Figure 1

Hypothetical outcomes of trait-matching studies. Figure 1A. Geographic variability in the strengths of directional selection may weaken a regression (i.e. increase variability) by increasing the frequency and magnitude of trait mismatches (where a trait mismatch is indicated by a double headed arrow). However, this may not affect the slope of the relationship which indicates the predictability of the direction of the trait mismatches in relation to trait magnitude. Figure 1B. The slope of the trait regression relationship may reveal one of three possible scenarios: Slope 1, where insect and plant traits are not matched, slope 2, where trait matching scales with trait magnitude to produce a slope of 1 and slopes 3a and b where there is a consistent and predictable mismatch of traits where the mismatch is contingent on trait magnitude. For example, in slope 3a the plants have predictably longer traits than the insects and the mismatch between the taxa should become greater with trait magnitude.