INCOMPATIBILITY AND THE POLLEN ECONOMY OF JEPSONIA PARRYI

Jepsonia parryi (Saxifragaceae) has heterostylous flowers and is strongly self-incompatible. Pin flowers have long styles, large stigmas, short stamens, and numerous, small pollen grains with finely sculptured walls. Thrum flowers have short styles, small stigmas, long stamens, and fewer, larger pollen grains with coarsely sculptured walls. Pin plants and thrum plants occur in a 1:1 ratio in field populations. Although the insect pollinators of J. parryi transfer ample compatible pollen to pin and thrum stigmas to account for full seed production, much of the pollen deposited on stigmas is incompatible. Analysis of the pollen deposits on stigmas collected from field populations indicates that compatible “legitimate” pollination of pin and thrum flowers is essentially random and is not obviously aided by floral dimorphism. It is suggested that although heterostyly had a positive adaptive value in the past evolutionary history of Jepsonia it is no longer adaptive under the present pollination regime, although it is maintained because of its strong genetic fixity.     

FLORAL COLOR CHANGE IN LUPINUS ARGENTEUS (FABACEAE): WHY SHOULD PLANTS ADVERTISE THE LOCATION OF UNREWARDING FLOWERS TO POLLINATORS?

I examined the adaptive significance of two floral traits in the perennial herb, Lupinus argenteus: 1) the retention of corollas on “spent” flowers, i.e., flowers containing inviable pollen, unreceptive stigmas, and negligible pollinator rewards and 2) a change in corolla color of retained “spent” flowers, which is restricted to a spot on the banner petal. At anthesis, this spot is yellow, and approximately four days later, it changes to purple. After the change, purple flowers remain on plants an additional 5–7 days before corolla abscission occurs; purple flowers were avoided by pollinators, presumably because they contained less pollen (rewards) than yellow ones. I experimentally tested the hypothesis that purple flowers contribute to the floral display of the plant by removing varying numbers of spent flowers and assessing the effect on pollination visitation. Pollinators preferentially approached and foraged on plants with greater numbers of flowers per inflorescence; they did not discriminate between yellow (rewarding) and purple (nonrewarding) flowers at interplant distances greater than 0.4 meters but would preferentially forage on plants with more total flowers, even if these individuals contained fewer rewarding flowers. Thus, spent flowers increased the overall attractiveness of plants to pollinators. In theory, color change may benefit plants in two ways. First, by directing pollinators to rewarding flowers, the change may increase pollinator foraging efficiency, with the result that pollinators visit more flowers before leaving plants (pollinator-tenure mechanism). Second, by directing pollinators to receptive flowers, the color change may prevent incoming pollen from being wasted on unreceptive stigmas and may prevent collection of inviable pollen (pollination-efficiency mechanism). I tested the pollinator-tenure mechanism experimentally by removing pollen from yellow flowers, thereby reducing the reliability of the color-reward signal. Pollinators visited fewer total flowers on experimental plants than on controls, resulting in reduced seed production in one year.     

Correction to: The floral biology and the role of staminal connective appendages during pollination of the endoparasite Bdallophytum americanum (Cytinaceae)

Bdallophytum americanum (Cytinaceae) is an endoparasitic plant species, meaning only the flowers emerge from the host during the reproductive season. Reports on the pollination biology of this species state that its primary pollinators are carrion flies attracted by the smell of the flowers and nectar as a reward. However, the functional role of one of the most outstanding attributes of B. americanum has been neglected. These are the staminal appendages formed by the apical overgrowth of connective tissue during anther development. To determine whether these staminal appendages play a role in pollination, we monitored a nectarless population of B. americanum. We described the inflorescence emergence, floral movements, and pollination and performed field experiments to test whether the absence of the staminal connective appendages affected the visitation frequency. Male inflorescences emerge early, and both male and female flowers open during the day and do not close. Hoverflies are the most frequent visitors to both floral sexes and carry the most pollen. Moreover, the movement of staminal appendages matching the pollen viability changes is reported for the first time. The staminal appendages are the structures where pollinators land before foraging. The field experiments showed that the visitation frequency decreased sharply without staminal appendages. As a landing platform, the staminal connective appendages in B. americanum are crucial for pollinator positioning and collecting viable pollen.

     

FLORAL BIOLOGY OF MAGNOLIA

The floral biology of eight species of Magnolia native to the United States is described. The flowers are protogynous. They are pollinated by several species of beetles that enter buds as well as closed and open flowers to feed on nectar, stigmas, pollen, and secretions of the petals. Individual flowers persist from two to four days and undergo a series of petal, stigma, and stamen movements that assure pollination by beetles. It is suggested that the flowers of Magnolia are highly specialized for exclusive pollination by beetles. These specialization mechanisms produce large quantities of food for the beetles and deny other types of insects (bees, moths, etc.) access to the flowers at critical stages in the pollination process, i.e., when stigmas are mature and pollen is shed.     

Pollination and breeding system of Couepia uiti (Mart. and Zucc.) Benth (Chrysobalanaceae) in the Pantanal da Nhecolandia.

The pollination biology and breeding system of Couepia uiti was studied. In this species, flowers opened at 06:00 AM anthesis, and nectar production began at around 0800 h, reached a maximum volume from 09:30 AM to 10:30 AM, and decreased thereafter. The nectar sugar concentration increased continuously, but showed an abrupt increase from 10:00 AM to 12:00 AM. Pollen release occurred at about 09:30 AM and was quickly collected. The stigmas became receptive at around 12:00 AM. The pollinators of C. uiti included the bees Apis mellifera, Xylocopa sp. and Bombus sp., and three species of wasps. This conclusion was based on the observation that these hymenopterans had C. uiti pollen on their bodies, visited the receptive flowers, and touched the anthers and stigmas, thereby promoting pollination. Of these floral visitors, A. mellifera was considered to be the most efficient pollinator. However, mixed pollination also occurred. The number of C. uiti flowers visited in the morning (n = 52) was three times smaller than in the afternoon (n = 62), and the species richness of floral visitors was also bigger in the afternoon (eight in the afternoon versus five in the morning). This finding indicated that these floral visitors preferred to exploit nectar rather than pollen. Controlled pollination experiments showed that C. uiti was a self-incompatible species that produced fruits only by cross-pollination. Treatments such as agamospermy and spontaneous and self-pollinations did not produce fruits.     

Functional implications of the specialized staminal appendages in alpine ginger (Roscoea spp.: Zingiberaceae)

Floral organs are widely believed to enhance the pollination and reproductive success of angiosperms. However, the functional implication of some floral structures is still unknown. In this study, we explored the functional role of staminal appendages on male and female reproductive success of Himalayan Roscoea spp. and tested if their function differed between species with biotic pollination and autonomous selfing. Phenotypic manipulation is a powerful approach to test the functional effect of a particular trait on plant fitness. We compared various proxies of pollination success between intact flowers and flowers with manually excised staminal appendages. We found that the rate of visitation did not differ between intact and manipulated flowers. Our results revealed that in outcrossing Roscoea spp., the staminal appendages act as triggering devices to facilitate pollen release and deposition and also to manipulate the foraging position of pollinators to ensure both male and female reproductive success. In contrast, in autonomously selfing Roscoea spp., the removal of staminal appendages did not affect any aspect of pollination processes. Our results suggest that the staminal appendages are an integral component of outcrossing in Roscoea spp. and are maintained by selection pressure through both male and female reproductive success. This study provides important insights on how variation in breeding systems can provoke changes in the structure and function of floral organs among congeners.     

Interaction between floral color change and gender transition in the protandrous weed Saponaria officinalis

Natural selection has directed the evolution of floral traits so that pollinator visits are manipulated to maximize the fitness of individual plants by directing which other individual sires its seeds. In some plants, flowers change color over time and may have the ability to direct pollinators to rewarding flowers. In addition, by varying when pollen is available and when stigmas are receptive, protandrous plants can show variation in selfing rates. In this study, the association between color change and gender transition in flowers of Saponaria officinalis was examined. Anthocyanins were extracted from flowers of each gender stage to measure color using spectrophotometry. Female‐phase flowers were found to have significantly higher anthocyanin concentration than male‐phase flowers in both natural populations and experimental plots. This color change corresponded to a decrease in male sexual function, which was measured by the percentage of pollen grains stained as viable by lactophenol aniline blue and germinated on Brewbaker–Kwack media. Color change was phenotypically plastic. Plants grown in full sun had a more extensive color change than those grown in shaded experimental plots, and this effect was reversed the following year when the shading was removed. Pollinator observations documented both diurnal and nocturnal insect visitation. Fruit and seed set were equivalent on inflorescences bagged during daylight versus night, indicating that both diurnal and nocturnal insects are effective pollinators. If pollinators discriminate based on color, this could potentially reduce within‐plant floral visits and also geitonogamy. This study is the first to document flower color change and moth pollination in Saponaria officinalis.     

Staminal hairs enhance fecundity in the pollen‐rewarding self‐incompatible lily Bulbine abyssinica

Flowering plants typically use floral rewards to attract animal pollinators. Unlike nectar, pollen rewards are usually visible and may thus function as a signal that influences landing decisions by pollen‐seeking insects. Here we artificially manipulate the presence of both pollen and staminal hairs (a putative false signal of pollen reward availability) in the hermaphroditic lily Bulbine abyssinica (Xanthorrhoeaceae) to investigate their effects on bee visitation and fecundity, and also test for trade‐offs between pollen production and seed production. Honeybees, the primary floral visitors, are probably not able to distinguish between colours of petals, staminal hairs and pollen of B. abyssinica, according to analysis of reflectance spectra in a bee vision model. Flowers with both pollen and hairs removed had the lowest levels of bee visitation, seed set and seed abortions. Flowers containing hairs had an ～50% increase in visitation rate and seed set compared with emasculated flowers, while intact controls had the highest seed abortion rate. Ovule discounting in intact flowers is probably due to ovarian self‐incompatibility (or strong early inbreeding depression) as ovules penetrated by tubes from self‐pollen uniformly failed to develop into seeds. These results show that staminal hairs can enhance plant fecundity by increasing attraction of pollen‐seeking insects to flowers without increasing the risk of ovule discounting through pollinator‐mediated self‐pollination. © 2015 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2015, 177 , 481–490.     

Pollination and fruit‐set of Grevillea robusta in western Kenya

The floral visitors of silky oak, Grevillea robusta A. Cunn. ex R.Br., their foraging behaviour and their effects on fruit‐set were studied at Malava, western Kenya. Grevillea robusta is a popular tree for farm plantings in the eastern and central African highlands. Yield of seed has been disappointingly low in some areas and a lack of appropriate pollinators has been suggested as a possible cause. Investigations involved the monitoring of visitors on active inflorescences, assessment of the rewards available to potential pollinators, and exclusion experiments to establish the effects of various visitors on fruit‐set. The flowers are visited mainly by birds and insects. The likely pollinators of G. robusta are sunbirds (Nectarinia amethystina, N. cyanolaema, N. olivacea, N. superba and N. venusta) and white‐eyes (Zosterops kikuyuensis and Z. senegalensis). Very little aggressive behaviour between birds was recorded. No nocturnal pollinators were observed. Nectar was the major floral reward for pollinators, but is likely depleted by ants and honey bees, the foraging behaviour of which confirmed them to be nectar‐robbers. These insects hardly ever touched stigmas during their visits. Eighty‐nine per cent of bird visits were in the morning (07.00–10.00 hours) when nectar volume was highest. Inflorescences bagged to exclude birds set no fruits, and unmanipulated flowers and flowers bagged with self‐pollen set no fruits, indicating a self‐incompatibility mechanism. Control cross‐pollinated flowers displayed greatly increased fruit‐set (25.1%) compared with natural open‐pollination (0.9%). All these findings confirm the importance of cross‐pollen transfer to flowers and the necessity of pollinators for fruit‐set. Effective seed production requires activity of pollinators for self‐pollen removal and cross‐pollen deposition. Seed production stands for G. robusta should be established where flowering is prolific and bird pollinators are abundant.     

MORPHOLOGICAL STUDIES OF THE NYMPHAEACEAE. XII. THE FLORAL BIOLOGY OF CABOMBA CAROLINIANA

Observations have been made on the pollination ecology of Cabomba caroliniana Gray in Texas. Flowers are trimerous with morphologically similar perianth parts. The adaxial corolla spurs are nectariferous and attract small Diptera (e.g. Notiphila cressoni and Hydrellia bilobifera). Anthesis occurs for 2 consecutive days with flowers opening about 10:00 a.m. and closing around 4 p.m. on each day. First-day flowers have short, indehiscent stamens and longer pollen-receptive stigmata which arch outward over the nectaries. In 2nd-day flowers the stamens have elongated to the level of the stigmata and extrorse dehiscense occurs above the nectaries. Stigmata of 2nd-day flowers are pressed together at the center of the flower and are nonreceptive to pollen. Insects attracted to 2nd-day flowers in search of nectar become dusted with pollen (due to the position and extrorse dehiscence of the anthers) and as insects fly to 1st-day flowers, achieve cross-pollination by virtue of the stigmata position over the nectaries. Seed anatomy is similar to that of other nymphaeaceous genera (i.e., abundant perisperm, little cellular endosperm, a haustorial nucellar “tube,” and a small dicotyledonous embryo). Pollination morphology and comparative xylem anatomy support the segregation of Cabomba from the Nymphaeaceae, sensu stricto. The anatomical correlations between seeds and the myophilous pollination syndrome (found elsewhere in Nymphaeaceae, sensu lato), however, suggest a phyletic relationship.     

An assessment of pollinator visitation to Banksia spinulosa

Abstract Remote photo-monitoring of Banksia spinulosa inflorescences indicated that birds, mammals and insects were regular visitors. These included the sugar glider, brown antechinus, eastern pygmy possum, eastern spinebill, honeybee and several moth species. Eastern spine-bills were recorded at all inflorescences monitored while visitation by other animals was more sporadic. Inflorescences were visited at least once every 24 h, and visitation frequency was approximately evenly distributed during the day and night. Examination of pollen tube growth from experimental treatments indicated that pollination success was similar from both nocturnal and diurnal visitors. However, nocturnal visitors were more effective at removing pollen from newly opened flowers. The behaviour of mammals at inflorescences was such that they would transfer much more pollen to flowers than other visitors, and probably contact receptive stigmas more often. Overall, mammals were considered to be slightly more effective pollinators than the more obvious daytime visitors, eastern spinebills. Although insects visited regularly, they were thought to be less effective at pollinating flowers than vertebrate visitors. Moths carried very little pollen, and the foraging behaviour of other insects was unlikely to promote much pollination.     

INTERFERENCE THROUGH IMPROPER POLLEN TRANSFER IN MIXED STANDS OF IMPATIENS CAPENSIS AND I. PALLIDA (BALSAMINACEAE)

Mechanisms of interference through improper pollen transfer are described for sympatric populations of the simultaneously flowering annuals Impatiens capensis and I. pallida. Stigmas of both Impatiens species are receptive to conspecific pollen from the time of androecium disarticulation until after perianth drop. Pollen of I. pallida adheres to, and germinates on, the stigmas of I. capensis. The pollen tubes reach the ovules but do not fertilize them. In contrast, pollen of I. capensis adheres poorly to I. pallida stigmas and fails to germinate. Pollen mixtures of the two Impatiens species cause a much greater reduction in fruit set in I. capensis than in I. pallida. Despite the interference of I. pallida pollen, I. capensis persists in mixed populations with I. pallida by: 1) possessing stigmas receptive to pollen throughout the female phase; 2) having the ability to produce a full seed complement via one pollination event; and 3) possessing cleistogamous flowers to ensure sexual reproduction.     

In a world of white,flower colour matters: A white–purple transition signals lack of reward in an alpine Euphrasia

The New Zealand alpine flora displays a range of unusual characteristics compared with other alpine floras, in particular the high frequency of species with small white flowers. The presence of both white and bright purple flowers on the same plant in the New Zealand alpine annual creeping eyebright (Euphrasia dyeri Wettst.) provides an ideal opportunity to investigate the significance of flower colour in an environment where coloured flowers are rare. The relationships among flower age, gender phase, reward availability and petal colour were assessed in natural populations of E. dyeri. The effect of pollination on flower colour was tested using hand pollination of bagged flowers. Direct observations and videos of flowers were used to assess patterns of flower visitation by native and introduced pollinators. Unpollinated white E. dyeri flowers changed from white to purple within 6 days. However, pollination of white flowers triggered a significantly faster colour change, typically within 1–2 days. White flowers had receptive stigmas, large amounts of lipid‐rich pollen and small amounts of nectar, whereas stigmas of purple flowers are not receptive and flowers did not provide pollen or nectar rewards. Flowers were mainly visited by native syrphid flies. Both native syrphids and introduced Bombus bees showed a marked avoidance of purple flowers, tending to preferentially visit white flowers. Our study suggests that flower colour change from white to bright purple in E. dyeri functions to direct pollinators to rewarding, receptive flowers. As many Euphrasia L. species are described as having variably coloured flowers, this mechanism may be more widespread in the genus. Furthermore, our results add to the growing evidence that the dominance of white flowers in the New Zealand alpine is not simply due to a lack of colour discrimination among pollinators.     

Anthecology ofSchrankia nuttallii (Mimosaceae) on the tallgrass prairie

Schrankia nuttalii flowers through late spring on the tallgrass prairie. Although each stem produces an average of 26 capitate inflorescences only 12% of those inflorescences will open each day to disperse and receive polyads. Each inflorescence may live up to 48 hours but anthers abscise by late afternoon on the first day and the filaments change color and lose their scent. The 78–93 florets comprising each inflorescence open synchronously before dawn or during early morning hours. First day inflorescences ofS. nuttallii are herkogamous and fragrant. They are nectarless. Bombyliid flies and male bees are infrequent floral foragers so the major pollinators include female bees representing five families;Anthophoridae, Apidae, Colletidae, Halictidae, andMegachilidae. All foraging insects ignore second day inflorescences although stigmas are still receptive. Although 97% of all bees collected onS. nuttallii carrySchrankia polyads in their scopae or corbiculae 59% also carry the pollen/pollinaria of one or more coblooming angiosperms. At least 98% of all bees carrying mixed pollen loads incorporate the pollen/pollinaria of one or more nectariferous taxa (e.g.Asclepias spp.,Asteraceae, Convolvulaceae, Delphinium spec., etc.). Species of halictid bees are more likely to carry pure loads ofS. nuttallii polyads (70%) than bees of the four remaining families. Due to the nectarless florets and high degree of polylectic foraging bee-pollination inS. nuttallii converges more closely with the pollination systems of some AustralianAcacia spp. than with most other xeric/tropical genera of mimosoids studied in the western hemisphere.     

High specialisation in the pollination system of Mandevilla tenuifolia (J.C. Mikan) Woodson (Apocynaceae) drives the effectiveness of butterflies as pollinators

Butterfly pollination in the tropics is considered somewhat effective or solely effective in a few plant species. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that Mandevilla tenuifolia (Apocynaceae), which has floral attributes associated with psychophily, has strategies adapted to pollination by butterflies, restricting other floral visitors and making these insects act as efficient pollinators. We analysed the floral and reproductive biology of M. tenuifolia, as well as the frequency and efficiency of its flower visitors. M. tenuifolia is an herb whose flowers have strong herkogamy and secondary pollen presentation on the style head, which corresponds to 60.4% of pollen on the anthers. Flower longevity and the long period of receptivity of the stigmatic region associated with the large amount of pollen removed in the first visits suggest that flowers remain functionally female during part of anthesis. Butterflies, mainly of the families Nymphalidae and Pieridae, are the only pollinators of M. tenuifolia. Despite being self‐compatible, M. tenuifolia depends on biotic vectors for fruit production. A non‐significant difference in fruit set between controlled treatments and natural conditions suggests that the pollinators are efficient. The inclination resulting from the landing of butterflies on flowers, together with flower morphology, guiding the insect proboscis inside the floral tube, as well as the frequency and efficiency of butterfly visits, are evidence of the close relationship between butterflies and M. tenuifolia, and also of the efficiency of these insects as pollinators.     

FLORAL BIOLOGY,HUMMINGBIRD POLLINATION AND FRUIT PRODUCTION OF TRUMPET CREEPER (CAMPSIS RADICANS,BIGNONIACEAE)

Trumpet creeper is self-incompatible and bears long, tubular, orange flowers from June to September. Flowering peaks rapidly, then declines and continues at low levels for several weeks. The initial burst of flowering may attract pollinators that return even during subsequent reduced flowering. Most flowers open before noon and nectar production totals 110 μl of 26% sucrose equivalents per flower, an exceptionally high production for a temperate zone plant. Production ceases within 20–30 hr of flower opening, but corollas persist for several days and may serve to attract pollinators. Effective pollination reduces the period of stigma receptivity and speeds closing of stigma lobes. Only 1–9% of flowers produced mature fruits at four sites in Illinois and Missouri. Roughly 400 pollen grains had to be deposited on a receptive stigma to cause fruit development beyond an initial period of high abortion. At two sites, 17% and 89% of stigmas received over 400 pollen grains. Assuming 50% of deposited grains were from the same plant, fruit production at one site was clearly pollinator limited, that at the second site may have been. Ruby-throated Hummingbirds (Archilochus colubris) deposited ten times as much pollen per stigma per visit as honeybees (Apis mellifera) and bumblebees (Bombus spp.). Fruit set was highest where rubythroat visitation was most frequent. Trumpet creeper appears primarily adapted for hummingbird pollination, but can also be adequately pollinated by honeybees and bumblebees. This is one of the first attempts to relate pollen-depositing capabilities of pollinators of any plant to pollen requirements for fruit production. Several characteristics suggest that trumpet creeper may be adapted to pollination at low densities (often called traplining) in its presumed original, woodland, habitat.     

Floral traits mediate the vulnerability of aloes to pollen theft and inefficient pollination by bees

Background and Aims

Pollen-collecting bees are among the most important pollinators globally, but are also the most common pollen thieves and can significantly reduce plant reproduction. The pollination efficiency of pollen collectors depends on the frequency of their visits to female(-phase) flowers, contact with stigmas and deposition of pollen of sufficient quantity and quality to fertilize ovules. Here we investigate the relative importance of these components, and the hypothesis that floral and inflorescence characteristics mediate the pollination role of pollen collection by bees.

Methods

For ten Aloe species that differ extensively in floral and inflorescence traits, we experimentally excluded potential bird pollinators to quantify the contributions of insect visitors to pollen removal, pollen deposition and seed production. We measured corolla width and depth to determine nectar accessibility, and the phenology of anther dehiscence and stigma receptivity to quantify herkogamy and dichogamy. Further, we compiled all published bird-exclusion studies of aloes, and compared insect pollination success with floral morphology.

Key Results

Species varied from exclusively insect pollinated, to exclusively bird pollinated but subject to extensive pollen theft by insects. Nectar inaccessibility and strong dichogamy inhibited pollination by pollen-collecting bees by discouraging visits to female-phase (i.e. pollenless) flowers. For species with large inflorescences of pollen-rich flowers, pollen collectors successfully deposited pollen, but of such low quality (probably self-pollen) that they made almost no contribution to seed set. Indeed, considering all published bird-exclusion studies (17 species in total), insect pollination efficiency varied significantly with floral shape.

Conclusions

Species-specific floral and inflorescence characteristics, especially nectar accessibility and dichogamy, control the efficiency of pollen-collecting bees as pollinators of aloes.     

草豆蔻传粉生物学的研究

比较研究了花柱卷曲性植物草豆蔻 Alpinia hainanensis两种表型(上举型和下垂型)的传粉生物学特性。结果表明:草豆蔻的花柱卷曲运动节律与其他已报道的山姜属Alpinia植物基本一致,而下垂型花的花柱卷曲运动明显滞后于上举型花约2 h。草豆蔻的花柱卷曲运动中存在一些不同步的现象,甚至在同一花序上的两朵花的花柱运动节律亦会表现出不一致的现象,但上举型花的花药开裂时间却严格同步,都发生在同类型个体的柱头全部位于花药上方之后进行。草豆蔻上举型花的花蜜分泌量、单花花粉量、花粉/胚珠比率(P/O)均明显比下垂型花多,而两种表型的胚珠数、花蜜糖含量、氨基酸含量无显著差异。在草豆蔻的单花期内不同时间段进行人工授粉,上举型花在其柱头位于花药下方时进行人工授粉,其结实率明显比柱头位于花药上方时人工授粉的处理高,下垂型花则没有显著差异。在自然居群中,草豆蔻的主要传粉者是无垫蜂Ameglla sp.和两种木蜂Xylocopa sp.,但存在传粉者不足而影响结实率的现象。完全套袋、去雄和去雌(去柱头)处理的均不结实,表明草豆蔻中不存在无融合生殖、主动自花授粉和滞后自交的生殖保障现象。而人工自交和异交均具有较高的结实率,表明草豆蔻为自交亲和植物。草豆蔻的繁育系统是具花柱卷曲性运动的异花授粉的交配系统。     

Contrasting pollination ecology of Disepalum species (Annonaceae): evolutionary loss of the floral chamber and partial breakdown of protogyny associated with a shift in pollination system

Disepalum comprises two monophyletic sister subgenera, Enicosanthellum and Disepalum, with strikingly different floral morphologies: the former has two whorls of unfused sepals, forming a partially enclosed floral chamber, whereas the latter possesses a single whorl of congenitally fused petals and lacks a floral chamber. The pollination ecologies of representative species are reported, including assessments of floral phenology, pollinators and floral thermogenesis. Disepalum pulchrum (subgenus Enicosanthellum) has hermaphroditic flowers with a pollination chamber and is protogynous with prolonged anthesis; it is pollinated by nitidulid beetles and drosophilid flies. Disepalum anomalum (subgenus Disepalum) is also hermaphroditic with prolonged anthesis, but has incomplete protogyny due to overlapping pistillate and staminate phases; it is pollinated by meliponine bees, which are attracted by the pollen, but which are only able to transfer pollen to receptive stigmas during the overlap phase. Alternative evolutionary hypotheses are evaluated, including the possibility that the ancestor of the subgenus Disepalum lineage may have experienced a profound genetic mutation, possibly involving genes responsible for organ merism and fusion, resulting in the loss of the pollination chamber and hence favouring different floral visitors. The breakdown in protogyny required for effective pollination is likely to have had significant ramifications on population genetic diversity.     

Pollination Biology in a TropicalAcaciaHybrid (A. mangiumWilld. xA. auriculiformisA. Cunn. ex Benth.)

Floral biology and pollination mechanism of theAcaciahybrid(A. mangiumWilld. xA. auriculiformisA. Cunn. ex Benth.) growingin Thailand are investigated using light and electron microscopy.The hybrid is andromonoecious. A floral spike consists of about150 loosely arranged flowers. Flowers are cream coloured, fragrantand have no floral nectaries. The pistil has a solid style witha smooth, wet stigma and amphitropous ovules with immature integuments.The anther consists of eight loculi, each bearing only one 16-grainpolyad. The flowers are weakly protogynous. Anthesis is completeat 0500–0600 h but peak female receptivity begins at 0200–0300h and is completed that day. The stigmatic exudate is of thelipophilic type and is secreted from the stigmatic cells bya holocrine mechanism. Pollen is the main floral reward forthe insect pollinators. There are several floral characteristicswhich facilitate pollen transfer from anthers and depositionon stigmas.Apis melliferaandCeratinasp. are the most effectivepollinators because they are the most common visitors and carrya heavy load of hybrid polyads. However, their behaviour inforaging for pollen in the same tree and weak protogynous dichogamymay promote self-pollination in the hybrid. The hybrid has lowpollination success due to low pollinator number. An increasein exposure time of flowers to pollinators or pollinator numbermay increase pollination success but may not affect the rateof pollen deposition on stigmas due to the relatively smallsize of the stigma in relation to the polyad.Copyright 1998Annals of Botany Company Acaciahybrid,Acacia mangium, Acacia auriculiformis, pollination, pistil receptivity, anthesis, pollinators.