Prolonged embryogenesis in Austrobaileya scandens (Austrobaileyaceae): its ecological and evolutionary significance

What is it about?

Although the most ancient lineages of flowering plants contain relatively few extant species (hundreds), it is clear that there has been much evolutionary diversification in terms of their reproductive biology. We show that in Austrobaileya scandens, a tropical liana of Queensland Australia, seed size has diverged significantly from the minute condition that characterizes the ancestral condition of flowering plants. The evolution of very large and slow-developing seeds in Austrobaileya appears to be correlated with the extremely dark understory conditions of its native habitats.

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