1. Communities, biogeography, and selective forces: Flora (including NZ flora and moa herbivory)

2. Questions Discussions: Any questions?
Maria P: posting paper and questions for this week
Jose Luis: will be picking a paper to post for next week
Any questions?

5. NZ
Shearing: Sheep grazing
Sheep (60 m) outnumber people (3m) by 20:1

6. NZ

8. NZ herbivorous birds NZ lacked native mammals (except 2 bats)
50% terrestrial birds eat non reproductive plant parts
Southern brown kiwi
Paradise shelduck
Weka
Kakapo
NZ quail
North Island
kokako
Kea
NZ pigeon

9. Moas Largest herbivores in scrub and forest up to 1800 m
Ratites: ~10 species in 6 genera of moas ( kg)
Tallest stood ~ m (giant moa)
Hunted to extinction in 15th century (along with 50% of endemic birds, 40% of all birds)

10. Moas Closest relatives emus, cassowaries, tinamous, rheas, kiwis
Snapping: Ostrich feeding

11. Moas: coprolites and gizzards
Many twigs of shrubs and trees
Despite large size, they were feeding on small herbs (<30 cm) and many rare species
Probably strongly shaped vegetation structure (e.g., reduced niches of broad leaved woody species)

12. Flora High endemism and numerous trees (215 spp)
Many trees are short statured
Divaricating (wire plants): 10% of all woody plants (overall common on islands: e.g., Madagascar, Hawaii, New Caledonian)
Thin spreading branches
Heteroblasty: 200 tree species
Changing leaf morphology with age
Colour change with age

13. Ferns
Gymnosperms
Lots!
Angiosperms

14. Flora
Why my these evolve?
Divaricating
Heteroblasty
Colour change

15. Functions?
Physiological tolerance of low temperatures, high wind or high light
Moa herbivory

16. Evidence
Cafeteria style feeding trials with emus and ostriches: Divaricating habit suffered 30-70% less herbivory
Most divaricating, poisonous and deciduous species are short
Small stature, deciduousness and divaricating, teeth increase with latitude
Reversions to homoblasty found in Chatham Islands lacking moas

17. Evolution of colour changes

18. Evolution of colour changes

19. Ferns
Gymnosperms
Angiosperms

20. Pseudopanax crassifolius

21. Pseudopanax crassifolius

22. Pseudopanax crassifolius
Seedling leaves: dull and mottled brown due to anthocyanin production
Produced in plants <10 cm tall
Juvenile leaves: long, linear, toothed with light areas near teeth
Produced in plants <3 m tall
Adult leaves: oblong of more typical size and shape
Produced in plants >3 m tall

23. Pseudopanax chathamicus

24. Questions
Could moa herbivory be a selective pressure leading to colour changes seen in P. crassifolius?
Compared spectral reflectance of different stages to leaf litter
Compared spectral reflectance to a closely related species (P. chathamicus) from nearby Chatham Islands (800 km from NZ) lacking moas with a flora derived from NZ

25. Chatham seedlings
NZ seedlings
litter

26. Chatham saplings: non thorn
Chatham saplings: thorn
NZ saplings: thorn
NZ saplings: non thorn

27. 29 NZ spp
NZ adults
Chatham adults

28. Questions
Could moa herbivory be a selective pressure leading to colour changes seen in P. crassifolius?
Compared spectral reflectance of different stages to leaf litter
Compared spectral reflectance to a closely related species (P. chathamicus) from nearby Chatham Island (700 km) lacking moas
What do we think?