George R. McGhee
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- August 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780262016421
- eISBN:
- 9780262298872
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262016421.003.0003
- Subject:
- Biology, Evolutionary Biology / Genetics
This chapter describes the functional problems faced by photoautrophic modes of life, and specifically deals with the reproductive evolution of seed plants. It discusses the photosynthetic ...
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This chapter describes the functional problems faced by photoautrophic modes of life, and specifically deals with the reproductive evolution of seed plants. It discusses the photosynthetic light-capture structures in plants. The convergencies that necessarily result from those functional constraints on possible evolutionary pathways are elaborated. The chapter shows that convergent fertilization systems are dominant in the seed plants. It suggests that plants coevolve with the numerous animal partners which they have involved in their reproduction and defense, and that these beetles, flies, bees, wasps, butterflies, moths, ants, birds, and mammals have themselves evolved in response to plant evolution.Less
This chapter describes the functional problems faced by photoautrophic modes of life, and specifically deals with the reproductive evolution of seed plants. It discusses the photosynthetic light-capture structures in plants. The convergencies that necessarily result from those functional constraints on possible evolutionary pathways are elaborated. The chapter shows that convergent fertilization systems are dominant in the seed plants. It suggests that plants coevolve with the numerous animal partners which they have involved in their reproduction and defense, and that these beetles, flies, bees, wasps, butterflies, moths, ants, birds, and mammals have themselves evolved in response to plant evolution.
