Search results for " Pollination"
showing 10 items of 12 documents
Strong signature of selection in seeder populations but not in resprouters of the fynbos heathErica coccinea(Ericaceae)
2016
A higher frequency of natural selection is expected in populations of organisms with shorter generation times. In fire-prone ecosystems, populations of seeder plants behave as functionally semelparous populations, with short generation times compared to populations of resprouter plants, which are truly iteroparous. Therefore, a stronger signature of natural selection should be detected in seeder populations, favoured by their shorter generation times and higher rates of population turnover. Here we test this idea in Erica coccinea from the Cape Floristic Region, which is dimorphic for post-fire regeneration mode. We measured three floral traits supposedly subject to natural selection in see…
Invasive bees and their impact on agriculture
2020
Fil: Aizen, Marcelo A. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente; Argentina. Fil: Aizen, Marcelo A. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnica. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente; Argentina. Fil: Arbetman, Marina P. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente; Argentina. Fil: Arbetman, Marina P. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnica. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente; Argentina. Fil: Chacoff, Natacha P. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Instituto de Ecología Regional; Argentina. Fil: Chalcoff, Vanin…
Inflorescence scents of Calendula maritima, C. suffruticosa subsp. fulgida, and their hybrid
2018
Premise of research. Hybridization is an important driver of plant evolutionary processes. By attracting the same pollinators to different species, floral scents may be involved in the formation of hybrids and breakdown of species boundaries. In contrast, by attracting a different suite of pollinators to hybrids and their parents, floral scents are believed to contribute to speciation processes initiated by hybridization events. Scents may or may not differ between the hybrids and their parents, but little is known about the scent chemistry of parental species and their hybrids. Methodology. We studied the inflorescence scents of parental Calendula maritima and C. suffruticosa subsp. fulgid…
Interspecific variation of inflorescence scents and insect visitors in Allium (Amaryllidaceae: Allioideae)
2019
Allium is a large monocotyledonous genus, with many species of high economic importance. Knowledge of the pollination biology and the chemical ecology of pollination in this genus is far from being complete. We studied flower visitors of some Allium species in their native habitat and how these interaction partners communicate by olfactory cues. Floral volatiles of five Mediterranean species were investigated by dynamic headspace and thermal desorption-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (TD-GC/MS). Floral visitors were observed and captured. The physiological activity of scent components in antennae of flower visitors and congeneric species was tested by gas chromatographic/electroantenno…
Floral volatiles in a sapromyiophilous plant and their importance in attracting house fly pollinators
2015
Floral scent in sapromyiophilous plants often consists of complex blends with not only fetid (e.g., sulfides) but also sweet (e.g., terpenoids) volatile organic compounds and a recent study suggests that both groups of compounds are involved in pollinator attraction. However, little is known about the number and identity of compounds involved in pollinator attraction in these deceptive plants that mimic breeding sites of fly pollinators. In the present paper, we studied flower volatiles of sapromyiophilous Periploca laevigata and their capability to elicit biological responses in one of the pollinator species, Musca domestica. Floral volatiles were collected by dynamic headspace and analyse…
Inflorescence-visiting insects of a functionally dioecious wild grapevine
2018
The wild grapevine [Vitis vinifera L. subsp. sylvestris (Gmelin) Hegi] is the Eurasian dioecious ancestral form of mostly monoecious domesticated cultivars (Vitis vinifera subsp. vinifera). There are different hypotheses about grapevine pollination, varying from insect to wind pollination to spontaneous self-pollination. The aim of this paper is to update our knowledge on the biology of the wild grapevine by studying the insects visiting their inflorescences. During the fieldworks, floral visitors were observed, captured and identified. The most frequent insects visiting both sexes of wild grapevine were beetles (55%) followed by bees (45%). The present study shows that although in vineyard…
Api e pronubi selvatici nella produzione di Coriandrum sativum L. (Famiglia Apiaceae) in Sicilia occidentale
2009
Coriandrum sativum L. (Apiaceae - Umbelliferae) is an aromatic annual plant, subspontaneous in several Mediterranean countries. It is cultivated in various states of western Asia, North Africa and Europe. In Italy with the increment of immigration the request of coriandrum fresh state (grass cimicina) and powder to seeds are in increase. In Sicilian territory, for estimating the role of pollinators (wild pollinators and bees) in the increment of seeds production of Coriandrum sativum, a triennial surveying has been carried out, comparing three treatments: self-pollination, bees pollination and free pollination. The production of Coriandrum sativum obtained have been in the first year of 132…
Headspace Volatile Composition of the Flowers of Caralluma europaea N.E.Br. (Apocynaceae)
2009
The volatile constituents of the flowers of Caralluma (Apteranthes) europaea (Guss.) N.E. Br. (Apocynaceae - Asclepiadoideae) from Lampedusa Island were analyzed by headspace method. The analyses allowed the identification and quantification of 41 compounds. The main components were, among the monoterpenoids, terpinolene (23.3%), a-terpinene (19.1%) and linalool (18.4%), whereas, among the carbonylic compounds the major constituents were heptanal (2.0%), octanoic acid (2.4%) and hexanoic acid (1.7%). It is worth to mention the presence of a nitrogen containing compound, indole (0.8%) and of a sulphur containing compound, dimethylsulphide (t). The compounds found in the flowers of C. europea…
Caralluma europaea on Lampedusa Island
2011
The paper deals with the Ecology of Caralluma europaea (Apocynaceae, Asclepiadoidae) in its type locality.
Potential impact of genetically modified Lepidoptera-resistant Brassica napus in biodiversity hotspots: Sicily as a theoretical model
2016
The general increase of the cultivation and trade of Bt transgenic plants resistant to Lepidoptera pests raises concerns regarding the conservation of animal and plant biodiversity. Demand for biofuels has increased the cultivation and importation of oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.), including transgenic lines. In environmental risk assessments (ERAs) for its potential future cultivation as well as for food and feed uses, the impact on wild Brassicaeae relatives and on non-target Lepidoptera should be assessed. Here we consider the potential exposure of butterflies as results of possible cultivation or naturalization of spilled seed in Sicily (Italy). Diurnal Lepidoptera, which are pollinat…