Evolutionary origins of Fibonacci phyllotaxis in land plants

Abstract

Fibonacci phyllotaxis is commonly seen in all major groups of land plants. While a precise correlation is found between the internal pattern of the primary vascular system and the external pattern of appendages on the stem surface, it remains a big question how this regularity of Fibonacci phyllotaxis came into being in the course of evolution. Here I address this problem with a model describing phylogenetic and ontogenetic changes in vascular phyllotaxis based on two hypotheses. The first is that the Fibonacci pattern of vascular connection is uniquely determined by the primary arrangement of incipient primordia, the sources of the primary signal system in vascular tissue differentiation. The second is that the surface-area-to-volume ratio of primary vascular tissues serves as a measure of fitness in evolution. The model explains the empirical rule on the manner in which vascular connection is reconfigured during ontogeny, especially during juvenile development. Fossil and phylogenetic evidence suggests that Fibonacci phyllotaxis appeared shortly after the innovation of indefinite lateral organ initiation in a regular sequence.