Project title:
Tempo and mode of early angiosperm (flowering plant) evolution
Project code:
OU9
Host institution:
The Open University
Theme:
Evolution & Ecosystems
Key words:
Plants, Flowers, Pollen, Evolution
Supervisory team:
Dr Luke Mander, The Open University, [email protected]; Dr Angela L. Coe, The
Open University, [email protected]
Project Highlights:



Fieldwork on the Isle of Wight and in the
Portuguese Beira Litoral Region
Training in plant palaeobiology and
evolution
Investigate the earliest flowering plants
Overview: Angiosperms (flowering plants) are an
extremely diverse group of terrestrial plants and are
composed of an estimated 260,000 species.
Angiosperms are characterised by striking
morphological diversity, and the group contains an
array of life forms that includes herbs, epiphytes,
bulbs, aquatic plants, shrubs and trees. The fossil
record of pollen grains provides an exceptional
window into the early evolution of this plant group,
and shows that angiosperms radiated during the
Cretaceous period (~150–65 million years ago) (Lupia
1999). This period of diversification marked the onset
of a profound change in the composition of the
Earth's biota, from earlier Mesozoic vegetation
dominated by ferns, conifers and cycads, to modern
vegetation dominated by flowering plants.
The fossil record of angiosperm pollen has been used
to show that the first flowering plants appeared on
Earth during the Early Cretaceous, and that taxonomic
and morphological diversity were decoupled during
their evolution (Lupia 1999). Additionally, this fossil
group has demonstrated that there was a close link
between angiosperm evolution and climatic and
oceanographic perturbations during the Early
Cretaceous (Heimhofer et al. 2006).
This project will use the rich Cretaceous
angiosperm fossil pollen record of the UK and
Portugal to describe and explain the patterns of
speciation among Earth's earliest flowering plants.
This will involve releasing fossil angiosperm pollen
grains from two rock successions and making
morphometric measurements of key features in order
to document patterns of morphological change
through time.
This will allow an assessment of the degree to
which species are separated, and the prevalence of
intergrading morphs that blur the boundaries
between species. This will provide a record of lineage
splitting through time, and will provide data to test
whether early angiosperms followed a path of gradual
speciation, or whether their evolution was
characterised by a punctuated pattern with periods of
rapid speciation followed by long-term stasis (Benton
and Pearson 2001).
Methodology:
Figure 1: Wild flowers in the Antelope Valley,
California (photo from Flickr).
The rocks of the Atherfield Clay (Aptian, Atherfield,
Isle of Wight) and the Upper Luz Marls (Aptian, Luz,
southern Portugal) will be graphically logged. 150 rock
samples will be taken from each of these successions.
These samples will be macerated in the laboratory
using standard palynological processing techniques
(HCl to remove carbonate minerals and HF to remove
silicate minerals) in order to release fossil pollen
grains. The morphology of angiosperm pollen grains
will be quantified by making morphometric
measurements of key features. These include the
number and size of any apertures present, the nature
and thickness of the pollen wall, the overall size of the
specimen, and the nature of any surface
ornamentation. These morphometric measurements
will be plotted against time to examine the patterns of
angiosperm evolution as recorded by the morphology
of pollen grains.




Training and skills:
This project will provide specific training in:
(1) Palynological techniques to extract spores from
rock samples and living plants.
(2) The description of plant morphology using
morphometric techniques.
(3) The use of transmitted light microscopy and
electron microscopy to image micromorphological
features of plants.
CENTA students are required to complete 45 days
training throughout their PhD including a 10 day
placement. In the first year, students will be trained as
a single cohort on environmental science, research
methods and core skills. Throughout the PhD, training
will progress from core skills sets to master classes
specific to CENTA research themes.
Possible timeline:
Year 1: Undertake fieldwork to collect rock samples
from the Atherfield Formation on the Isle of Wight.
Undertake fieldwork to collect rock samples from the
Upper Luz Marls at Luz, southern Portugal. Begin
processing rock samples to release fossil pollen grains
in the laboratory.
Year 2: Undertake morphometric measurements of
angiosperm pollen from the Atherfield Formation and
Upper Luz Marls. Prepare a conference presentation
to The Micropalaeontological Society Annual General
Meeting outlining results from the Atherfield Clay
Formation.
Year 3: Prepare a manuscript comparing the results
from the Atherfield Formation and Upper Luz Marls.
Prepare a presentation for the Botanical Society of
America Conference. Write up PhD thesis.
Further reading:
Benton, M.J. and Pearson, P.N. 2001.
Speciation in the fossil record. Trends in
Ecology & Evolution, 16, 405–411.
Doyle, J.A. 2015. Recognising angiosperm
clades in the Early Cretaceous fossil record.
Historical Biology, 27, 414–429.
Heimhofer, U. et al. 2005. Timing of Early
Cretaceous angiosperm diversification and
possible links to major paleoenvironmental
change. Geology, 33, 141–144.
Lupia, R. 1999. Discordant morphological
disparity and taxonomic diversity during the
Cretaceous angiosperm radiation: North
American pollen record. Paleobiology, 25, 1–
28.
Further details:
Students should have a strong background in Earth
science or biology and enthusiasm for plants.
Experience of undertaking independent fieldwork and
research work in a laboratory is desirable. A driving
license would be beneficial for fieldwork. The student
will join a well-established team researching ecology,
evolution and palaeoenvironmental change at The
Open University.
Please contact [email protected] for further
information.
Applications should include:
 a cover letter outlining why the project is of
interest and how their skills match those
required,
 an academic CV containing contact details of
three academic references
 a CENTA application form, downloadable
from www.centa.org.uk/media/1202/centastudentship-application-form.docx
 and an Open University application form,
downloadable from:
http://www.open.ac.uk/students/research/si
tes/www.open.ac.uk.students.research/files/
documents/Application%20form.docx
Apologies that some bits of information are requested
multiple times on different forms. Please fill in
everything requested.
Applications should be sent to
[email protected]
by 5 pm on 25th January 2017