New Paper from the Galloway Lab

The Galloway lab, led by Hanna Makowski, just published a paper titled "Trait specialization facilitates autonomous selfing ability in a mixed‐mating plant".

Released from the need to attract pollinators, transitions from outcrossing to selfing often result in predictable changes floral traits. However, expectations are less clear for mixed-mating plants that both outcross and self. We found pollen-collecting hairs, a trait hypothesized to have evolved to promote outcrossing, is also associated with selfing ability Campanula americana. Developmental changes in length allow this dual association and suggest that evolution of mixed mating does require trade-offs between selfing and outcrossing.