In: American Journal of Botany, 2013, vol. 100, no. 8, p. 1555–1561
Premise of the study: Because seeds have essential functions in the life cycle of plants, even subtle changes in their characteristics may have important demographic consequences. In this study, we examined whether potential changes in seed characteristics as a result of polyploidy or postintroduction evolution may have contributed to the invasion of Centaurea stoebe (Asteraceae). This plant...
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In: Journal of Ecology, 2013, p. -
Biogeographic experiments that test how multiple interacting factors influence exotic plant abundance in their home and recipient communities are remarkably rare. We examined the effects of soil fungi, disturbance and propagule pressure on seed germination, seedling recruitment and adult plant establishment of the invasive Centaurea stoebe in its native European and non-native North American...
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In: Ecology, 2013, vol. 94, no. 5, p. 1005–1014
The evolution of optimal life history strategies is central for the fitness of organisms in a given environment. Besides divergent selection, other factors may determine regional patterns of differentiation and contribute to life history evolution. In a common-garden environment over three years, we examined life history differentiation across different eco-geographical regions and effects of a...
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In: PLoS ONE, 2012, vol. 7, no. 11, p. e50284
Phenotypic plasticity may allow organisms to cope with altered environmental conditions as e.g. after the introduction into a new range. In particular polyploid organisms, containing more than two sets of chromosomes, may show high levels of plasticity, which could in turn increase their environmental tolerance and invasiveness. Here, we studied the role of phenotypic plasticity in the invasion...
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