plants that are used by humans have likely also suffered strong pressure from harvesting, yet the potential for evolutionary change induced by humans has received surprisingly little attention.5 Here, we show that the leaf coloration of a herb used in traditional Chinese medicine (Fritillaria delavayi) varies among populations, with leaves matching their local backgrounds most closely. The degree of background matching correlates with estimates of harvest pressure, with plants being more cryptic in heavily collected populations. In a human search experiment, the time it took participants to find plants was greatly influenced by target concealment. These results point to humans as driving the evolution of camouflage in populations of this species through commercial harvesting, changing the phenotype of wild plants in an unexpected and dramatic way.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Plantas Medicinales
/
Fritillaria
/
Mimetismo Biológico
Tipo de estudio:
Diagnostic_studies
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Curr Biol
Asunto de la revista:
BIOLOGIA
Año:
2021
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
China
Pais de publicación:
Reino Unido