Signals of Paleotemperature in the Age Structure and Seasonal Distribution of Pollination Syndromes Across a Temperate Region
Abstract
Across the planet, angiosperm diversification has been shaped by palaeoclimates and biotic interactions, particularly with pollinators, leaving signatures in the angiosperm age structure. Regional floras represent biased samples of this global diversification shaped by dispersal, extinction and environmental filtering, yet it remains unclear whether floristic age structure reflects pollination strategies or their interaction with palaeoclimates. We constructed a 93% resolved phylogeny of all native 1178 angiosperms in the Netherlands and characterized age structure of eight pollination syndromes by standardized epoch‐specific lineage diversities (stELDs) quantifying the proportional increase in lineages per 10‐Myr interval. Overall, stELDs peaked under the coldest intervals and were lowest for intermediate‐temperature intervals (geological age alone had no effect). This age structure was strongest in wind‐pollinated species. Resolving insect pollination into six syndromes revealed strong heterogeneity: lepidoptera‐pollination was most strongly associated with warmest palaeotemperatures, bumblebee and wasp‐pollination under intermediate temperatures, and fly, lepidoptera and beetle‐pollination under coldest temperatures. Paleotemperature signatures correlated positively with contemporary seasonal flowering temperatures, indicating conserved thermal niches across ecological and macroevolutionary timescales. We suggest that temperate floras reflect both recent cold‐house diversification of wind‐ and certain insect‐pollinated lineages and earlier warm‐house radiations of lineages pollinated by older insect clades. Phylogenetic age structures permit detecting such patterns.
Related
- Combining pollination ecology and fine-scale spatial genetic structure analysis to unravel the reproductive strategy of an insular threatened orchid
- Distribution, major threats, and management methods of maple tree species in temperate forests: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
- Environmental correlates of understory plant diversity and distribution in a temperate climate-change refugium
- Marketable Yield and Grade Distribution of Sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas Lam.) as Influenced by Production System and Season in a Temperate Climate
- Stepping-stone population structure and sidespread clonality of the mesophotic octocoral Swiftia exserta in the warm temperate northwest Atlantic
BibTeX
@article{leclere2026signals,
title = {{Signals of Paleotemperature in the Age Structure and Seasonal Distribution of Pollination Syndromes Across a Temperate Region}},
author = {Thomas Leclère and Igor V. Bartish and Pille Gerhold and Andreas Prinzing},
journal = {Ecology and Evolution},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1002/ece3.74150},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05744007v1},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Signals of Paleotemperature in the Age Structure and Seasonal Distribution of Pollination Syndromes Across a Temperate Region
AU - Thomas Leclère
AU - Igor V. Bartish
AU - Pille Gerhold
AU - Andreas Prinzing
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/09
JO - Ecology and Evolution
DO - 10.1002/ece3.74150
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05744007v1
AB - Across the planet, angiosperm diversification has been shaped by palaeoclimates and biotic interactions, particularly with pollinators, leaving signatures in the angiosperm age structure. Regional floras represent biased samples of this global diversification shaped by dispersal, extinction and environmental filtering, yet it remains unclear whether floristic age structure reflects pollination strategies or their interaction with palaeoclimates. We constructed a 93% resolved phylogeny of all native 1178 angiosperms in the Netherlands and characterized age structure of eight pollination syndromes by standardized epoch‐specific lineage diversities (stELDs) quantifying the proportional increase in lineages per 10‐Myr interval. Overall, stELDs peaked under the coldest intervals and were lowest for intermediate‐temperature intervals (geological age alone had no effect). This age structure was strongest in wind‐pollinated species. Resolving insect pollination into six syndromes revealed strong heterogeneity: lepidoptera‐pollination was most strongly associated with warmest palaeotemperatures, bumblebee and wasp‐pollination under intermediate temperatures, and fly, lepidoptera and beetle‐pollination under coldest temperatures. Paleotemperature signatures correlated positively with contemporary seasonal flowering temperatures, indicating conserved thermal niches across ecological and macroevolutionary timescales. We suggest that temperate floras reflect both recent cold‐house diversification of wind‐ and certain insect‐pollinated lineages and earlier warm‐house radiations of lineages pollinated by older insect clades. Phylogenetic age structures permit detecting such patterns.
SN - 2045-7758
ER -