Rodent pollination in the Cape legume Liparia parva

Flowers of Liparia parva from which rodents were excluded had lower seed‐set than open flowers. The rodent Acomys subspinosus was captured in the vicinity of this plant species and captures had substantial numbers of L. parva pollen in their scats. Captured individuals of A. subspinosus visited L. parva flowers in tanks and removed standard petals to obtain the nectar. Typical of rodent‐pollinated species, L. parva, flowered in winter and flowers mostly opened in the evenings and the stigma‐nectar distance was about 10 mm. This is the first evidence for rodent pollination in the large cosmopolitan family, the Fabaceae.