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Environment & Climate

Competing pressures between pollinators and climate slow morning glory adaptation, study finds

Researchers found that evolutionary linkage between flower size and bloom timing led to a 96% drop in the adaptation rate of morning glory populations over nine years.

Updated Sep 4, 2026 · 13:18 UTC1 reports

The short version

  • A University of Michigan study found that morning glory adaptation rates dropped by 96% over a nine-year period due to conflicting evolutionary pressures.
  • Selection for larger flowers to attract dwindling pollinators became genetically linked to flowering time, limiting the plants' capacity to adapt to changing climate conditions.
  • The findings provide a potential explanation for why wild plant populations are failing to adapt rapidly to human-driven environmental changes despite retaining genetic diversity.
  • Researchers note that the long-term impact on agriculture remains uncertain, as it is unclear whether constrained adaptation will make morning glory weeds easier or harder for farmers to manage.

Key facts

  • A study published in Evolution Letters showed morning glory populations experienced a 96% decline in their adaptation rate over nine years.[ScienceDaily]
  • The research team, led by Sasha Bishop and Regina Baucom of the University of Michigan alongside John Stinchcombe of the University of Toronto, conducted experiments on wild morning glory seeds collected nine years apart.[ScienceDaily]
  • The adaptation rate statistic (R) decreased from about 76% of the expected rate in the earlier population to roughly 9% in the later population.[ScienceDaily]
  • The slowdown occurred because flower size and flowering time became linked, prioritizing larger blooms to attract scarce pollinators over earlier flowering that aids climate resilience.[ScienceDaily]
  • The studied plant populations retained substantial genetic variation, demonstrating that the adaptation slowdown was caused by trait constraints rather than a lack of genetic diversity.[ScienceDaily]

What remains uncertain

  • Researchers stated it remains unpredictable whether the reduced adaptation efficiency will ultimately make morning glory weeds more or less problematic for agricultural producers.[ScienceDaily]

Sources

Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.