Chrysophyllum marginatum (Sapotaceae): Generalist pollination and cryptic gynomonoecious

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Rosângela Sigrist ◽  
Flávia M. Leme ◽  
Vitória S. Fabiano ◽  
Fernanda P. Pinheiro ◽  
Bruno H. Ferreira ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Generalist Pollination

scholarly journals Pollination biology of Cleomella serrulata and Polanisia dodecandra in a protected natural prairie in southern Alberta, Canada

Botany ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 93 (11) ◽  
pp. 745-757 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mónica Higuera-Díaz ◽  
Jessamyn S. Manson ◽  
Jocelyn C. Hall
Keyword(s):  
Native Species ◽  
First Record ◽  
Flowering Phenology ◽  
Floral Resources ◽  
Nectar Production ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Nectar Volume ◽  
Study Sites ◽  
Pollination Systems ◽  
Generalist Pollination

Flowering plants that attract a diverse range of pollinators represent a generalist pollination system. Studying these plants provides valuable information about accessibility of floral resources to pollinators, which is particularly important in areas where scarcity of flowers limits pollinator populations. Here, we describe the flowering phenology, reproductive biology, and visitor community of Cleomella serrulata (Pursh) Roalson & J.C.Hall and Polanisia dodecandra (L.) DC., two native species with generalist pollination systems and limited distribution in Albertan prairies. Although their flowers are similar, they differ in traits such as petal colour, inflorescence size, and nectar display. Both species were facultatively cross-pollinated and exhibited nocturnal anthesis but differed in nectar production patterns. Cleomella serrulata produced highest nectar volume in the morning and highest sugar concentration at noon, while Polanisia dodecandra produced highest nectar volume before noon but sugar concentrations were higher at sunset. We observed 150 insect taxa visiting the plants, with Hymenoptera and Diptera as the most frequent visitors for Cleomella serrulata and Polanisia dodecandra, respectively. We recorded the first nocturnal flower visitors for Cleomella serrulata and the first record of Nysson plagiatus (Cresson) for Alberta. Both plant species present effective nectar and pollen resources for pollinators at the study sites and may be useful in the maintenance of native pollinators in at-risk prairie ecosystems.

scholarly journals Increased pollination specialization did not increase corolla shape constraints in Antillean plants

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon Joly ◽  
François Lambert ◽  
Hermine Alexandre ◽  
Julien Clavel ◽  
Étienne Léveillé-Bourret ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Structural Variation ◽  
Reproductive Organs ◽  
Evolutionary Constraints ◽  
Evolutionary Models ◽  
Relaxed Selection ◽  
Generalist Species ◽  
Evolutionary Forces ◽  
Pollination Strategy ◽  
Effective Pollinators ◽  
Generalist Pollination

AbstractFlowers show important structural variation as reproductive organs but the evolutionary forces underlying this diversity are still poorly understood. In animal-pollinated species, flower shape is strongly fashioned by selection imposed by pollinators, which is expected to vary according to guilds of effective pollinators. Using the Antillean subtribe Gesneriinae (Gesneriaceae), we tested the hypothesis that pollination specialists pollinated by one functional type of pollinator have maintained more similar corolla shapes through time due to stronger selection constraints compared to species with more generalist pollination strategies. Using geometric morphometrics and evolutionary models, we showed that the corolla of hummingbird specialists, bat specialists, and species with a mixed-pollination strategy (pollinated by hummingbirds and bats; thus a more generalist strategy) have distinct shapes and that these shapes have evolved under evolutionary constraints. However, we did not find support for smaller disparity in corolla shape for hummingbird specialists compared to more generalist species. This could be because the corolla shape of more generalist species in subtribe Gesneriinae, which has evolved multiple times, is finely adapted to be effectively pollinated by both bats and hummingbirds. These results suggest that pollination generalization is not necessarily associated with relaxed selection constraints.

scholarly journals Sexual dimorphism in the dioecious monocot Lomandra leucocephala ssp. robusta and its potential ecosystem and conservation significance

2020 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 275
Author(s):  
Jenna T. Draper ◽  
John G. Conran ◽  
Nicholas Crouch ◽  
Philip Weinstein ◽  
Bradley S. Simpson
Keyword(s):  
Sand Dunes ◽  
Species Conservation ◽  
Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry ◽  
Floral Display ◽  
Pollination Services ◽  
Pollinator Visitation ◽  
Glucose Content ◽  
Sexual Dimorphisms ◽  
Flowering Periods ◽  
Generalist Pollination

Dioecious plants constitute 7% of all angiosperm species, yet they occur in many habitat types, partially through the deployment of sexual dimorphisms that assist in reproduction. In the present work, the dioecious monocot Lomandra leucocephala ssp. robusta (Asparagaceae: Lomandroideae) was studied to understand how sexual dimorphisms can assist species conservation and inform us of a species’ potential significance in an ecosystem. Floral display was sexually dimorphic, as male inflorescences were displayed more prominently and more conspicuously in UV range. Male nectar analysed by thin-layer chromatography contained a higher glucose content than female nectar. However, both sexes contained hexose-rich nectar, a common indicator of generalist pollination, which was supported by observations of floral visitors. Floral extract comparison conducted via gas chromatography-mass spectrometry showed that male extracts contained more compounds that potentially convey greater resistance to biotic and abiotic threats. Chemical comparison of leaves by high performance liquid chromatography with peak area ratio analysis revealed this technique could be used as a tool for gender identification of individuals during non-flowering periods. Due to the generalist pollination mechanisms of L. leucocephala ssp. robusta, may have an important role in the conservation and support of local insect populations. The presence of chemical biotic and abiotic resistance may also make L. leucocephala ssp. robusta a significant contributor to the ongoing stabilisation of the sand dunes. Conservation efforts required for L. leucocephala ssp. robusta are likely to be minimal, as pollination services are provided by a diversity of pollinating taxa, including introduced species, which will be abundant regardless of variable flowering periods. Further observational study of L. leucocephala ssp. robusta pollinators and differences in pollinator visitation behaviours between sexes is recommended to better understand efficient pollination for the species, and potentially reveal a greater extent of ecosystem benefit for this species.

Plant reproduction

2020 ◽  
pp. 218-263
Author(s):  
John D. Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Plant Communities ◽  
Reproductive Traits ◽  
Population History ◽  
Floral Traits ◽  
Summer Drought ◽  
Mosaic Landscape ◽  
Floral Phenology ◽  
Colonization Dynamics ◽  
Pollination Systems ◽  
Generalist Pollination

Population history and colonization dynamics in the Mediterranean mosaic landscape have closely interacted with natural selection to shape patterns of variation in mating systems and the evolution of floral traits and polymorphisms. Floral phenology is closely adapted to avoid the summer drought regime in many plant communities. Many plant species have generalist pollination systems with a complex of tight and loose interactions that affect the evolution of reproductive traits. Floral traits have clearly accompanied diversification in many groups of plants. The evolution of interactions of plants with their pollinators at the landscape and biogeographic scales illustrates intriguing examples of ongoing evolution.

scholarly journals Transgressive phenotypes and generalist pollination in the floral evolution of Nicotiana polyploids

Nature Plants ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (9) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth W. McCarthy ◽  
Mark W. Chase ◽  
Sandra Knapp ◽  
Amy Litt ◽  
Andrew R. Leitch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Floral Evolution ◽  
Generalist Pollination

Floral morphology of Eucalyptus leucoxylon (Myrtaceae) facilitates pollination by lorikeet (Aves: Psittacidae) tongues

2017 ◽  
Vol 65 (4) ◽  
pp. 368 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph P. Zilko ◽  
Susan E. Hoebee ◽  
Trevor J. Edwards
Keyword(s):  
Floral Morphology ◽  
Pollen Grains ◽  
Adhesive Tape ◽  
Electron Micrograph ◽  
Scanning Electron Micrograph ◽  
Pollen Transport ◽  
Male Phase ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Short Time ◽  
Generalist Pollination

Bird pollination is particularly common and widespread in the southern regions of Australia. Despite some eucalypts being heavily frequented by birds, they are usually considered to have a generalist pollination system because of their apparently unspecialised floral morphology. A few species possess protandrous anthers that dehisce within a tightly furled dome of filaments. We hypothesised that this facilitates pollen transport via the brush tongues of lorikeets. Using Eucalyptus leucoxylon F.Muell. and five captive rainbow lorikeets (Trichoglossus hematodus) as a model, we demonstrated that lorikeets remove significant quantities of pollen from flowers with inflexed filaments in a short time (30 min), compared with bagged control flowers (Mann–Whitney U test, Z = 165.4, d.f. = 29, P = 0.008). Some of this pollen is deposited on stigmas by the tongue, which is the organ that most regularly and reliably contacts stigmas. The mean number of pollen grains deposited on stigmas by each bird was as high as 121.2. Adhesive tape contacted by the tongue during foraging removed up to 2104 pollen grains, which was significantly greater than for uncontacted control tape (Mann–Whitney U test, Z = 110, d.f. = 21, P < 0.001). Scanning electron micrograph imaging of a lorikeet tongue showed many pollen grains that had been transferred onto its keratin papillae, which is likely to have contributed to high carryover rates by retaining pollen for a substantial amount of time. Minimal pollen is available for generalist pollination once the filaments unfurl. It appears highly unlikely that insects are able to access pollen from these male-phase flowers and inflexed filaments may therefore fulfil an exclusionary role.

scholarly journals Nocturnal ant integrates generalist pollination system in the Caatinga dry forest

2022 ◽  
Vol 82 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Domingos-Melo ◽  
T. L. Nadia ◽  
I. R. Leal ◽  
I. C. Machado
Keyword(s):  
Dry Forest ◽  
Pollination System ◽  
Generalist Pollination

scholarly journals First report of predation on floral visitors by crab spiders on Croton selowii Baill. (Euphorbiaceae)

2010 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 592-594 ◽  
Author(s):  
Reinaldo Rodrigo Novo ◽  
Jefferson Thiago Souza ◽  
Cibele Cardoso de Castro
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Resource Availability ◽  
Coastal Vegetation ◽  
First Report ◽  
Invertebrate Species ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Foraging Site ◽  
Floral Visitors ◽  
Crab Spiders ◽  
Generalist Pollination

In the literature it has been extensively mentioned that crab spiders (Araneae: Thomisidae) prey on floral visitors of several plant species. Here we present observations of Croton selowii Baill. (Euphorbiaceae), a monoecious species harboring individuals of crab spiders in an area of coastal vegetation of Pernambuco state, Brazil. The species is visited by several invertebrate orders, and some of them were preyed upon by the spiders, mainly Diptera species. The spiders rubbed the forelimbs within the flowers, which may constitute a strategy to camouflage these structures. Croton selowii seems to represent a suitable foraging site for the spiders, because it has a generalist pollination system (thus being visited by a wide range of invertebrate species) and blooms in a period of low flower resource availability in the area.

scholarly journals Temporal changes in the most effective pollinator of a bromeliad pollinated by bees and hummingbirds

PeerJ ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. e8836 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberta Luisa Barbosa Leal ◽  
Marina Muniz Moreira ◽  
Alessandra Ribeiro Pinto ◽  
Júlia de Oliveira Ferreira ◽  
Miguel Rodriguez-Girones ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Functional Groups ◽  
Pollen Limitation ◽  
Temporal Variations ◽  
Floral Visitor ◽  
Floral Visitors ◽  
Natural Pollination ◽  
Reproductive Events ◽  
Effective Pollinator ◽  
Generalist Pollination

A generalist pollination system may be characterized through the interaction of a plant species with two or more functional groups of pollinators. The spatiotemporal variation of the most effective pollinator is the factor most frequently advocated to explain the emergence and maintenance of generalist pollination systems. There are few studies merging variation in floral visitor assemblages and the efficacy of pollination by different functional groups. Thus, there are gaps in our knowledge about the variation in time of pollinator efficacy and frequency of generalist species. In this study, we evaluated the pollination efficacy of the floral visitors of Edmundoa lindenii (Bromeliaceae) and their frequency of visits across four reproductive events. We analyzed the frequency of the three groups of floral visitors (large bees, small bees, and hummingbirds) through focal observations in the reproductive events of 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018. We evaluated the pollination efficacy (fecundity after one visit) through selective exposure treatments and the breeding system by manual pollinations. We tested if the reproductive success after natural pollination varied between the reproductive events and also calculated the pollen limitation index. E. lindenii is a self-incompatible and parthenocarpic species, requiring the action of pollinators for sexual reproduction. Hummingbirds had higher efficacy than large bees and small bees acted only as pollen larcenists. The relative frequency of the groups of floral visitors varied between the reproductive events. Pollen limitation has occurred only in the reproductive event of 2017, when visits by hummingbirds were scarce and reproductive success after natural pollination was the lowest. We conclude that hummingbirds and large bees were the main and the secondary pollinators of E. lindenii, respectively, and that temporal variations in the pollinator assemblages had effects on its reproductive success. Despite their lower pollination efficacy, large bees ensured seed set when hummingbirds failed. Thus, we provide evidence that variable pollination environments may favor generalization, even under differential effectiveness of pollinator groups if secondary pollinators provide reproductive assurance.

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