I was actually wondering what today´s class unfolds. Lo and behold! it´s a beautiful and fun moment with Functional Ecology Course. Today in Functional Ecology, we focused on traits—there I learnt trait as any measurable characteristic of an organism ranging from behaviour, reproduction, morphology and physiology. My favourite organism is Catharanthus roseus.
As we continue in this course, I will find out the winner and loser traits and how they scale up to affect communities and ecosystems and how this tough and adaptable species influence the places where it grows.
Its good summary on yesterdays course, why Catharanthus roseus is your favorite organism? What are the traits that interest you most?
Thank you. I am fascinated by the beauty of its flower; especially its petal and eye colour and because of this, I find out the mode of inheritance of the petal and eye colour. In Cataranthus roseus, we have physiological traits e.g production of monoterpene indole alkaloids (MIAs), high drought tolerance; morphological traits e.g. thick waxy leaves, deep root system,etc
Great reflection! It was an interesting time in class yesterday. I like how you described traits as measurable characteristics that influence how organisms interact with their environment. Catharanthus roseus is a good example. It would have been great if you mentioned specific traits of this flower, how some of its traits make it a loser or winner, and how it influences the ecosystem around it.
Thanks for your observation. I note that now
ohhh nice, traits really show how organisms like Catharanthus roseus shape their communities. Can’t wait to see what unfolds in your study next. What is this Catharanthus roseus flower?
Catharanthus roseus is a perennial plant belonging to the family Apocynaceae and is commonly known as the Madagascar periwinkle