Data from: Shifts in outcrossing rates and changes to floral traits are associated with the evolution of herbicide resistance in the common morning glory

Human-mediated selection can strongly influence the evolutionary response of natural organisms within ecological timescales. But what traits allow for, or even facilitate, adaptation to the strong selection humans impose on natural systems? Using a combination of laboratory and greenhouse studies of 32 natural populations of the common agricultural weed, Ipomoea purpurea, we show that herbicide-resistant populations self-fertilise more than susceptible populations. We likewise show that anther–stigma distance, a floral trait associated with self-fertilisation in this species, exhibits a nonlinear relationship with resistance such that the most and least resistant populations exhibit lower anther–stigma separation compared to populations with moderate levels of resistance. Overall, our results extend the general finding that plant mating can be impacted by human-mediated agents of selection to that of the extreme selection of the agricultural system. This work highlights the influence of human-mediated selection on rapid responses of natural populations that can lead to unexpected long-term evolutionary consequences.

人类介导的选择可在生态时间尺度上强烈影响自然生物的进化响应。但究竟哪些性状能够助力甚至促进生物适应人类对自然系统施加的高强度选择？本研究以常见农业杂草圆叶牵牛（Ipomoea purpurea）的32个自然种群为研究对象，结合实验室与温室实验开展分析，结果显示抗除草剂种群的自交率显著高于敏感种群。研究同时发现，花药-柱头间距——该物种中与自交相关的花部性状——与抗药性呈非线性关系：抗药性最高与最低的种群，其花药-柱头间距均小于抗药性处于中等水平的种群。总体而言，本研究结果将“植物交配模式可受人类介导选择因子影响”这一通用结论拓展至农业系统的极端选择场景。本研究揭示了人类介导选择对自然种群快速进化响应的影响，这类影响可能引发意想不到的长期进化后果。