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Clonal architecture in marine macroalgae: ecological and evolutionary perspectives

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Ecology and Evolutionary Biology of Clonal Plants

Abstract

The study of the ecological and evolutionary consequences of clonal growth in vascular plants has been widely addressed; however, marine macroalgae, which are interesting modular organisms that combine ‘simple’ morphologies and complex life cycles, have been almost ignored. This paper presents a review and analysis of the ecological and evolutionary consequences of clonality in marine macroalgae, including three main subjects: (1) modular construction; (2) life cycle and evolutionary perspectives, and (3) ecological perspectives of clonality in marine macroalgae. The main biological attributes of clonality are present in marine macroalgae such as high longevity of the genet by the continual renewal of modules, and variable morphological plasticity of ramets and modules in relation to environmental conditions. However, experimental work is still needed to solve questions such as the effect of crowding on survival rates and use of resources, as well as its effect on sexual or asexual patterns of reproduction. I expect that the study of the evolutionary consequences of the combined presence of alternation of generations and clonal growth in marine macroalgae will make important contributions to clonal plant theory.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Lab. Ficología Fac. Ciencias, UNAM, A.P. 70-620, Coyoacán, 04510, D.F. México

    Ligia Collado-Vides

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  1. Ligia Collado-Vides
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Nijmegen University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands

    J. F. Stuefer

  2. University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria

    B. Erschbamer

  3. Brown University, Providence, USA

    H. Huber

  4. Tokyo Metropolitan University, Tokyo, Japan

    J.-I. Suzuki

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Collado-Vides, L. (2002). Clonal architecture in marine macroalgae: ecological and evolutionary perspectives. In: Stuefer, J.F., Erschbamer, B., Huber, H., Suzuki, JI. (eds) Ecology and Evolutionary Biology of Clonal Plants. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-1345-0_17

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-1345-0_17

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  • Print ISBN: 978-90-481-6047-1

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