Potential interspecific competition and host specificity: hispine beetles on Heliconia

Abstract. 1. Adults of rolled-leaf hispine beetles (Chrysomelidae, Coleoptera) spend their lives in the scrolls formed by immature leaves of Heliconia (Heli-coniaceae, Monocotyledonae) in Tropical America. As many as eight hispine species can intermingle in the host scrolls at a single site. Scrolls of single host species are invariably occupied by adults of more than one hispine species, and as many as five species can simultaneously occupy one scroll.
2. I made virgin scrolls, which had never contained any insects, by growing leaves under the cover of plastic bags.
3. Thirty-seven combinations of single hispine and Heliconia species were experimentally created in the virgin scrolls, at two sites and in two seasons, in Costa Rica. Combinations included all abundant host species at the sites.
4. All beetles left all leaves of the twenty-eight unnatural beetle—host combinations, within 24 h. On the other hand, none of the nine natural combinations was completely abandoned within the experimental period.
5. Thus, host specificity is not broader in the absence of similar hispine species that might be competitors, and interspecies competition does not affect this obvious aspect of resource utilization for these phytophagous insects.     

Negative Effects of Conspecific Floral Density on Fruit Set of Two Neotropical Understory Plants

Plant reproductive success is usually positively related to conspecific floral density, but neutral or negative effects of floral density on reproduction have also been reported. Differences in the relationship between reproduction and floral density largely originate from a trade‐off between increasing attractiveness versus increasing competition for pollinators at high floral densities. Although floral densities strongly vary in the understory of tropical forests, for instance, due to variation in light availability, little is known about the density dependence of reproduction in tropical understory plants. We used path analyses to disentangle direct and indirect effects of canopy openness and floral density on fruit set and analyzed the relationship between pollen load and floral density for two Neotropical understory plants, Heliconia metallica and Besleria melancholica. In both species, fruit set was not directly related to canopy openness, but decreased with increasing floral density. In H. metallica, canopy openness had an indirect negative effect on reproduction mediated by its effects on floral density. Effects of floral density on pollen loads were species‐specific. In B. melancholica, pollen loads linearly decreased with increasing floral density, indicating competition for pollinators at high densities. In H. metallica, pollen loads were reduced at both low and high densities, indicating an interplay of facilitative and competitive effects of floral density on pollen deposition. In contrast to other studies, we found negative density dependence of reproduction in both understory species. Negative effects of floral density on reproduction appear to be related to pollinator‐mediated effects on reproduction rather than to variation in abiotic conditions.     

Resource heterogeneity and community structure: A case study inHeliconia imbricata Phytotelmata

Summary Complex or non-additive differences in the distribution and abundance of arthropod species inhabiting the water-filled bracts ofHeliconia imbricata can be created by simple manipulations of resource levels. The primary resources for these assemblages are the corollas of the flowers that accumulate in the bracts. Removing or adding corollas to individual bracts changes the pattern in the abundance of arthropod species within each bract such that bracts with different treatments ultimately differ in composition and numerical associations among species. These results suggest that direct and indirect resource-mediated factors can structure or significantly affect the distribution and abundance of species in these and perhaps other assemblages. Thus, in natural communities, if resources are heterogeneous among patches (such as among the bracts in this study) structure in a given patch may be a function of the resource level of that patch and can differ significantly from neighboring patches that provide different resource levels.     

Characterization of 10 microsatellite markers for the understorey Amazonian herb Heliconia acuminata

We characterized 10 microsatellite loci for the plant Heliconia acuminata from the Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project (Manaus, Brazil). Markers were screened in 61 individuals from one population and were found to be polymorphic with an average of eight alleles per locus. We found moderate to high levels of polymorphic information content, and observed and expected heterozygosities. All 10 markers are suitable for spatial genetic structure and parentage analyses and will be used for understanding H. acuminata dynamics across a fragmented landscape.     

蝎尾蕉的引种栽培研究

中国科学院华南植物园自20世纪80年代从国外引种蝎尾蕉科（Heliconiaceae）植物,至2002年已引种66次,共38个种类（包括种、品种和杂交种等）,其中能正常开花的有31个种和品种。通过多年的栽培、繁殖试验和调查观察表明,冬季低温是限制蝎尾蕉引种成功的关键气候因子。不同的种类完成生长发育所需时间不同,最长时间的富红蝎尾蕉（Heliconia bourgaeana Petersen）从吸芽开始萌发至开花需要13—15个月,最短时间的火红蝎尾蕉（H.densiflora Verlot cv．Fire Flash）仅需3-4个月。不同种类的个体花期差异亦非常明显,假日蝎尾蕉（H.angusta Vellozo cv．Holiday）单株花期长达6个月,在所引种的蝎尾蕉中花期最长,其余花期大多为1-3个月。大多数种类具有较高的园林或经济价值,其中黄苞蝎尾蕉（H．1atispatha Benth．cv．Orange Gyro）、金咀蝎尾蕉（H.rostrata Ruiz＆Pavon）、富红蝎尾蕉、翠鸟蝎尾蕉（H.hirsuta L．f.CV．Darrell）、扇形蝎尾蕉（H.librata Griggs）、假日蝎尾蕉和狭叶蝎尾蕉（H．aurantiaca Ghiesbr．ex Lem．）可直接应用于广州地区的园林建设上或露天栽培以生产切花。     

金嘴蝎尾蕉花部维管束系统的解剖学研究

利用石蜡切片技术对蝎尾蕉科代表植物金嘴蝎尾蕉（Heliconia rostrata Ruiz＆Pavon）的花部维管束系统进行了解剖学研究。结果表明,心皮背束在延长部的基部分裂为内外2分支,内方分支与胎座维管束汇合后进入花柱,远轴面2枚外方分支在延长部的顶部分裂为2～4束进入远轴面2枚外轮雄蕊,而近轴面1枚外方分支则进入退化结构成为其中脉;隔膜束在延长部顶部亦分裂为3～5束,最终分别进入3枚内轮雄蕊;子房壁其它维管束最终进入花被片。本研究认为金嘴蝎尾蕉花部花瓣状退化结构与另外2枚外轮雄蕊具有完全相同的维管束系统来源,应属于雄蕊成员,且支持Kress关于蝎尾蕉科是姜群的姊妹群,区别于芭蕉群其它3科的观点。     

Development and characterization of microsatellite loci for two Caribbean Heliconia (Heliconiaceae: H. bihai and H. caribaea)

? Premise of the study: Microsatellite loci were developed to characterize genetic variation and population subdivision in Heliconia bihai and H. caribaea from the Caribbean Islands. ? Methods and Results: A total of 13 new microsatellite markers were developed and characterized in the two Caribbean heliconias. Di-, tri-, and tetranucleotide repeats were identified with one to 17 alleles per locus, and the observed heterozygosity ranged from 0.13 to 0.87. Additionally, cross-species amplification was successful in eight out of 13 loci. ? Conclusions: The microsatellite loci developed have discriminatory potential to be used in genetic characterizations of Caribbean Heliconia. Both H. bihai and H. caribaea are known to have adaptive interactions with their hummingbird pollinators, and the characterized microsatellite markers will be used to study mating system, genetic structure, and phylogeographic patterns in Caribbean Heliconia.     

Florivory by the occupants of phytotelmata in flower parts can decrease host plant fecundity

Some types of plant accumulate liquid in their inflorescences creating phytotelmata. These environments protect the flowers against florivory, although they may be colonized by aquatic or semi-aquatic florivorous insect larvae, whose effects on the fitness of the plants remain unclear. We tested the hypothesis of floral antagonism by the occupants of phytotelmata, which predicts that florivory by the occupants of the phytotelmata represents a cost to the female fitness of the plant, reducing its fecundity. We manipulated experimentally the infestation by 3 florivores larvae species occupants of phytotelmata in inflorescences of Heliconia spathocircinata (Heliconiaceae) to test for negative direct trophic effects on the fecundity of the flowering and fruiting bracts. We found that the foraging of the hoverfly (Syrphidae) and moth (Lepidoptera) larvae in the inflorescences contributed to a decline in the fecundity of the plant. While the lepidopteran impacted fecundity when foraging in both flowering and fruiting bracts, the syrphid only affected the fruiting bracts, which indicates that the nectar and floral tissue are the principal resource exploited by the hoverfly. By contrast, soldier fly (Stratiomyidae) had a neutral effect on fecundity, while foraging in flowering or fruiting bracts. These findings corroborate our hypothesis, that herbivory by the larval occupants represents cost to the host plant having phytotelmata. The negative influence of this foraging on plant fecundity will nevertheless depend on the consequences of the exploitation of resources, which vary considerably in ephemeral habitats such as the phytotalmanta of flower parts.     

姜目芭蕉群植物种子解剖学研究及其系统学意义

研究了姜目芭蕉群代表植物象腿蕉属象腿蕉(Ensete glaucum)、旅人蕉属旅人蕉(Ravenala madagascariensis)与蝎尾蕉属Heliconia faranmansis?D6肿咏馄侍卣鳌＝峁砻鳎笸冉段藜僦制ぃ制し只霰砥ぁ⒑癖谧橹赴褪赴悖赴瞿谇邢虮谟刖断虮谠龊瘢缓系闱哂泻系闶矣牒系愣眩谥制ち恢榭浊兄榭琢旌涂赘堑姆只榭琢煳涡停赘侵挥赡谥制は赴钩桑褐榭浊制ぱ由煨纬芍制昵唬和馀呷?层细胞：内胚乳细胞径向延长,细胞内充满淀粉粒。旅人蕉具假种皮,种皮分化出外种皮、中种皮和内种皮,外种皮细胞纵向延长,中种皮为7-9层切向延长的薄壁细胞,内种皮为石细胞型：合点区无合点室,内种皮在此出现缺口,缺口为整体轮廓呈喇叭形的近等径薄壁细胞群填充;珠孔区无珠孔领与孔盖的分化：外胚乳缺,内胚乳发达。蝎尾蕉属的Heliconia faranmansis?D6肿游藜僦制ぃ制の薹只墒闾寤闲∏揖断蜓映げ⑴帕形だ缸吹谋”谙赴钩桑褐榭锥酥制は蛲庋由欤纬衫嗨平浦肿拥闹指纷唇峁梗何蘅赘怯胫榭琢斓哂杏晒ば纬傻挠不牵缓系闱肼萌私断嗨疲煌馀呷樵?-4层细胞,细胞壁波浪形弯曲,内胚乳发达。综合作者对兰花蕉(Orchidanha chinensis)和前人对芭蕉群的种子解剖学研究结果,初步总结了芭蕉群种子解剖学特征及其进化式样,讨论了姜目芭蕉群四科种子解剖学特征的系统分类学意义。     

蝎尾蕉属植物的组织培养与快速繁殖

以蝎尾蕉属植物的吸芽为外植体,经灭菌处理后接种到MS BA 2-10 mg L-1 NAA 0.2-1.0 mg L-1培养基上,能进行不定芽的诱导和增殖,不同品种的增殖倍率相差较大,所需最适BA的浓度也不同.生根培养基以MS NAA 0.5 mg L-4 0.5%活性炭的效果较好.以沙,或泥炭土:沙=1:1,或珍珠岩:河沙=1:1三种基质移栽的试管苗,成活率达到90%以上.