Lambrecht Lab Research
Check out our publications on Google Scholar
Evolution and plasticity in response to drought
California's recent historic drought (2012-17) has provided an opportunity to examine contemporary evolution in native plant species. In several recent and ongoing experiments, we have used an approach called a "resurrection study," in which we use seeds collected before and after the drought to grow plants together in a greenhouse, enabling us to identify evolutionary trends during the drought. In a variety of experiments, we are working to compare plant populations from differing environments, as well as comparing the response of polyploid plants with their ancestral diploids. We've identified evolution in development and floral size, although this varies across environments.
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Publication of this research:
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Spurlin S and SC Lambrecht (2024) Rapid responses to drought in a rare California annual (San Francisco collinsia, Collinsia multicolor, Plantaginaceae). Plant Ecology (In press). doi 10.1007/s11258-024-01449-y
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Lambrecht SC, Gujral AK, Renshaw L, Rosengreen L (2020) Evolutionary and plastic changes in a native annual plant after a historic drought. Ecology and Evolution doi 0.1002/ece3.6156
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More research ongoing
Variation in traits along moisture gradients
One factor contributing to California's plant diversity is its diversity of moisture availability, which varies with latitude, longitude, and soil type. Work in the lab has examined how morphological traits, such as flower size, and physiological traits, wuch as water-use efficiency vary along these gradients of moisture availability.
We've examined the role of these gradients on native annuals (Leptosiphon androsaceus and L. bicolor), native perennials (Erysimum franciscanum), ​and native ferns (Polystichum munitum), along with invasive species (Centaurea solstitialis):​​
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Scripps E and SC Lambrecht (2024) Drought response of invasive yellow starthistle (Centaurea solstitialis, Asteraceae) in relation to serpentine soils. Western North American Naturalist 84: 1-10.
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Lambrecht SC, A Morrow, R Hussey (2017) Variation in and adaptive plasticity of flower size and drought-coping traits. Plant Ecology 218: 647-660.
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Lambrecht SC (2013) Floral water costs and size variation in the highly selfing Leptosiphon bicolor (Polemoniaceae). International Journal of Plant Sciences 174: 74-84.
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More research ongoing
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Urban environments as a proxy for climate change
Plants that have colonized urban areas from neighboring rural locations have experienced shifts in environment that are analogous to those associated with climate change, including increased temperatures, nitrogen deposition, and CO2 levels. Comparing rural and urban populations of a plant species may be used as an indicator of plant evolution in response to climate change.
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Publications:
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Lambrecht SC, S Mahieu, P-O Cheptou (2016) Natural selection on plant physiological traits in an urban environment. Acta Oecologica 77: 67-74.
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Cheptou P-O and SC Lambrecht (2020) Sidewalk plants as a model for studying plant adaptation to urban fragmentation. Chapter 8 in Urban Evolutionary Biology. Oxford University Press. DOI: 10.1093/oso/9780198836841.003.0008
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New experiments (2024) based in San José ongoing
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