Adaptive trait divergence of annual plants in response to urban habitat diversity in a megacity

Urban Farm DB summary

This study investigated the effects of urban habitat diversity on plant trait diversification in the Kyoto-Osaka-Kobe megacity, Japan, using a common garden experiment with seeds from 23 Commelina communis populations from rural agricultural lands, urban agricultural lands, parks, and roadsides. Urban habitats generally exhibited higher soil pH and land surface temperature. Urban populations, particularly those from roadsides, showed distinct traits such as increased plant height, larger plant height/width ratio, fewer shoots and leaves, and/or larger leaves compared to rural populations. QST-FST comparisons and trait-environment relationships strongly suggest that local adaptation to hot, shaded, and/or eutrophic urban environments drove the observed trait divergence among various urban populations.