Search results for "Pollination"
showing 10 items of 114 documents
FLIES AS POLLINATORS OF MELITTOPHILOUS SALVIA SPECIES (LAMIACEAE)
2014
UNLABELLED • PREMISE OF THE STUDY Floral adaptation to a functional pollinator group does not necessarily mean close specialization to a few pollinator species. For the more than 950 species of Salvia, only bee and bird pollinations are known. Restriction to these pollinators is mainly due to the specific flower construction (lever mechanism). Nevertheless, it has been repeatedly suggested that Salvia flowers might also be pollinated by flies. Are flies able to handle the lever mechanism? Are they functionally equivalent pollinators? In this study, we compared and quantified pollen transfer by bees and flies to test whether flies are true pollinators in Salvia.• METHODS We identified pollin…
A comprehensive RNA-Seq-based gene expression atlas of the summer squash (Cucurbita pepo) provides insights into fruit morphology and ripening mechan…
2021
[EN] Background Summer squash (Cucurbita pepo: Cucurbitaceae) are a popular horticultural crop for which there is insufficient genomic and transcriptomic information. Gene expression atlases are crucial for the identification of genes expressed in different tissues at various plant developmental stages. Here, we present the first comprehensive gene expression atlas for a summer squash cultivar, including transcripts obtained from seeds, shoots, leaf stem, young and developed leaves, male and female flowers, fruits of seven developmental stages, as well as primary and lateral roots. Results In total, 27,868 genes and 2352 novel transcripts were annotated from these 16 tissues, with over 18,0…
Pollination ecology of the dioecious tree Commiphora guillauminii in Madagascar
2004
In dioecious plant species differences in morphology and resources between female and male flowers can have consequences for flower visitation rates. Female flowers sometimes lack pollen and can be less attractive to pollinators than male flowers. We studied the pollination ecology of the dioecious tree Commiphora guillauminii in a dry deciduous forest in western Madagascar. We recorded floral display, visiting insect species and visitation rates for female and male trees. The results showed that female trees produce significantly larger but fewer flowers per inflorescence than male ones. Number of flowers per tree did not differ between the sexes. During 270 observation-hours we observed 1…
Does Forest Fragmentation and Selective Logging Affect Seed Predators and Seed Predation Rates of Prunus africana (Rosaceae)?
2007
Forest fragmentation and selective logging can influence the life cycle of tropical tree species at several levels, e.g., by lowering pollination, by limiting seed dispersal, and by increasing seed predation. Understanding human-induced modifications in ecosystem processes such as seed predation is essential for conservation management of threatened species. We studied the impact of forest fragmentation and selective logging on seed predation of the endangered tree Prunus africana in the tropical rain forest of Kakamega, Kenya. We quantified the activity of seed predators in the main forest, forest fragments, and in sites of different logging intensity in the dry and rainy seasons of 2003 a…
Caralluma europaea on Lampedusa Island
2011
The paper deals with the Ecology of Caralluma europaea (Apocynaceae, Asclepiadoidae) in its type locality.
Electrophysiological and behavioural responses of the housefly to “sweet” volatiles of the flowers of Caralluma europaea (Guss.) N.E. Br.
2013
In sapromyiophilous plants, up to date, long range attraction of fly pollinators has been thoroughly investigated and attributed to ‘‘fetid’’ floral compounds, while the ‘‘sweet’’ floral scent fraction has not been spe- cifically investigated and its role has received little atten- tion. The aim of the present study was to verify if terpenoids, which are the main compounds of the floral bouquet of Caralluma europaea, play a role in the attrac- tion of its pollinator Musca domestica. Terpinolene, a- terpinene and linalool, described as the three main volatiles of the flowers of C. europaea, were evaluated in electro- physiological investigations and blends of these com- pounds as well as the…
Sex-specific patterns of antagonistic and mutualistic biotic interactions in dioecious and gynodioecious plants
2013
a b s t r a c t A major transition in flowering plants has been the evolution of separate sexes from hermaphroditism via gynodioecy which is considered to be the most important route. Biotic interactions, both antagonist and mutualistic, have been proposed to influence this transition which is generally accompanied by the evolution of sexual dimorphism in secondary sexual traits. While some researchers have studied sex- specific patterns in herbivory and pollination, less attention has been paid to pathogens/parasites and a limited number of studies have revised sex-specific patterns in mycorrhizal symbiosis. In this article, we explore sex-specific interactions in dioecious and gynodioecio…
The breeding system of Fumana ericifolia: first evidence of autogamy in woody Cistaceae
2001
Fumana ericifolia belongs to the family Cistaceae, in which all perennial species previously studied have been reported to be self-incompatible and xenogamous. Here we show that F. ericifolia is self-compatible and autogamous. Its flowers last only four to eight hours and produce a small amount of pollen and ovules. Self-pollination depends on changes in the relative position of the stigma and the anthers, triggered by the abscission of the petals; this in turn causes closing of the sepals, which push the anthers onto the stigma. Pollen remains highly viable and germinable, and the stigma keeps its receptivity several hours after the loss of the petals. Hand pollination treatments revealed …
The Staminal Lever Mechanism in Salvia L. (Lamiaceae) - a Review
2003
Abstract: The genus Salvia encompasses about 900 species distributed world-wide. It is characterized by the famous staminal lever mechanism of the flower which is one of the best known examples of a nototribic pollination mechanism. We hypothesize that structure and functioning of the staminal levers play a major role as key structures in speciation. To cope with the complex evolutionary processes involved, a number of different methodological approaches are needed. The present paper summarizes the literature referring to structural and functional diversity, breeding systems, systematics and evolution in Salvia.
Functional implications of the staminal lever mechanism in Salvia cyclostegia (Lamiaceae)
2011
Flower morphology and inflorescence architecture affect pollinator foraging behaviour and thereby influence the process of pollination and the reproductive success of plants. This study explored possible ecological functions of the lever-like stamens and the floral design in Salvia cyclostegia.Flower construction was experimentally manipulated by removing either the lower lever arms or the upper fertile thecae of the two stamens from a flower. The two types of manipulated individuals were intermixed with the control ones and randomly distributed in the population.Removing the sterile lower lever arms significantly reduced handling time per flower of the main pollinator, Bombus personatus. I…