Do unrelated plants growing in the same region look similar due to climate adaptation?

由于气候适应，在同一地区生长的不相关植物是否看起来相似？

• 批准号: 2891066
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: University of Reading
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Studentship
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2023 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=studentship-2891066
• 关键词: Do; unrelated; plants; growing; same

Plants are a key factor in the global climate balance, they absorb CO2 and emit oxygen, they stabilize soils and intercept rainfall, reducing erosion, they generate local microclimates and can slow the spread of deserts. However, analysis of the physical and biochemical traits of plant species in relation to climate adaptation is currently quite limited in scope. The focus of such research is generally on crops or whole ecosystems, such as grassland or forest. This PhD will study physical, biochemical and genetic features in three distantly related plant groups at the species-level to search for common patterns in relation to climate adaptation. The plant lineages under study occur predominantly in the Mediterranean climatic region but members of these lineages have spread beyond this climate zone. Common changes in features among these lineages will help understand the constraints on species imposed by climate. Your input into the project will be to test and evaluate as wide a range of characters as possible for the obvious or cryptic influence of climatic. Over the course of two years, working alongside the experts at University of Reading and the Royal Horticultural Society, the student will build up extensive datasets of features for the approximately 200 study species and these will be interpreted in the light of molecular phylogenies and climate envelope models. The applicant will have the opportunity to study preserved plants in herbaria, cultivated plants, and possibly some species in the field. You will have the opportunity to interact with internationally recognised expert groups in phylogenetics at Reading and horticultural taxonomy at the RHS Wisley. Data will be analysed using morphometric and phylogenetic approaches to interpret physical traits across phylogenies in relation to local climate adaptations.

植物是全球气候平衡的关键因素，它们吸收二氧化碳并释放氧气，稳定土壤并拦截降雨，减少侵蚀，产生局部小气候，并可以减缓沙漠的蔓延。然而，目前对植物物种与气候适应相关的物理和生化特性的分析范围相当有限。此类研究的重点通常是农作物或整个生态系统，例如草原或森林。该博士将在物种层面研究三个远缘植物群的物理、生化和遗传特征，以寻找与气候适应相关的共同模式。所研究的植物谱系主要发生在地中海气候区，但这些谱系的成员已经扩散到该气候区之外。这些谱系特征的共同变化将有助于理解气候对物种的限制。您对该项目的投入将是测试和评估尽可能广泛的特征，以了解气候的明显或神秘的影响。在两年的时间里，学生将与雷丁大学和皇家园艺学会的专家合作，建立大约 200 个研究物种的广泛特征数据集，并根据分子系统发育和气候包络线对这些特征进行解释模型。申请人将有机会研究植物标本室中保存的植物、栽培植物，甚至可能还有野外的一些物种。您将有机会与雷丁大学的系统发育学和威斯利皇家园艺学会的园艺分类学方面国际公认的专家小组进行互动。将使用形态测量和系统发育方法对数据进行分析，以解释与当地气候适应相关的跨系统发育的物理特征。