Birds, Bees, and Moths Drive Flower Evolution

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Flowers in the columbine genus Aquilegia are growing exceptionally long flower spurs in response to pollinators. Credit: SA Hodges MA Hodges D Inouye
Flowers in the columbine genus Aquilegia are growing exceptionally long flower spurs in response to pollinators. Credit: SA Hodges, MA Hodges, D Inouye

Flowers evolve in a predictable fashion to match the mouthparts of pollinating birds and insects, rather than engaging in a gradual "arms race" between flower and pollinator, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, Davis and the University of California, Santa Barbara. An article describing the study is published in the June 7 issue of the journal Nature.


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