The collective behaviour of plants
How do plants move, grow, and allocate resources differently when they grow in groups versus when they grow alone? Kaz Uyehara and his project team are investigating this question in their research project The collective behaviour of plants. In doing so, the team is expanding collective behaviour research into the field of plant ecology.
Plants, like animals, respond dynamically to their environment and specifically react to the presence of competitors. The main way that plants can alter their behaviour is by growing and changing their orientation. Here, the research team can carefully quantify plant behaviour by quantifying the 3D structure of a plant over time.
“We seek to understand the interface between plant ecology and collective behaviour on three major scales,” says Kaz Uyehara: “First, we want to investigate the physiological mechanisms that allow plant behaviour to emerge from a non-hierarchical and modular organism. Second, how do plants alter their growth and allocation in response to ‘social’ cues from neighbours? And third, what are the fitness consequences of specific plant behaviours?”
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A sunflower growing in the dark. Copyright: Pradeep Chintapalli -
Sunflower plants growing in a greenhouse. Copyright: Helene Sommer -
Isaac Uyehara measures the sunflower. Copyright: Elisabeth Böker, CASCB -
A sunflower being measured Copyright: E. Böker, CASCB -
Sunflower plants being observed by a researcher in the greenhouse. Copyright: E. Böker, CASCB -
Sunflower plants lined up in rows in the greenhouse. Copyright: Helene Sommer -
Researchers measuring sunflower plants. Copyright: E. Böker, CASCB
To answer these questions, the research team has run four studies in parallel. It took advantage of the opportunities offered by the Botanical Garden of the University of Konstanz. Furthermore, the project is multifaceted because the team combines computer vision, mathematical modelling, computer simulations, and empirical research to uncover the proximate and ultimate mechanisms that control collective plant behaviour.
“We are excited about the natural synergy between collective behaviour and plant ecology,” says Kaz Uyehara. “We are on the brink of exciting models of individuals and collectives that have major repercussions at the ecosystem scale.” The project is also an enrichment for the CASCB: “By drawing parallels across animal behaviour and plant behaviour, both disciplines can advance the study of collective behaviour.”