Ecological and evolutionary drivers of inflorescence diversity in Chinese angiosperms.

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Title: Ecological and evolutionary drivers of inflorescence diversity in Chinese angiosperms.
Authors: Shao, Mingxue1,2,3 (AUTHOR), Zhang, Chunyu1,2,3 (AUTHOR), Wang, Renqing1,2,3 (AUTHOR), Wang, Hui1,2,3 (AUTHOR) wanghui1227@sdu.edu.cn, Zheng, Peiming1,2,3 (AUTHOR) zhengpeiming@email.sdu.edu.cn
Source: Journal of Ecology. Feb2026, Vol. 114 Issue 2, p1-14. 14p.
Subjects: Inflorescences, Abiotic environment, Climate change, Biological evolution, Pollinators, Phylogeny, Angiosperms
Geographic Terms: China
Abstract: Inflorescences are the key reproductive structures of angiosperms. Although the biogeography of inflorescences has been explored in large‐scale studies, there remains a lack of research on the trade‐offs in fitness among inflorescence types, as well as the spatial patterns of inflorescence morphology and their ecological and evolutionary drivers.Based on the inflorescence types of 25,778 Chinese angiosperm species and incorporating their distribution data, this study presents an integrated analysis of the effects of environmental variables, phylogenetic relationships and potential pollinator assemblages to systematically investigate the spatial patterns of inflorescence diversity and their ecological and evolutionary determinants.We observed a hump‐shaped pattern of inflorescence diversity along the first principal component axis (PC1), which was primarily associated with hydrothermal conditions. The peak diversity occurred in regions with moderate temperatures and precipitation, reflecting the trade‐offs among various inflorescence types. Indeterminate inflorescences predominantly occurred in regions with extreme environmental conditions (e.g. cold and arid climates), with northwestern China representing a major area of incidence. Phylogenetic analyses suggest that fluctuations in global mean surface temperature since the Cretaceous have promoted evolutionary transitions from determinate to indeterminate inflorescences, facilitating the adaptive evolution of indeterminate inflorescences in climatically unstable regions such as northwestern China. Additionally, the origin and rapid diversification of pollinating insects have enabled determinate inflorescences showing stronger co‐occurrence patterns with pollinators to persist in the climatically stable southeastern region of China. Moderate environmental heterogeneity and resource availability create conditions for the coexistence of both inflorescence strategies, thereby enhancing diversity in areas with intermediate hydrothermal conditions.Synthesis. These findings demonstrate that environmental factors have shaped the diversity of inflorescences both through direct constraints and indirectly via evolutionary history and interactions with potential pollinators. This study offers a novel perspective on the formation of inflorescence diversity by exploring the adaptive trade‐offs between two types under the influence of ecological and evolutionary factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Journal of Ecology is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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  Label: Title
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  Data: Ecological and evolutionary drivers of inflorescence diversity in Chinese angiosperms.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Shao%2C+Mingxue%22">Shao, Mingxue</searchLink><relatesTo>1,2,3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Zhang%2C+Chunyu%22">Zhang, Chunyu</searchLink><relatesTo>1,2,3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Wang%2C+Renqing%22">Wang, Renqing</searchLink><relatesTo>1,2,3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Wang%2C+Hui%22">Wang, Hui</searchLink><relatesTo>1,2,3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> wanghui1227@sdu.edu.cn</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Zheng%2C+Peiming%22">Zheng, Peiming</searchLink><relatesTo>1,2,3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> zhengpeiming@email.sdu.edu.cn</i>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Journal+of+Ecology%22">Journal of Ecology</searchLink>. Feb2026, Vol. 114 Issue 2, p1-14. 14p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Inflorescences%22">Inflorescences</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Abiotic+environment%22">Abiotic environment</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Climate+change%22">Climate change</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Biological+evolution%22">Biological evolution</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Pollinators%22">Pollinators</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Phylogeny%22">Phylogeny</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Angiosperms%22">Angiosperms</searchLink>
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  Label: Geographic Terms
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22China%22">China</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Inflorescences are the key reproductive structures of angiosperms. Although the biogeography of inflorescences has been explored in large‐scale studies, there remains a lack of research on the trade‐offs in fitness among inflorescence types, as well as the spatial patterns of inflorescence morphology and their ecological and evolutionary drivers.Based on the inflorescence types of 25,778 Chinese angiosperm species and incorporating their distribution data, this study presents an integrated analysis of the effects of environmental variables, phylogenetic relationships and potential pollinator assemblages to systematically investigate the spatial patterns of inflorescence diversity and their ecological and evolutionary determinants.We observed a hump‐shaped pattern of inflorescence diversity along the first principal component axis (PC1), which was primarily associated with hydrothermal conditions. The peak diversity occurred in regions with moderate temperatures and precipitation, reflecting the trade‐offs among various inflorescence types. Indeterminate inflorescences predominantly occurred in regions with extreme environmental conditions (e.g. cold and arid climates), with northwestern China representing a major area of incidence. Phylogenetic analyses suggest that fluctuations in global mean surface temperature since the Cretaceous have promoted evolutionary transitions from determinate to indeterminate inflorescences, facilitating the adaptive evolution of indeterminate inflorescences in climatically unstable regions such as northwestern China. Additionally, the origin and rapid diversification of pollinating insects have enabled determinate inflorescences showing stronger co‐occurrence patterns with pollinators to persist in the climatically stable southeastern region of China. Moderate environmental heterogeneity and resource availability create conditions for the coexistence of both inflorescence strategies, thereby enhancing diversity in areas with intermediate hydrothermal conditions.Synthesis. These findings demonstrate that environmental factors have shaped the diversity of inflorescences both through direct constraints and indirectly via evolutionary history and interactions with potential pollinators. This study offers a novel perspective on the formation of inflorescence diversity by exploring the adaptive trade‐offs between two types under the influence of ecological and evolutionary factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Journal of Ecology is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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RecordInfo BibRecord:
  BibEntity:
    Identifiers:
      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1111/1365-2745.70246
    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 14
        StartPage: 1
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Inflorescences
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Abiotic environment
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Climate change
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Biological evolution
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Pollinators
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Phylogeny
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Angiosperms
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: China
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Ecological and evolutionary drivers of inflorescence diversity in Chinese angiosperms.
        Type: main
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          Name:
            NameFull: Shao, Mingxue
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            NameFull: Zhang, Chunyu
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            NameFull: Wang, Renqing
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            NameFull: Wang, Hui
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            NameFull: Zheng, Peiming
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            – D: 01
              M: 02
              Text: Feb2026
              Type: published
              Y: 2026
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              Value: 00220477
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              Value: 114
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            – TitleFull: Journal of Ecology
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