Evolution of the shape and scent in Bulbophyllum orchids
How do floral shape and scent evolve, and what connects their diversity?
Bulbophyllum combines striking variation in floral form with a remarkable diversity of scents. We are pairing 3D phenotyping with floral volatile profiling to investigate how these traits evolve and how they relate to one another across species.
How closely are changes in floral shape associated with changes in scent? Do different floral forms arrive at similar chemical signals? How do these relationships vary among lineages, and what might they reveal about floral function and diversification?
Building on existing research on floral shape and scent (Artuso et al., 2021; Artuso et al., 2026), we aim to broaden comparisons across taxa and floral architectures. This brings detailed measurements of curvature, organ orientation, and spatial arrangement together with scent profiles and phylogenomic evidence. By expanding and refining existing phylogenies (Gamisch & Comes, 2019; Nanjala et al., 2026), we seek to distinguish similarities inherited from shared ancestors from those that evolved independently and trace how floral form and chemical signals have diversified together.